Vice Admiral Ignacio Villanueva is a 1987 graduate of the Spanish Naval Academy.
In 1989 he earned his US Navy wings, becoming a Naval Aviator. He then flew the AV-8V PLUS on board the Spanish carrier ‘PRINCIPE DE ASTURIAS.’ During that period, he was also appointed as an exchange pilot with the Spanish Air force, flying the EF-18 A+ and taking part in the B-H conflict, where he flew several combat missions deployed from Aviano AB, Italy.
He has commanded the gun patrol boat ‘P-11 BARCELO’, the high seas patrol boat ‘P-63 ARNOMENDI’, the LST ‘L-42 PIZARRO’, the Fleet Air Arm ‘FLOAN’ and the Airfield of the Rota Naval Base. He was the Director of the Fleet Naval Aviation School and the CO of the 9th HARRIER Squadron. Ashore, he has served in a variety of assignments, most notably as a staff officer in the International Relations Department at the Navy HQ, as ACOS N3 in the SPMARFOR High Readiness Maritime HQ, and as Head of the Operations department at the Spanish Fleet HQ. Abroad he was stationed in Mons, Belgium, serving at SHAPE J5 as the ACO capability requirements and force planning officer; and in Pristina, Kosovo, working as UN peace observer and liaison officer between KFOR HQ and UNMIK HQ.
Additionally, he has attended several national and NATO courses including the NATO perational Planning, NATO Staff Officer Defense Planning and NATO expeditionary operations courses. He graduated with distinction from the US Naval War College, Newport, Rhode Island, after having completed the Naval Staff and the Naval Command Courses in years 2001 and 2018 respectively. He also obtained a Master of Arts in National Security and Strategic Studies from the same US Naval War College. His academic background is completed with a job as a professor at the High Defense Studies Center in Madrid, Spain.
He was promoted to Rear Admiral on the 5th December 2019. As Flag Officer he has been appointed as 2nd Commander of the Spanish High Readiness Maritime HQ and DCOM SPMARFOR. He was appointed as Force Commander of the EU NAVFOR Somalia Op Atalanta on board the frigates NUMANCIA and SANTA MARIA. On 26 February 2021 he was appointed as COS Spanish Fleet HQ, being promoted to Vice Admiral on 3 November.
He has several national Navy medals, one UN medal, one UE medal, one NATO medal and one SPAF medal, and numerous awards and citations.
He is married to Matilde and has four children.
Rear Admiral Paolo FANTONI assumed the role of Deputy Commander since last 7 July 2025.
Completed the high school in the Naval College Francesco MOROSINI in Venice, he joined the Navy active service attending the regular courses in the Naval Academy in 1983. He was qualified Telecommunication and Combat Information Operations officer. During his career he attended the Naval Warfare College and to the Defence Warfare College. He has a degree in Physics and one in Maritime and Navigational Science.
He was Commanding Officer of Minehunter GAETA, OPV Comandante FOSCARI and Amphibious Ship SAN GIUSTO, that under his Command was the flag ship of the 12th rotation in the EU counter-piracy Operation ATALANTA. In December 2019, with the rank of Rear Admiral, he assumed Command of the Standing NATO Maritime Group 2 (COM SNMG2) for over 6 months.
During his career, he served on board of Sailing School Ship VESPUCCI, Frigates ALPINO and MAESTRALE and Destroyer DURAND DE LA PENNE. As Staff Officer, he was assigned to the Command in Chief of Italian Fleet (CINCNAV) for three times in the Training Department as Combat Information Operation and Electronic Warfare officer, Chief of Plans Division and finally Assistant of the Commander in Chief. In NATO, Rear Admiral Fantoni was the Exercise Branch Head Exercise of Joint Deployable Command Lisbon. Afloat he served as Chief of Staff of the Second Naval Group in Taranto and Chief of Staff of EUNAVFOR MED Force HQs.
In the international environment Rear Admiral Fantoni represented the Italian MOD as Defence Attaché at the Italian Embassy in Tunis and finally in 2023 he was the National Point of Contact (NPOC) Chairmanship of the Maritime Theatre Missile Defence Forum.
RADM Paolo FANTONI is decorated, amongst the others, of the following medals:
- Long service meritorious medal in the Italian Armed Forces;
- Order of Merit of the Italian Republic;
- Order of Merit of the Tunisian Republic;
- NATO Service Meritorious Medal;
- Ex-Yugoslavia and Kosovo Crisis Response Operations, ATALANTA and SOPHIA Operations.
He enjoys spending his free time playing golf and taking care of his two Italian classic cars. He is married and has a daughter.
Born in Milan in 1971, he is a 1995 graduate of the Italian Naval Academy. Among the many assignments he has served at sea for over a decade are Electronic Warfare Officer at ITS GRANATIERE, Communication Officer at ITS MAESTRALE, Communication Officer and Navigator at ITS FRANCESCO MIMBELLI, Operations Officers aboard ITS LIBECCIO and Executive Officer of Training Ship AMERIGO VESPUCCI. His assignments as commander were the Italian Navy Patrol vessel SENTINELLA, the multirole frigate ITS LIBECCIO, taking part in XX rotation of EUNAVFOR Operation ATALANTA, and ITS SAN GIORGIO, EUNAVFOR MED Operation IRINI flagship during the 3rd rotation.
Ashore he served as class commander at Naval Junior Military School MOROSINI in Venice and worked with Bureau of Personnel in the Italian Defence General Staff in Rome and then again within the Military Plans and Policy Division where he was European Union Branch Chief of the Alliances Policy Office. For three years, he served in EU Military Staff as the Maritime Subject Matter Expert, supporting and often representing DG EUMS in Maritime Domain Awareness related issues. Additionally, he served four years in the Italian Defense General Staff in Rome, as Strategic Direction Branch Head, and he holds the vice-president of the Italian Defense Artic Committee.
He participated in several major air and naval Italian Navy missions and operations, including Kosovo, Eastern Mediterranean, Arabic Peninsula and Afghanistan. As a crewmember, he has sailed more than 300K nautical miles in almost 40K hours, serving also as CCHQ/FHQ Officer.
In 1999, he took part in a Personnel Exchange Program with the US NAVY where he served for more than a year on board USS CLEVELAND taking part in her deployment in the Persian Gulf.
With regard to his academic studies, Rear Admiral Martinuzzi graduated in "Maritime and Naval Science" from the University of Pisa. In February 2001, achieving a second degree in "Computer Science" from the University of Milan. In 2010 he obtained a master degree in "Military-Strategic International Studies" from the University of LUISS, in Rome, and a master degree in "Strategic Studies and International Security" from the University of Ca' Foscari, in Venice, in 2019.
Active sportsman, both of sea and land, he is also a certified paratrooper.
Among his many national and international Military decorations, the Maurician Medal to the Merit of Ten Lustra of Military Career, Command Duty Medal of Merit (silver), and Commemorative EU CSDP Medals, ATALANTA, SOPHIA, and IRINI stand out.