Chief Warrant Officer receives NATO high honors, closes career

Lt Gen Herrmann, the Commander of the NATO Communication Services Agency Headquarters, awarded Chief Warrant Officer Antonio Benedetto, Italian Air Force with the NATO Meritorious Service Medal Feb. 17 at the NATO Community Conference Center in Bagnoli, Naples.

Lt Gen Herrmann, the Commander of the NATO Communication Services Agency Headquarters, awarded Chief Warrant Officer Antonio Benedetto, Italian Air Force with the NATO Meritorious Service Medal Feb. 17 at the NATO Community Conference Center in Bagnoli, Naples. Italian Air Force Col. Dario Nicolella, NCSA Sector Naples commander and and personnel assigned to the command were present for the ceremony. The citation was signed by NATO Secretary General, Anders Rasmussen and he praised Benedetto for his selfless and unwavering commitment to duty while serving as the Head of CORE Section, in Automated Information Systems Branch, during the period of January 2008 to August 2009. Benedetto was awarded the NATO Meritorious Service Medal for consistently placing the needs of the Agency above his own and he was constantly committed to pursuing high quality solutions to a plethora of complex technical issues. "He provided an impeccable example of what an outstanding Non-Commissioned Officer should look like to peers and subordinates alike,” according to his award citation.

 

"His exceptional ability as an organizer and planner enabled NCSA Sector Naples to address and correct several INFOSEC shortfalls affecting Information Systems in support of Joint Forces Command Naples and several subordinate commands within the Naples Sector,” according to his award citation. Benedetto joined the Italian Air force 21 years ago and his partner Lina Cristofaro, a novelist, recently published a romance novel called: "Iperbole D'amore.” He has a daughter named Federica, and two sons: Giorgio and Antonio. The "NATO Meritorious Service Medal” was established by the North Atlantic Council in 2003 to award military and civilian personnel who have been commended for providing exceptional or remarkable service to NATO. The award is given every year to a few select individuals by the NATO Secretary General. This is the second time that someone from NCSA Sector Naples has been recognized with this award.