The Pope: 'We are still bombing. No one should be afraid of death coming from the sky"
Audience of ITA managers and staff with the Pope a few days before the long journey to Africa. Papal flights are a tradition started in 1964 by Paul VI
"Planes should always be carriers of peace, never of war! No one should be afraid of the threats of death and destruction coming from the sky. After the tragic experiences of the 20th century, aerial bombardments should have been banned forever! Instead, they are still there, and technological development, positive in itself, is put at the service of war. This is not progress, it is regression!". Leo XIV received ITA Airways executives and staff in audience, and in his speech he addressed the issues of war, referring to the ongoing wars.
"Important to trace routes of peace". The history of Alitalia-Ita linked to apostolic travel
"Dear friends, in this scenario, it becomes even more important to trace routes of peace in the skies, and I thank you because, in the mission that the Lord has entrusted to me, I know I can count on you. I wish you all the best for the journey of ITA Airways and the Lufthansa Group, and I invoke the Lord's blessing for you and your families," said Leo, who recalled how "the history of the apostolic journeys of the Popes by air, starting with St. Paul VI, is linked in a special way to the Italian national airline, first Alitalia and now ITA Airways. And I too, God willing, will be able to use your service again, in twenty days' time, for the trip to Africa (Algeria, Cameroon, Angola and Equatorial Guinea, ed.)". He continued: "My Predecessors and the Co-workers who accompanied them on their international travels have found in the Staff of Alitalia and ITA, not only qualified and experienced professionals, but also people capable of creating a serene, I would almost say family-like, environment, where respect goes hand in hand with devotion".
"Papal flights are an eloquent symbol of the mission of the pontiffs in the contemporary era"
"Meeting you," Prevost continued, "gives me the opportunity to express my personal and the Holy See's appreciation and gratitude for this valuable service. I also trust that, in the spirit of this well-established and cordial collaboration, the welcome given to the Holy Father, to his retinue and to the journalists flying with him will continue to reflect that special attention and benevolence that the times in which we live make ever more necessary. Papal flights are one of the most eloquent symbols of the mission of the Successors of Peter in contemporary times. In a special way, on his apostolic journeys, the Pope appears to everyone as a messenger of peace: his routes are what they should always be, that is, bridges of dialogue, encounter, fraternity". That of the papal flights - Vatican News recalls - is a tradition started in 1964 by Paul VI with the historic pilgrimage to the Holy Land in the birthplaces of Christianity, and continued by all the Popes that have succeeded him; first of all John Paul II, the globetrotting Pope with 104 trips abroad to his credit, then Benedict XVI with 24 international journeys and Francis with 47 tours in 66 countries. Leo has so far made one trip to Turkey and Lebanon between November and December 2025.
