Andrea Giovanni Zipoli was 'Papi' for his four children, 'Zip' for his colleagues, for everyone simply 'Andrea'.
Born in Rome on April 29, 1958, he was the third of Corrado and Veronica Simcock's five sons. He became passionate about flying as a boy, and at the age of eighteen, after graduating from a scientific high school, he was admitted to the Italian Air Force Academy of Pozzuoli (Course «Sparviero III»). After completing his training in 1980, he began an intense career as a pilot, first in the Italian Air Force and then, since 1997, in the civil sector. A decent, thoughtful and friendly man, he generously took care of both his family, which had grown over time, and of the friends he collected in various contexts.
He was a loving and helpful husband and dad, a competent and motivated pilot, but also a generous and selfless man, who devoted his time to several volunteer activities. For instance, Andrea was engaged in the donation and promotion of the gift of blood, following the example of Brother Vasco Santi, a Marist Brother whom he had met in high school at the "San Leone Magno" Institute, and who had founded the "Blood Bank" of the school, which later merged into the Association "Ematos-Fidas". In addition, he collaborated as a volunteer with "Mayday Italia", an organization which promotes peer support and psychological support projects after traumatic events or in areas of chronic stress, and with the Committee and Foundation "October 8, 2001-Lest we forget", which carries out the commitment to improve flight and air transport safety in memory of the 2001 Linate accident.
Andrea has always led a measured and healthy life, until, without any previous signs, in October 2019 he began to suffer abdominal pain which, after specific tests, led to the diagnosis: intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma, not surgically operable and with widespread metastases to the liver, lymph nodes and peritoneum. For a month, Andrea faced this difficult trial with great tenacity and with his usual spirit, without ever abandoning his faith in the only therapy that research could provide for his case.
On December 6, 2019, after just a month of treatment, he lost his battle against this disease, which took him away when he was only 61 years old.
In his memory, on his birthday, his wife Luisa and his children Chiara, Lucia, Marco and Luca organized a collective donation to the APIC - Association of Italian Cholangiocarcinoma Patients, which was joined by the many relatives, friends and colleagues who loved him, and who mourned his untimely and sudden death. The initiative aroused a wave of solidarity and affection, which saw the participation of a hundred people, even outside Italy, and which made it possible to raise over € 6,000 in favor of research on bile ducts cancers. It was a choral and moving 'birthday present' that we are sure Andrea would have appreciated.