Highways to the sky, highways to Italy

Past, present and future. The aircraft industry was one of the main drivers of international growth during the twentieth century. Today, it is one of the manufacturing sectors with the highest technological content. And for all nations, it represents a bridge to the future.

To mark the 2021 World Routes event, hosted by Sea Aeroporti di Milano, Fondazione Fiera Milano has delved into its impressive library of archive material, comprising one of the most important, precious collections of images and documents on the history of Italy.

The material chosen consists of images specially collated, in accordance with logical, coherent criteria, for the exhibition entitled “The rebirth of a country and its economic boom as seen through its aircraft and motor industries at the Milan Trade Fair”.

These twenty images depicting events organised at the Milan Trade Fair between 1945 and 1965, are subdivided into two sections which mutually complete each other: the first ten cover aeroplanes and helicopters, culminating in the evocative sensations of the first space trips, whilst the other ten images show cars and motorbikes, tractors and trains.

The mosaic thus created focuses on the key role played by the aircraft industry, in other words the “highways to the sky” and the transport industry in general during a historical period which was critical for Italy, Europe and the world. The aftermath of World War II sparked reconstruction and the economic boom.

This was a historical era between the end of the Second World War in 1945 and the early 1960s, a period of immense vitality for all Italians who yearned for employment, economic growth and the chance to experience development and prosperity. Amongst planes, cars, crowds flocking to exhibitions and illustrious visitors, this highway to the future can clearly be seen in the documents selected from the Fondazione Fiera Milano Historical Archives.

The increasing internationalisation of the Italian economy after the period of nationalistic autarchy during the 1930s and the disastrous Second World War, are symbolised by the routes flown by the national airline, which in the 1950s and 1960s was one of the stars of the Trade Fair.

The industry of aircraft and motor vehicles. Their symbolic and tangible strengths can be appreciated perfectly on the exhibition stands at the Milan Trade Fair. The Italy that rebuilt itself from the rubble of the Second World War showcases its assets at the Milan Trade Fair.

At the Milan Trade Fair pavilions, Italy’s national industrial system is able to showcase its skills and innovations throughout the golden years of reconstruction and economic boom: from Agusta to Fiat Aviazione, from Nardi to Breda, from Alfa Romeo to Piaggio, from Moto Guzzi to Ferrari, from Landini Trattori to Alitalia. Aeroplanes and helicopters, trains and tractors, motorcycles and cars.

Together, these undertakings possess a particular economic and diplomatic value as well as a strong identity, as demonstrated by the thirty images in the exhibition. These are products made by Italian companies, telling the story of the Italian escape from poverty and the transformation of an entire nation from a world of agriculture to a future of industry. There are visits by leaders of the Italian state, European royal families, the church and international celebrities.

All of this creates a profoundly popular form of identity. The Second World War, which with its mixture of torment and desire to start anew, to some extent resembles the current situation devastated by Covid, yet characterised by a strong desire to resume all human and economic activity.

Similarly, in that period, tens of thousands of Italians flocked to the Trade Fair every week; they dreamt of boarding an aeroplane or jumping on a helicopter, a motorcycle or a racing car, so that they could put the past behind them and above all, look towards the future.