Italian Aircraft

FIAT CR.25



Designed and built by Celestino Rosatelli's team in 1937, the CR25 showed itself to be one of the best Fiat's productions in the multipurpose field. The CR25 - a solid, elegant and well-finished aircraft - soon displayed its potentials. Thanks to its good characteristics, this unit showed itself as being so flexible, as to carry out several tasks: long range fighter, medium range fast reconnoitrer, light bomber and even fast passenger cargo.

Unfortunately the CR25 did not get the right appreciation by the High Command of the Regia Aeronautica, which was leaning towards other models - such as the Caproni 311. In the important role of reconnoitrer, Regia Aeronautica was always faulty in this area. The first prototype, piloted by Valentino Cus, gave extraordinary results, reaching a speed of 490 kmh (much more than any other existing fighter in 1937). Nevertheless,and who knows why, only in 1940 the Command of Regia Aeronautica committed to Fiat the first (and last) ten units, slightly modified (serie Bis). In July 1941, six aircraft were employed to operational tasks in Sicily, to the Strategic Reconnoitre 173a Squadriglia, exciting the sudden enthusiasm of the pilots.

In almost 400 hours of war missions (patrolling convoys to Libya and reconnoitres on Malta) none of the CR25 had any technical accidents, but duly contrasted at their best all the intruding attempts of the English Bristol Blenheim based in Malta. In October 1942 the CR42 began to be substituted by the twin-engined Caproni Ca314 (improved version of the Ca311). In the spring 1943, Fiat proposed a new interesting prototype (probably equipped with 1175 hp engines and armed with two 20 mm Mauser guns), but the project was never carried out. The CR25 was considered so reliable as the Italian Air Force Mission of the Regia Aeronautica in Berlin (Gatow airport) adopted it for its frequent no-stop Rome-Ciampino links.

FIAT CR.32



A biplane with wings of unequal span resulting from development of the CR-30, using the same fabric covered tubular metal structure - aluminum for the wings, steel and aluminum for the fuselage. W-type Warren bracing was used between the wings. The CR-32 was of smaller dimensions and had improved maneuverability and performance. The spatted, wide track, fixed undercarriage had hydraulic shock absorbers and pneumatic brakes. Like its predecessor, it was designed by Celestino Rosatelli, and the prototype, (M.M. 201), first flew on 4/28/33. Series production began a year later. It was an immediate success, and a large export order book followed.

The engine was an in-line V-12 Fiat A 30 R. A. bis developing 600 H.P. at take off. Armament was initially two Breda-Safat 7.7 mm. machine guns. It was produced in four very similar versions: the CR-32 and CR-32 quater with two machine guns, and the CR-32 bis, with four. The CR-32 formed the backbone of the Aviazione Legionaria and around 400 were operating in the skies over Spain from 8/36, equipping Nationalist fighter units as well as five Italian groups.

The CR-32 was faster in level flight and in a dive than the Chato (I-15), and compared with the Mosca (I-16) it was more maneuverable and more heavily armed. By employing superior tactics with this aircraft the nationalist pilots out flew the fighters on the Republican side. Italian pilots scored 300 victories, themselves losing 132 aircraft - of which 73 in combat. They were decorated with the collective Military Medal. After the war Hispano Aviación built 100 CR-32s under the designation HA-132 L. Thirty one of these were converted into two-seaters. The final examples remained in service until 1957.

It performed very well in Spain, but this had the drawback that Italy neglected the development of modern fighters. It first flew in 1933, with some 1,309 built, including licensed production in Spain. In 1940, some 294 were still in front line service primarily in North Africa, however, the British in their Gloster Gladiators easily defeated large numbers of the Fiat C.R. 32. It had been quickly eclipsed.

A number of foreign air forces in Europe and South America bought the CR.32 and prior to World War II, the airplane took part in the defense of Shanghai during the second Sino-Japanese war (Chinese AF), the Grand Chaco war (Paraguyan AF), Carpathian dispute (Hungarian AF) and the Spanish Civil War (Nationalist). Numerically the CR.32 was the most important fighter in the Italian Air Force in the late 1930s. At the time of Italy's entrance into the war in 6/40, the CR.32 was being replaced as a first-line fighter, but was still used in early campaigns, especially in Albania, Greece and North Africa in the night fighter and close support roles. The CR.32 was gradually relegated to training and ancillary duties.

FIAT CR.42 Falco



The birth of the last fighter biplane in service in World War 2 took place during the trial for a new monoplane fighter for the Regia Aeronautica (the so-called "Series 0" aircraft). Waiting for the evaluation and testing of the various monoplanes, the Chief of Staff of the R.A., Gen. Valle, ordered the production of the CR.42 which he identified as a transition fighter with radial engine, conceived to ease the conversion on the new interceptors. This led to the building of the first prototype in early 1938 and on 5/23/38 it flew for the first time. Naturally, with the experience gained by the designer Celestino Rosatelli with excellent biplanes like the CR.30 and the CR.32, also his CR.42 had excellent flying characteristics, so that even before waiting for the results of the official military tests, a first series of 200 CR.42s had been already ordered, a higher number than the Macchi C.200 or the Fiat G.50, but this could be attributed also to the various teething troubles experienced by the new monoplanes. The paradoxical result was that, whereas both the C.200 and the G.50 were out of production by mid-1942, the CR.42 was still in production in 1944, while Germany's new jet fighter Me 262 was already operational!

Engined by the trusty 840 hp Fiat A.74 RC.38, the CR.42 was in service with 53° Stormo by 5/39 and before the entrance of Italy in the war, 300 aircraft had been already delivered to the Regia Aeronautica, constituting about 40% of the strength of the whole R.A. Top speed was 272 mph at 15,000ft, with a service ceiling of 32,970 ft and a range of 481 miles. The CR.42 was armed with 2 12.7mm machine guns. Meanwhile, the plane was also subject to several foreign orders: Hungary (50 examples) Belgium (40 examples) and Sweden (72 examples). Hungary was the first to buy the Italian biplane for its Magyar Királyi Légierö and placed orders for 52 aircraft during the summer of 1938, and equipped four Squadrons (1/1, 1/2, 1/3 and 1/4 of 1st Fighter Regiment) within the late spring of 1940. CR.42s of the Hungarian A.F. flew numerous sorties during the assault on Yugoslavia launched on 4/6/41 in concert by German and Hungarian and, when a special Air Force Brigade was formed less than two months later to accompany the Hungarian Fast Corps that was to participate in the assault on the Soviet Union to be launched on 6/22/41, the principal fighter element was provided by the 12 CR.42s of the 1/3 Squadron. By 12/41, after five months of continuous operations in which the 1/3 Squadron alone had flown some 300 sorties, destroying 17 Soviet aircraft in combat for the loss of two CR. 42s, the serviceability of the Air Force Brigade was deteriorating rapidly and it was therefore recalled to Hungary , the CR.42s being relegated to training role.

In late 9/39 the Belgian government purchased 34 Fiat CR.42s to meet the urgent re-equipment needs of its air arm's IIème Group de Chasse Due to the war, not all the Belgium order was completed instead, but only 26 CR.42s were delivered and, equipping 3e and 4e Escadrilles of 27éme Regiment, fought against the Luftwaffe from 5/10/40, effecting 35 operational missions and claiming 5 aerial victories for the loss of only two Fiats in combat before Belgium's surrender on 6/28.

The first Swedish CR.42s (named J-11) were bought, together with order for 120 fighters of the types Reggiane Re.2000 Falco I. The order for the Fiat fighter was for 72 aircraft and was the third and largest export order for the CR.42. They Italian aircraft got the Swedish designation J20 (Re.2000) respectively J11 (CR.42). The J11s were delivered between 2/40 and 9/41. By 11/41 all the Falcos were in service and they were assigned to F9 (F=Flottilj approx. Wing) at Säve, Gothenburg. Modifications included 20-mm armor plate behind the pilot, radio equipment and skis for winter service. The CR.42 was declared obsolete in 1945 and the remaining aircraft were purchased by AB Svensk Flygtjänst and used in post- war years as target-tug aircraft.

There was also a short-lived experience of the CR.42 in Finland. In fact, 12 CR.42s had been bought through a public subscription and the Suomen Ilmavoimat received the first five in 4/40, but they were turned down (the problems caused by the Fiat G.50s were enough for the Finns.) and sent back to Sweden.

Turning back to the Regia Aeronautica, its first operations in World War II took place after 6/10/40 against France and were effected by the CR.42s of 53° Stormo (150° and 151° Gruppi) and of 3° Stormo (18° and 23° Gruppi). A couple of days after also the 13° Gruppo in Libya started operations against British forces. On the French front, the CR.42s claimed ten victories against five losses, but these must be read as optimistic, a 1:1 ratio should be closer to the truth. In Africa, the most intense operations took place in Somalia and Ethiopia and there, the Comando Africa Orientale Italiana had 36 CR.42s available employing them from 3 to 8/19/40 and obtaining air superiority against the RAF. But the losses and the attrition was great and, notwithstanding the further 51 CR.42s delivered by transporting them dismantled inside the S.82s, the isolation of the AOI begun to be a heavy necessity to be overcome and from 1/41 the aircraft available steadily diminished, going down from 26 on 1/10, to only five by mid-April. The two only surviving CR.42s managed to fight up to 10/41, but by 11/27/41 the AOI was lost, and 87 CR.42s with it.

Another operation that took place by late 1940 was the infamous Corpo Aereo Italiano (C.A.I.). The propaganda operation designed to have Italian aircraft operating against the RAF on the Channel was ill conceived and conducted and showed at full the defects and the approximation of the Regia Aeronautica. The FIAT CR. 42s operating with C.A.I. were fifty, belonging to 18° Gruppo. On 10/19/40 they transferred on to the Belgian airfield of Ursel. The first action took place on 10/29, when 39 CR.42s escorted the Br.20s over Ramsgate. On 11/11 the bombers were escorted over Harwich by 40 CR. 42s but were intercepted by Spitfires and Hurricanes causing the loss of three CR.42s, while another nineteen were forced to crash-land in Belgium due to lack of fuel caused by the combat. The last action of November took place on the 29th between Margate and Folkstone with a combat against Spitfires that caused the loss of two more CR.42s (the British losses are still uncertain, if any). On 1/10/41 the CR.42s began to come back to Italy. Lack of heating equipment, open cockpits, primitive radio sets, in addition to an absolute lack of navigational capacities of the Italian pilots (a specific training was undertaken only after 1942) transformed this operation in a real nightmare for those involved!

A front where the CR.42 operated in better conditions from the start was the North African one. The 127 "Falco" available in 13° Gruppo, 10° Gruppo and 9° Gruppo operated against an enemy equipped with the Gloster Gladiator, an equivalent biplane fighter. The first combat on 11/19/40 involved the Italian units and the Australian 3 Sqn. RAAF and this was followed by other combats on 12/10 and 12/26. Notwithstanding further CR.42s sent from Italy (among them those of 18° Gruppo, coming from C.A.I.), the Italian retreat and the loss of Cyrenaica by 2/41 brought to the loss of over 400 aircraft, many of them destroyed on the ground in front of the enemy advance. With the arrival of German troops and the start of the new offensive, the main task for the CR.42 biplane begun to be the close support to the ground units and when, on 4/41, the first CR.42 AS arrived (AS = Africa Settentrionale), equipped with sand filters and attachment points for two bombs, the switch of role was clear. The enemy had Hurricanes by now and the CR.42 surely was more useful in the ground support role. Thus, used more and more exclusively on this role with 160° Gruppo, 158° and 159° Gruppi (constituting 50° Stormo Assalto), 101° Gruppo Assalto and 15° Stormo Assalto, the CR.42s followed all the North African campaign showing on many occasions the bravery of its pilots and by early 1943 the surviving 82 examples were sent back to Italy from Tunisia.

We have to give a look also at three other important theatres of operations: Greece, Crete and Malta. The operations against Greece involved 46 CR.42s of 150° Gruppo at first against Greek aircraft and later against the RAF. Almost twenty Fiats were lost by the end of the campaign. The operations against Crete in late 5/41 were supported by the biplanes of 162a and 163a Squadriglia used as fighter-bombers. The offensive against Malta started since the first day of war and involved the CR.42s of 17° Gruppo, 9° Gruppo (before going to Libya) and 23° Gruppo. After a full year of war the RAF had claimed 16 confirmed destroyed CR.42s over Malta. 7 additional were claimed as probables and 6 were claimed as damaged. Totally RAF made claims for 106 confirmed, 47 probables and 38 damaged over Malta. It was a wearing war and only by 1942 the CR.42s were fully replaced by the Macchi C.202s and the Reggiane Re.2001s.

Another task undertaken by the CR.42 was the convoy-escort role and, between 1940 and 1942 lots of mission were conducted from Sardinia and Sicily to protect the convoys headed to and from Libya. Last but not least, a few CR.42s were employed also in anti-shipping role with their two 100Kg bombs, dropping them after a dive. Some successes were obtained and the biplanes based in Sardinia took part to "mid-August battle" on 1942 with eight CR.42s. But there was more: the CR.42 was used also as night-fighter. The first attempt was made in Libya by using normal CR.42s in good visibility and with moonlight and five enemy aircraft were downed during 1941. Thus, several CR.42s were modified with shrouded exhausts, complete navigational instruments and radio equipment. Some operated in Sicily with 171° Gruppo from late 1941 but until the end of 1942 no more than seven of them were operational. By late 1942, two N.F. groups, 59° and 60° were based in Northern Italy, 167° Gruppo in Central Italy and several autonomous units in Southern Italy and the islands. A total of about 80 CR.42 CN (CN = Caccia Notturna) was used. Obviously the results were very scarce, due to the improved performance of the enemy aircraft.

The CR.42s were still used by 9/8/43, when the Armistice was signed. From this moment, most of those survived were either seized by the Germans (for their flying schools but not only) or, in small numbers, used both by the Italian Cobelligerent Air Force and by the ANR, but only as liaison planes and as trainers. The Germans instead didn't consider the operational career of the CR.42 ended: in fact they envisaged for it a role in the Luftwaffe as night attack plane. Several biplanes were thus modified by the Fiat factory and brought up to German standards. They equipped both NSGr.7 and NSGr.9 (Nachtschlachtgruppe = Night Harassment Gruppe), the former operating in the Balkans up to the end of the war and the latter in Italy, namely over the bridgehead of Anzio, until replaced by the more efficient Ju 87 Stuka in 6/44. About forty CR.42s survived to the end of the war and almost twenty of them were used in the late '40s by the Italian Air Force as trainers (at least eleven were modified as a bi-place) and liaison planes. The career of the Falco thus ended, a sort of monument to a great plane, the last of its era, but also a monument to the inability of the Regia Aeronautica to develop in time a replacement for an aging aircraft representing an already obsolete formula. A total of 1,782 CR.42s were built.

FIAT G.50 Freccia



The G.50 Freccia was built by Giuseppe Gabrielli and the first protype (MM 334) was flown on February 26, 1937. It was the first single seat monoplane fighter designed and flown in Italy. The G.50 was a low wing monoplane, which had a all metal fuselage with a three-piece wing. The movable control surfaces were fabric covered, balanced and split flaps were fitted.

Initial production consisted of 40 G.50's of which 12 were sent to Spain in 1938 for testing under operating conditions with the Gruppo Caccia Sperimentale (Experimental Fighter Group). The results were extremely successful and a further 200 were ordered. Various changes in design occurred, such as the sliding cockpit canopy, which was deleted since it was disliked by the pilots. Other semi-enclosed cockpits were created until a a folding flaps on each side of the cockpit was adapted. In 1939, 35 G.50's were ordered by the Finnish government, but were detained enroute by Germany until 1940 after cessation of hostilities between Finland and the USSR. The G.50's served with the Finnish Air Force No.26 Squadron and continued front line service until May of 1944. In addition, 2 pre-production models were given to Spain and 10 G.50s were supplied to the Croat government

When Italy entered the war on June 10, 1940, 48 G.50's of the 20th Gruppo Caccia Terrestre accompanied the Corpo Aero Italiano to Ursel, Belgium in October of 1940 for use in the Battle of Britain. There is, however, no record of any encountered actions over the British Isles.

A two seater training G.50 was built and renamed the G.50B. This version was flown on April 30, 1940. One hundred of these variants were built. On September 9, the G.50bis was flown which was a new fighter version of the G.50. Some of the differences included removal of the 2.2lb anti-personal or incidiary bomb and replacing it with a 25 lmp. gallon fuel tank. the tailwing fairing was eliminated and the vertical tail surfaces were redesigned. Another change was an increase in length from 26' 4" to 27' 2 1/3" and a reduction in height from 10' 9" to 9' 2 1/4". The G.50bis proved to be a good variant and 450 of these aircraft were built, 10 of which were supplied to the Croatian Air Force.

The G.50 Freccia was used with the 2nd Gruppo Caccia Terrestre over Greece in October of 1940 and the G.50bis was used extensivly by the Regia Aeronautica over north Africa. The fighter still possesed inadequate speed and firepower, forcing most pilots to prefer the Macchi C.200. Several attempts were made to modernize the G.50 such as the the G.50ter in July 17, 1940 ,which had a 1,000 hp Fiat A.76 engine and attained a maximum speed of 329 mph. On August 25, 1941 a new G.50V , converted to hold a German Diamler-Benz DB 601A 1,050 hp engine, attained a speed of 360 mph. Fiat was in the process of making a newer aircraft named the G.52, but that was later dropped for the G.55 Centauro.

On October 3, 1942, the last variant of the G.50, a two seater G.50bis/A fighter bomber was developed. Addistions included a 12.7mm Breda-SAFAT machine gun in each wing and shackles for a pair of 353 lb bombs. Arrester hooks were also added for use with the aircraft carriers Aquila and Sparviero, which were being converted from merchant ships

FIAT G.55 Centauro



Some aviation experts consider the FIAT G55 Centauro the best single seat fighter produced for the Italian air force in World War Two. The Fiat G55 Centauro was a redesigned version of the G50 Freccia. Differences included a DB 605 A-1 engine, an improved fineness ratio of the fuselage and a redesigned wing, built in 2 sections ,bolted together at the centerline for greater efficiency. Metal stressed skin was used and the metal framed airlerone was fabric covered.

The first prototype was flown on April 30, 1942 and production started in the beginning of 1943. The initial model was the G55/0 which held a 20mm MG 151 cannon and (4) 12.7mm Breda SAFAT machine guns. The "O" model was succeeded by the "I" model which held three 20mm MG151's and two Breda SAFAT machine guns. Deliveries of the G55 to the 53rd Stormo and the 353rd Squadriglia of the 20th Gruppo just started when Italy surrendered to the Allies on September 8, 1943. Because of Italy's surrender, the G55 did not see combat with the Regia Aeronautica. However, factories which were building the G55's were still under the control of the Republica Sociale Italiana (Salo Republic) in northern Italy, and several thousand were ordered. The G55 became the RSI's standard aircraft for their air force. Shortages began to develope as the DB 605 A-1 engines became scarce and only 105 FIAT G55's were produced by the time the Allies overran all of Italy.

Other models developed based on the G55 which were the G55/II with 5 20mm cannons and the G55/S Torpedo Fighter, which carried one 2,176 lb Whitehead fiume torpedo beneath the fuselage. Both of these variations of the G55 flew in 1944.

After the war, production of the G55 resumed for foreign export and the newer G55/A's and G55/B's were built. Fiat reinstalled the production lines to produce the G.55A armed with either 2 wing-mounted 12.7mm machine guns or 2 20mm canon plus the 2 12.7mm machine guns in the cowling. 19 went to the Italian air force and 30 were supplied to Argentina. Argentina returned 17 that were then sold to Egypt in 1948, being armed with 4 12.7mm machine guns. A 2-seat trainer version, the G.55B was built in 1946 with 10 going to the Italian air force and 15 to Argentina in 1948.

FIAT BR.20 Cicogna



The Fiat BR.20 Cicogna was the standard Italian bomber of the mid to late 1930's, but it proved to be already obsolete during the French campaign during Italy's entry into World War Two. This bomber was first proposed by Celestino Rosatelli , who envisioned a standardized bomber, in 1934. The two engine BR.20 was first flown on 10 February 1936 at Torino Alitalia and the first 20 units were delivered on 26 November 1937.

Although the aircraft looked realtively sleek and modern, it was already outclassed by other competitors. Nevertheless, a total of 234 BR.20's, 279 BR.20M's and 15 BR.20Bis were built. The BR.20M (Modified) and the BR.20Bis were unique to the original in the change of nose section and engines. These aircrafts were operated in Malta, Battle of Britain, Yugoslavia and the Balkans.

Fc 20 CANSA - Multipurpose Assaulter



The Fc Cansa multi purpose assaulter was first designed by Giacomo Mosso. The first flight took place in Cameri (Novara, Piedmont, northern Italy) in April, 1941. It's first operational start took place in December, 1942 (Italian territory).

Designed as reconnoitrer but then transformed in a heavy assaulter, the Cansa FC20 did not succeed in performing any of the tasks for which it was conceived for by Fiat's engineers. This aircraft, even though it was beautiful in its design, had always been penalized by insufficient flight performances: scarce maneuverability, unsteadiness, low engine powerfulness. Designed at the end of 1940 by Cansa (subsidiary company of Fiat), the FC20 was a medium- winged compact monoplane, full metal structured, mixed covered, powered with two reliable (but modest 9 Fiat A74 RC38 840 hp engines (the same mounted on the famous biplane fighter Fiat CR42). The reconnaissance version was characterized by the glass nose, while the assaulter (armed with a 37 mm gun and three 12.7 mm machine guns) had a closed and strengthened nose. The results of both models were very disappointing and the production (no more than ten units) was interrupted in 1941

Savoia Marchetti SM.75 Marsupiale



First flown in 11/37, the Marsupiale was an enlarged version of the SM.73 transport with main landing gear units that retracted into the underside of the engines of the two wing mounted engines. 94 aircraft were built between 1937 and 1943, 83 the standard SM.75 with three 750 hp Alfa Romeo 126 RC.34 radial engines or, alternatively, three 1,000 hp Piaggio P.XI RC.40 radials. The other 11 were built during World War 2 to the SM.75bis standard using three Alfa Romeo 126 RC.18 radial engines, the shorter vertical tail surface of the SM.82 and provision for a dorsal gun turret.

At the time of Italy’s 6/40 entry into the war, all Italian-registered SM.75s were placed under military control. The aircraft proved themselves very valuable to the Italian war effort. Germany seized 10 of these aircraft after the Italian armistice in 9/43 and the other surviving aircraft were used by Italian forces on both sides after the armistice. Those aircraft that survived the war were retired only in 1949.

Savoia Marchetti SM.79 Sparviero



The Savoia-Marchetti SM.79 Sparviero ("Sparrowhawk") was a tough tri-motor aircraft that was flown with courage and skill and was a mainstay of the Regia Aeronautica during WWII.

The prototype flew on 9/2/35 powered by 3 750 hp Alpha Romeo 125 RC.34 engines. It was developed from a civil airliner and had the distinctive hump on the upper forward fuselage that housed the forward and dorsal gunner's position, earning it the nickname of "Gobbo Maledetto" (Damned Hunchback). The plane was a mix of steel tubes, light alloy wood and fabric with a high wing load that demanded long airstrips.

Maximum speed was 270 mph with a range of 1,243 miles and a service ceiling of 23,000 ft. The SM.79 was armed with a 12.7mm machine gun firing ahead through the roof of the humpback, a 12.7mm machine gun firing from the dorsal (rear) part of the hump, a 12.7 mm machine gun firing through the ventral position of the gondola and 2 7.7 mm machine guns firing from the side windows. Up to 2,750 lbs of bombs or a 17.7 in torpedo could be carried.

The first SM.79s entered service in late 1936, just in time to fly in the Spanish civil war with the Italian contingent. The SM.79I established an excellent reputation in combat during this time. In October 1939, the Regia Aeronautica began receiving the SM.79II with 1,000 hp Piaggio engines, which was the main version built. The SM.79III, of which a handful were built, had a 20mm cannon in place of the forward firing 12.7mm machine gun and did away with the ventral gondola.

In 1940, well over 1/2 of Italy's 1,000 bombers were SM.79s, which also turned out to be one of the best land based torpedo bombers of the war. The SM.79 was used to bomb Malta and, in the summer of 1942, had one its best successes against Operation Pedestal, the Royal Navy effort to relieve Malta. The SM.79II also saw extensive service in North Africa, the Balkans and the Mediterranean. After the armistice, the series III was built for use by the pro-axis Italian airforce.

The SM.79 was so popular, that Spain, Brazil, Iraq and Yugoslavia used them in their air forces. Romania also received the SM.79 and also license built the Series II using the Junkers Jumo 211 D 1,220 hp engines and used them on the Russian front through 1944, first as bombers and then as utility transports. The SM.79s that survived the war were used until the 1950's as utility transports for their air forces.

A total of approximately 1,200 were built.

Savoia Marchetti SM.81 Pipistrello



n 1935, the SM.81 Pipistrello (Bat) made its debut and marked a definite step forward in the development of military aviation. The excellent overall qualities of this aircraft were first tested in the Ethiopian campaign and then in the Spanish Civil War. The SM.81s success in combat directly transformed into a series of orders that eventually led to the production of 534 SM.81s. However, as in the case of other combat planes produced in that same period, the Spanish Civil War did not provide very reliable proof of what subsequent needs were to be. The SM.81, clearly out of date by the outbreak of World War II, remained in service for the duration of hostilities, operating on almost all fronts, although it was gradually phased out to play a secondary role as a transport.

The SM.81's direct predecessor was the SM.73, a commercial airplane, whose prototype appeared on 6/4/34, and which was an immediate commercial success. It was this aircraft that provided the basis for the construction formula that was to remain virtually unchanged in SIAI Marchetti's later production, a three-engine, low-wing monoplane with a wood and metal structure and wood and fabric covering. The military version was presented toward the end of the year and was subjected to a whole series of operational tests by the Regia Aeronautica before going into mass production.

As in the case of the civilian version, the fitting of several types of engines was also planned for the SM.81, and each of the engines characterized a particular version of the aircraft. These included the 680 hp Piaggio IX, 700 hp Piaggio X, 680 hp Alfa Romeo, 900 hp Alfa Romeo and the 1,000-hp Gnome Rhone 14K engines. Defensive armament consisted of 6 - 7.7mm machineguns, a pair in the retractable ventral position, a pair firing rearward from the back of the cockpit and two in lateral positions in the fuselage. Normal bomb load was 2,000 lbs, but the maximum load was 4,415 lbs of bombs.

The prototype of an experimental version, the SM.81bis was produced with two 840-hp Isotta-Fraschini Asso in-line liquid cooled engines, and with substantial modification to the nose, by which the third engine was occupied by a bombardier. This variant was not followed up.

The SM.81 went into service early in 1935 and made its military debut in Africa that same year. After the experiences of the Spanish Civil War, the appearance of the stronger and more reliable SM.79 consigned the older SM.81 to a secondary role. At the beginning of World War II, the SM.81 was gradually withdrawn from front-line service in national territory and was used mainly on the African and Russian fronts as transport aircraft. After the Armistice, only four SM.81s were left in southern Italy. The others that remained went in the north to form part of two groups of transport planes in the air force of the pro-axis forces.

The SM.81 with the 670 hp Piaggio X engines had a maximum speed of 211 mph at 3,281 ft; a service ceiling of 22,966 ft; and a range of 1,243 miles. With the 680 hp Alfa Romeo engines, the maximum speed was 211 mph at 13,210 ft; service ceiling of 23,000 ft and a range of 1,200 miles.

Savoia Marchetti SM.82 Canguro



First flown in 1938, the Canguru was a scaled up version of the SM.75 with a comparatively longer and deeper fuselage and had a fuselage of fabric-covered welded steel tube construction and flying surfaces that were of plywood covered wooden construction with the exception of the fabric covered metal control surfaces.

Production totaled about 400 aircraft and these were used mainly as transports during Italy’s participation in World War II. About 80 survived the Italian armistice in 9/43 with 50 surviving with the Italian Fascist side and 30 with the co-belligerent side. 30 remained in service after the war in the transport role powered by four 1,350 hp Pratt & Whitney Twin Wasp radial engines.

Savoia Marchetti SM.84



In 1940, the Regia Aeronautica received a new addition to its bomber force, the SM.84, that was designed to replace the SM.79, but which never succeeded in equaling the performance of its illustrious predecessor. This was principally due to its lack of maneuverability, making it anything but ideal in the role of torpedo-bomber, and due to the general lack of reliability of its Piaggio P.XI engines.

The project was launched in 1939 and the first flight of the prototype took place on 6/5/40. Marchetti based his proposal on the SM.79 airframe, using the same wings and modifying the fuselage and empennage. The fuselage lacked the characteristic humpback appearance of the SM.79 while the empennage were doubled. The SM.84 was a low-wing monoplane made of wood and steel tubing and covered with fabric, plywood and duraluminum. The SM.84 was powered by three 1,000-hp Piaggio P.XI radial engines driving three-bladed variable-pitch metal propellers. Defensive armament consisted of four 12.7mm machineguns in the back, belly and 2 on the sides of the aircraft. The bomb load could be housed either in the belly (2,207-lb) or under wing (2 torpedoes, rockets or 3,532 lbs of bombs). Top speed was 268 mph at 15,000 ft with a service ceiling of 25,900 ft and a range of 1,137 miles.

Prior to the prototype's maiden flight, several tests were carried out with a specially modified SM.79 provided with double empennage and 860 hp Alfa Romeo engines, and the aircraft's performance and potential had proved to be generally satisfactory. This was not so when the SM.84 prototype began its evaluation tests. It immediately proved to have a series of problems, especially at takeoff and landing, principally caused by the great weight of the wings and by the inadequacy of the vertical empennage. Moreover, the Piaggio engines proved to be unreliable and difficult to build. Despite these problems, a large number of SM.84s were ordered by the Regia Aeronautica with an initial request for 246 aircraft placed at the same time that the prototype and evaluation aircraft appeared. Eventually orders amounted to 309 aircraft.

The SM.84 began its operational career with the 41st Bomber Group in 2/41 and several months later it went into service with the 36th Stormo Aerosiluranti. The SM.84 served in the torpedo-bomber role for about a year, until autumn of 1942 , when it was reassigned to bomber units. In the meantime, attempts to improve the SM.84's performance led to the SM. 84bis with modifications to the wings and cockpit as well as ventilation to the engines and a better torpedo launching control. However, the SM.84bis went into service with bomber units, where they operated until the armistice. In 7/43, 43rd Stormo was the only unit operating the SM.84 and by 9/8, had 30 aircraft at its disposal. A further 130 bombers, of which about 100 were effective, were distributed among several supply centers for the Regia Aeronautica. Following the armistice, the Germans incorporated 12 or so SM.84s into the 132nd Transport Group where they served until the end of the war.

Piaggio P.108 Heavy Bomber



The Piaggio P.108 B was the only heavy four-engine bomber to see service with the Regia Aeronautica during World War Two. Too few were built to play a significant role in the war, only 163 P.108 Bs having been built. The P.108 B was an all-metal cantilever low-wing monoplane with an retractable under-carriage, driven by four 1,350 hp Piaggio P.XII radial engines. The first prototype was finished in 10/39 and had a very advanced defensive armament for its day of two 7.7 mm machine waist guns, a 12.7 mm machine gun in the lower turret and a similar weapon in the nose turret, and two remotely-controlled twin gun turrets in outer engine nacelles. The first Allied bomber with a similar armament was the Boeing B 29, developed four years later. The bomb load of the Piaggio comprised of 7,700 lbs, all carried internally in the bomb bay.

The only unit of the Regia Aeronautica ever to fly the P.108 B was the 274th Long-Range Bombardment Group. This unit was formed in 5/41 around the first machines that came off the assembly lines. The training of the crews lasted far longer than anticipated and in 6/42 the 274th became operational. The most spectacular raids with the P. 108 B were flown in 10/42 when several night attacks against Gibraltar were undertaken from Sardinia. Several versions were derived from the P. 108 B: such as the P.108A, which had a 102 mm anti-shipping gun in the nose; the P.108C airliner and the P.108T transport. The latter two versions had a larger diameter fuselage for transporting passengers or freight. They were hardly used by the Regia Aeronautica, the main user being the German Luftwaffe. In 9/43, after the Italian armistice, the Luftwaffe had captured all fifteen P.108 Cs and P.108 Ts built. They were used at the Russian front, as part of Luftflotte 2, where they performed sterling duties, among others during the evacuation of the Crimea in 1944.

Ansaldo A.120



A.120 Ady: Of metal construction covered almost entirely with fabric, the A.120 was a simple parasol wing monoplane typical of European design in the mid-1920s. The type was based on a rectangular section fuselage carrying a nose mounted engine and its associated radiator, the cockpits for the pilot and observer/gunner and the tail unit. The tail unit was a braced structure including an aerodynamically balanced rudder and two aerodynamically balanced elevator halves, all three surfaces having wire trailing edges that resulted in a scalloped effect. The wing was supported over the fuselage by a standard cabane strut arrangement and had a large center section cutout in the trailing edge to improve the pilots upward fields of vision. The wing carried outboard ailerons and was braced to the lower longerons by two struts on each side. The airframe was completed by a fixed tailskid landing gear with a main unit of the through axle type.

The A.120 was developed from the A.115m and A.115bis parasol wing monoplanes and first flew in the form of two prototypes in 1925 combining the parasol wing with a fuselage based largely on the Dewoitine D.1 and D.9 fighters built in Italy under license by Ansaldo. Ansaldo became a subsidiary of Fiat in 1926. The two prototypes were the A.120 reconnaissance fighter using a 400 hp Lorraine 12Db Vee piston engine and the A.120bis reconnaissance airplane using the 400 hp Fiat A.20A Vee piston engine. In 1926, there appeared a revised A.120 with an improved fuselage, tail unit and landing gear. The new plane, the A.120 Ady, started out with the Lorraine engine, but was evaluated with the Fiat A.20 and A.22 engines and it was the latter that was selected in the A.22T form with a saddle type radiator installation for the production model, of which 57 were built. Other orders were received from Austria - 2 airplanes and Lithuania - 12 aircraft. Lithuania was the last operator of the type, its surviving machines operating in the army co-operation role and being taken over and subsequently scrapped by the Soviet air force after the Soviets annexed Lithuania in 1940.

A.120R: This was an improved version of the A.120 Ady with the A.22R Vee piston engine unsing a tunnel type radiator under the nose and featured a revised observer/gunner's cockpit with a larger windscreen and rounded glazed side panels. Austria took six aircraft.

A total of 77 units were built.

Caproni Vizzola F.5



One of Italy’s oldest flying schools, the Scuola di Aviazione Caproni was located at Vizzola Ticino near Varese. In the mid 1930’s, the school was modernized and expanded to a point that they could undertake production of components for other elements of the Caproni aircraft empire as well as continuing as a flying school. In 1937 this expansion program reached the stage that a design department was established under Ing. Fabrizi.

The organization’s first design was extremely ambitious – a modern interceptor fighter that was schemed in both inline and radial engine forms as the F.4 and F.5 respectively. The airframe was common to both except for the forward fuselage sections where changes were required for the different engines, and was of mixed wood and metal construction. The core of the structure was the fuselage that was of oval section and based on welded steel tube primary structure covered with Dural skin. The flying surface consisted of a Dural constructed tail unit with metal skinned fixed surfaces and fabric covered moving surfaces and a cantilever low set wing. The wing was of wooden construction with stressed plywood skinning and a slightly unusual planform with a curved leading edge and straight trailing edge. The two wing halves were attached at a slight dihedral angle to the stub roots built integral with the central fuselage section. The wings were tapered in thickness and chord and carried the standard trailing edge combination of outboard ailerons and inboard flaps. The airframe was completed with a high-set fully enclosed cockpit and the tailwheel landing gear with wide track main units.

The F.4 was to be powered by a 960 hp Isotta-Fraschini Asso 121 RC.40 Vee engine, but late in construction it was decided to replace that with a 1,175 hp Daimler Benz DB601A. This change delayed the F.4’s completion into 1940, but flight trials revealed the F.4 to possess good performance, excellent maneuverability and first class handling characteristics. No production followed however, for it was determined to terminate development of the F.4 for the F.6, essentially an F.4 powered by a 1,475 hp Fiat RA.1050 RC.58 Tifone, the license built Daimler Benz DB 605A.

The delay meant that the F.5 was the first of Fabrizi’s related fighter designs to fly, an event that took place in early 1939. The F.5 was powered by a Fiat A.74 RC.38 radial engine in a trim circular cowling that fitted so closely around the cylinder heads that bulged fairings were necessary to accommodate the rocker arms. By Italian standards of the period, the F.5 was an advanced fighter. The prototype was followed by 14 production aircraft. The production aircraft were changed using a revised and enlarged vertical tail surface to provide better directional stability, provision for an auxiliary fuel tank in the rear fuselage, an altered cockpit canopy and a non-retractable tailwheel. No further production followed.

The fighters were assigned to the 51st Stormo and the 8th Brigata Caccia Terrestre for the defense of Rome, first as night fighters and then as day fighters.

Caproni CA.113



Developed from the unsuccessful Ca 109 trainer that had been powered by the Alfa Romeo Lynx engine, the Ca 113 appeared in 1931 as a highly-attractive single-bay biplane intended for the advanced flyer trainer and aerobatic roles. The prototype was powered by a 240 hp Walter Castor radial engine and drove a two-bladed propeller. Modest production followed with this engine before a switch was made to the more powerful Piaggio P.VII C.35 Stella radial engine for improved performance and aerobatic capability in the advanced flyer-training role. Some of these aircraft were impressed into service during WW2 as liaison aircraft.

Ka.B.3 Tchoutchouliga: In 1938, Caproni funded the construction of the Ka.B factory in Bulgaria for the licensed production of Caproni aircraft. The Bulgarian establishment’s first product was the Tchoutchouliga (trout) that was a multi-role derivative of the Ca 113 powered by either a 260 hp Walter Castor II radial or a 430 hp Piaggio P.VII CD radial engine. Some 50 of these aircraft were delivered to the Bulgarian airforce from the spring of 1940 and some were still operational when Bulgaria was overrun by the Soviets in 1944.

Caproni CA.135



Despite its design, its development and ultimately its production at Caproni's subsidiary, the Ca.135 was originally to have been built at the company's mani facility, and it is this factor that explains why the type had a designation in the main Caproni sequence rather than in the Caproni Bergamasca Ca. 300 series.

The spurs to Caproni's initial commitment to the design in 1934 were the arrival from Breda of Cesare Pallavicino as chief designer, and the release of an Italian air force requirement for an advanced twin-engine medium bomber. This requirement called for a maximum speed of 240 mph at optimum altitude, the ability to carry a bomb load of 2,646 pounds over a range of 621 miles and the ability to maintain an altitude of 16,450 ft on the power of one engine. Pallavicino laid out a trim cantilever monoplane of mixed construction with the two engines located in wing-mounted nacelles and the crew grouped in the forward and central fuselage. The fuselage was based on a forward section of light alloy semi- monocoque construction to which was added a rear fuselage section of welded steel tube with fabric covering. To this were added the tailwheel landing gear (including a semi-retractable tailwheel and main units that retracted into the underside of the two engine nacelles) and the flying surfaces: the tail unit comprised a high-set tailplane with twin vertical surface located about mid-span of its two halves, and the wing comprised two dihedraled halves that were tapered in thickness and chord. The wings were of mixed metal and wood construction and had plywood skinning and fabric covering on their forward and rear sections respectively. Defensive armament was provided in the form of three Breda turrets: each could carry a single 12.7mm machine gun or two 7.7mm machine guns, and the dorsal and ventral turrets were of a semi-retractable type to reduce drag in cruising flight.

The prototype made its first flight in 4/35 powered by two 800 hp Isotta-Fraschini Asso XI RC Vee engines and driving a wooden two-bladed propeller. The propeller was soon exchanged for a three-bladed metal propeller subsequently accepted for all production versions. The Italian air force felt the Ca.135 had potential and in 1936 ordered 14 examples of the Ca.135 Tipo Spagna (Spanish model), presumably as it was intended to undertake an operational evaluation in the Spanish Civil War. However, none of the aircraft served with the Italian air force in Spain. The Ca.135 Tipo Spagna was then re- designated as the Ca.135/Asso for its two 836 hp Asso XI RC.40 Vee engines, but even with this slightly uprated powerplant, the performance of this pre-production model was degraded in comparison with the prototype. In addion to the operational equipment and extra fuel capacity, the weight was increased that resulted in a lowering of the maximum speed to 249 mph and the cruising speed to 227 mph at optimum altitude. The climb rate and service ceiling were also lowered while the range was increased.

The Ca.135 Tipo Peru (Peru model) was initially ordered in 1936 for 6 bombers but eventually 32 bombers were delivered. The aircraft differed from the initial Italian model in its revised gun positions and cleaner nacelles for the two 900 hp Asso XI RC.40 engines. These aircraft were used operationally by Peru in the Grand Chaco War of 1941 against Ecuador and proved moderately successful by South American standrards.

The Italian Air Force felt that the Ca.135 was limited by its comparative lack of power. Caproni proposed a version with two 910 hp Hispano Suiza 12Y-31 engines, but the air force refused to consider a version with French engines as France and Italy were at loggerheads. Early in 1938, therefore, the Ca.135 Tipo Spagna airframes were revised for trials with a pair of uprated engines of 1,000 hp, either Fiat A.80 RC.41s or Piaggio P.XI.RC.40 radials. Trials revealed that the Fiat engines were unreliable and failed to improve performance as significantly as the Piaggio engines, so the few Fiat powered bombers were withdrawn from front-line service and transferred to bomber schools.

The Piaggio engine aircraft proved altogether more successful, especially after they had been revised with a new nose section that was somewhat cleaner than the Ca.135 Tipo Spagna. The opportunity was also taken to replace the original Breda dorsal turret with a more modern Caproni-Lanciani turret. Despite its improved performance, the Ca.135/P.XI was not ordered by the Italian air force, which currently preferred tri-motor bombers such as the CANT Z.1007 and SM.79. The Imperial Japanese army air force also evaluated the type in competition to the Fiat BR.20 and preferred the latter.

Thus production of the Ca.135/P.XI was undertaken for a sole export customer, which was the Hungarian air force that received 100 of the type in 1939 and 1940. These aircraft operated with limited success against the Soviets in 1941 and 1942 once Hungary allied itself with the Axis and committed its forces to operations on the Eastern Front.

The last development of the series was the Ca.135bis/Alfa that was fitted with a dihedraled tailplane and was powered by two 1,400 hp Alfa Roemo 135 RC.32 Tornado radial engines. This prototype had a maximum speed of 301 mph, but it was clear by this time that the development potential left in the Ca.135 was marginal and no production was authorized.

Caproni CA.310



Although the Ca.308 Borea civil transport and its Ca.309 Ghibli multi-role colonial warplane half-brother clearly possessed production potential in their basic forms, Cesare Pallavicino appreciated that the concept would offer greater potential in a form revised with an uprated powerplant and retractable main landing gear units. This potential would be military rather than civil, and Caproni encourage Pallavicion to evolve this more potent type in parallel with the Ca.309.

The result was the Ca.310 Libeccio that first flew in prototype form in 4/37 with an airframe that was little modified from that of the Ca.309 except for some local strengthening. The Ca.310 was therefore based on a fuselage of welded steel tube construction with a covering of light alloy panels and fabric, and this carried a simple tail unit of wooden construction with plywood skin on its fixed portions and fabric covering on its moving portions. It also had a cantilever low-set wing of plywood covered wooden construction with virtually the full span of its trailing edges occupied by outboard ailerons and inboard split flaps. Thus the only major changes were limited to the forward fuselage and the engine nacelles: the former was revised to incorporate a more effective bombardier position with heavily framed but more extensive glazing on its lower part, and the latter were revised to provide accommodation for a different powerplant and main landing gear units that were hydraulically retracted rearward to rest in the underside of the nacelles with only part of each wheel exposed.

A more modest change was the addition above the fuselage, in line with the wing trailing edges, of a manually operated dorsal turret armed with a single rifle-caliber machine gun; this signaled Caproni’s realization that while the Ca.309 would not be required to face aerial opposition in colonial warfare, the Ca.310 would almost certainly face such a threat in the more advanced level of conflict for which it was planned. The uprated powerplant comprised two 430 hp Piaggio radial engines.

The Ca.310 had been planned as an export model, but the Italian air force ordered a small batch for evaluation purposes: 16 of these aircraft were sent to Spain in 7/38 for operational trials in the hands of a reconnaissance bomber squadron of the Italian expeditionary force operating alongside the Nationalist insurgents in the Spanish Civil War. Caproni was more successful in the export market, soon capturing orders for Peru for a small batch delivered in 1938; Yugoslavia for 12 aircraft; Hungary for 36 aircraft delivered in batches of 12 from 8/38-10/38 with a powerplant of two 470 hp P.VII C.35 radial engines; and Norway for a total of 24 aircraft if its full option was exercised.

Most of these countries soon discovered that the actual performance of the Ca.310 fell below the legend specification, and after discovering this fact with its first four aircraft Norway refused to accept any further deliveries of the Ca. 310, but then agreed to take 12 examples of the Ca.312 whose upgraded powerplant offered improved performance. In any event, none of these 32 aircraft had been delivered before Norway was invaded by German forces in 4/40 and the aircraft were taken on charge by the Italian air force. Hungary was also unhappy with its Ca.310s and in 1940 the surviving 33 machines were returned to Italy where they were refurbished by Caproni and reissued to the 50th Stormo d’Assalto as temporary replacements for the groups unsatisfactory Breda Ba.65 attack aircraft.

Potentially the most important customer for the Ca.310 was Great Britain, which was undertaking a major expansion of the RAF in a program that was accelerated after the Munich Crisis of 10/38. A major element in this British program was a much enlarged bomber force, and for successful implementation this required an effective crew trainer. Late in 1938 the British decided that the Ca.310 could be evolved into such a machine. Protracted negotiations continued until after the outbreak of World War II when Italy was still neutral, and in 12/39 the British government told Caproni that it was planning to buy 200 examples of the Ca.310 and 300 examples of the more powerful Ca.313, although further change followed the advent of the Ca.311, when the British decided to replace its planned force of 200 Ca.310s with 100 Ca. 311s.

Caproni CA.311



In 1938 Caprioni flew the Ca.310bis prototype powered by P.VII RC.35 engines with a completely redesigned nose that was completely glazed and heavily framed, eliminating the previous stepped windscreen, and that was reminiscent of the Bristol Blenheim Mk I and Breguet Bre.482. The revised forward fuselage provided excellent fields of vision and, as it met the Italian Air Force's requirement for a light reconnaissance bomber with observation capability, the type was ordered into production as the Ca.311 that first flew in prototype form during 4/39 with the dorsal turret moved forward to a position immediately behind the cockpit as well as additional glazing on the upper sides of the central fuselage over the wings, on the sides of the fuselage above the wing trailing edges, and under the fuselage immediately behind the wing trailing edges.

The Ca.311 began to replace the Meridionali Ro.37 biplane in service with the Italian Air Force air observation wings from 1940, although full re-equipment did not occur until 1941. The details of the Ca.311 included a fixed armament of 3 7.7mm machine guns, and a bomb load of 882 pounds.

The sole subvariant was the Ca.311M Libeccio (modified) that reverted to a more conventional forward fuselage with a stepped windscreen. The subvariant still had extensive glazing on the nose, but the revision altered the overall length by 1 foot, 2.25 inches. Total production of the Ca.311 and Ca.311M series for the Italian air force exceeded 320 aircraft , and these aircraft served with all but two of the Italian Air Force observation air wings in theaters as diverse as North Africa and Russia.

In the contract finalized during 1/40 for the delivery of some 400 Ca.310 series aircraft to Britain, the Air Ministry included 100 Ca.311 in place of the 200 Ca.210. These aircraft were to be delivered in disassembled form to an airfield near Marseilles, assembled and then flown to Britain. The Germans knew of the order and in 3/40 signaled their approval for the contract to go ahead despite the fact that Germany and Britain were at war. Six weeks later however, the Germans changed their minds and requested the Italian authorities to halt implementation of the order. Faced with this German embargo, Count Caproni (who was anti-German) arranged for the aircraft to be delivered to Britain via a front organization in Portugal, but less than four weeks later Italy entered the war on the German side and all further work ceased on the British order.

Ambrosini SAI.207



Between 10/38 and 4/39, Sergio Stefanutti designed the SAI.7 as a high-performance touring plane for the civil market. Undoubtedly one of the best looking aircraft ever designed, the SAI.7 possessed exceptionally clean lines, was of wooden construction with plywood skin. The SAI.7 was the first Ambrosini airplane with retractable landing gear, in this instance of the fully-retractable tailwheel type with wide-track main units that swung inward and upward into the roots of the cantilever low-set wing. The first two aircraft were completed in 7/39 with a windscreen design that extended right to the nose for a very clean entry, and were entered in the Avio Raduno del Littorio competition that started a few days after the machines made their maiden flights. The aircraft were too under developed to win the competition, but nonetheless put in a very credible performance that included a maximum speed of 251 mph with a 280 hp air-cooled Hirth HM 508D inverted-Vee engine. One aircraft took a class closed-circuit speed record over 61.2 miles with a speed of 244 mph.

The high speed/power ratio of the SAI.7 caught the imagination of the Italian air force which saw considerable possibilities in the concept of a lightweight interceptor that could be built in large numbers without drawing on the country's strategic stockpile of aluminum alloys. Little was done about the military potential of the SAI.7 in the short- term, however, and it was 1941 before Stefanutti began work on a fighter trainer derived from the SAI.7 with the Hirth engine being replaced by a 280 hp Isotta-Fraschini Beta RC.10 inverted-Vee engine. The fuselage and wingspan were increased and the faired racing windscreen was replaced by a conventional stepped windscreen at the front of a more heavily framed cockpit enclosure with two rearward sliding sections for access, and the landing gear was modified with a fixed tailwheel. These changes increased the maximum take-off weight, but the maximum speed was reduced only slightly to 248.5 mph. By the time the first of an eventual 10 SAI.7 fighter trainers appeared, the increasingly difficult military position in which Italy found itself was reflected in the emphasis on combat aircraft rather than trainers; and so further work on the fighter trainer variant was abandoned until after the war when it was revived and led to the S.7 and Supersette trainers.

Throughout this process Stefanutti and the Italian air ministry had not lost sight of the SAI.7's potential for development into a lightweight fighter. In 1942 Ambrosini evolved the SAI.107 as an experimental fighter for full evaluation of this potential. The new type was essentially a single-seat derivative of the fighter trainer was a considerably more powerful engine in the form of a 540 hp Isotta-Frashini Gamma RC.35 IS inverted-Vee engine driving a two bladed propeller. This prototype recorded a maximum speed of 348 mph and confirmed that a viable interceptor was possible. Stefanutti then proceeded to the design of a fighter with full operational equipment including armament. This was the SAI.207 that otherwise differed from the SAI.107 only in its more powerful engine driving a three-bladed propeller. Flight trials began in 1942, and in the course of these, the first SAI.207 recorded a dive speed of 596 mph at 9,845 ft, corresponding to Mach .86.

The Italian air ministry ordered Ambrosini to begin work on a pre-production batch and placed an order for 2,000 production aircraft. In the event only 13 of the pre-production aircraft were completed, three of them being allocated to the 3rd Stormo Caccia Terrestre during 7/43 for operational trials. Italy secured an armistice with the Allies just two months later. Production of the SAI.207 had meanwhile been cancelled in favor of its SAI.403 Dardo (dart) derivative. This essentially was a more sophisticated version of the SAI.207 with the same type of stressed-skin wooden construction, but which had fully retractable landing gear rather than the 207's combination of retractable main gear and fixed tailwheel. In addition, changes included a revised tail unit with a variable-incidence tailplane, greater ammunition capacities, and an upgraded powerplant in the form of the 750 hp Isotta-Fraschini Delta RC.21/60 Serie I-IV driving a three-bladed Piaggio constant-speed propeller.

The three variants of the SAI.403 planned were the Dardo-A lightweight interceptor with armament restricted to two 12.7mm machine guns, the Dardo-B general-purpose fighter with two 20mm cannon and two 12.7mm machine guns, and the Dardo-C long-range fighter with 2 20mm cannon and provision for two 39.6 US gallon drop tanks supplementing the internal fuel capacity from the 79.25 US gallon of the Dardo A/B to 108.3 US gallon. The first SAI.403 flew late in 1942 and revealed exceptional performance, including a maximum speed of 404 mph at 23,620 ft. This resulted in the termination of the SAI.207 in favor of 3,000 of the SAI.403 to be produced. None of these fighters had been delivered before the Italian armistice with the Allies and the closing of the program.

CANT Z 506



The CANT Z.506 originated as a civilian transport plane and, in an era where prestige was still measured by the performance of commercial aircraft, this large three-engine seaplane with the lateral floats provided remarkable proof of the value of its features, breaking a considerable number of records. In 1936 alone, the chief test pilot established 8 world records in its category over distances of 625 miles and 1,250 miles carrying payloads of up to 2 tons and two altitude records with a payload of two tons and five tons. The same records were improved in 1937 and included speed records over distances of 3,100 miles (191.56 mph), 1,250 miles (198.70 mph) and 625 miles (200.18 mph). Subsequently the Z.506 also established a distance record in a closed circuit covering 3,345.2 miles.

The project was begun in 1935 and the prototype of the commercial version, designated Z.506A, made its first flight on 8/19/35, powered by three 610 hp Piaggio P.IX radial engines. Production began immediately and the first 38 aircraft to be completed went into service in 1936, bearing the insignia of the Al Littoria airline, which used them in Mediterranean routes. The military version, the Z.506B Airone, designed as a bomber and naval reconnaissance plane, appeared in 10/37. Structurally it was very similar to its civil counterpart in that it was a three-engine low-wing monoplane seaplane, and its structure was entirely in wood with a mixed wood and canvas covering, with the exception of the all-metal floats. The only external differences were the raised pilot's cockpit and the deepening of the fuselage by means of a long pod in the belly, for use as bomb storage and an observation post. The engines were 750 hp Alfa Romeo 126 RC-34s that powered three-bladed variable-pitch propellers. Defensive armament consisted of one 12.7mm machine gun in the dorsal position and three 7.7mm machine guns in the ventral and two beam positions. Offensive bomb load was 2,650 lbs. Top speed was 217 mph at 13,125 ft, service ceiling was 22,965 ft and range was 1,243 miles.

Even bearing military insignia, the Z.506 continued to break records. In 10/37, a new ceiling record was established at 33,465 ft with a 2,000 lb payload. This was followed by a successful non-stop Atlantic crossing of 4,362 miles from Cadiz, Spain to Caraveles, Brazil.

The first units to receive the new aircraft were the 35th 31st naval bomber groups, and the need to re-equip the reconnaissance units led to a stepping up of production. The last CANT Z.506B came off the assembly line in 1/43 after 324 aircraft had been produced.

The Z.506Bs first operational debut took place during the Spanish Civil War. When Italy entered World War II, there were 97 of these aircraft in service with two naval bomber units and several reconnaissance squadrons. The aircraft saw fairly heavy action in Greece and participated in the capture of Corfu, Cefalonia and Zante. As the war proceeded, the plane's limitations soon became apparent and it was relegated to naval reconnaissance, convoy escort and air-sea rescue duties. After the Armistice, 23 Z.506Bs and 5 Z.506S were flown to Allied ports and used by the Co-Belligerent forces.

The Z.506's career continued after the war. 30 or so of these aircraft remained in service in the rescue role, forming part of the Italian Air Force until 1960 in the specialized variant the Z.506S that had been built during the war and was also used by the Germans.

CANT Z 511 Long Range Hydroplane



The Cantz 511 Long Range Cargo Hydroplane was first designed by Fillipo Zappata. The first flight took place in Monfalcone (Trieste, north-eastern Italy) in October 1940. It's first operational start took place in February 1942 (Italian territory).

The phase of study for the construction of this huge four-engined, double-floated hydroplane (the largest of its category in the world) started at the end of September 1937, when the technical department of CRDA accepted the order of Compagnia Ala Littoria, who requested a long range hydroplane for mail, cargo and passengers link with Latin America. After two years of hard work, the project manager Filippo Zappata and his team were ready with the first prototype. This aircraft - strong and beautiful, able to carry (in theory) 16 passengers to a destination of more than 5.000 km away, flew in October 1940 giving good impressions in spite of its dimensions and its imperfect engines' setting up (after he had tested some national engines, Zappata asked the High Command the permission to purchase six U.S. Wright Cyclone R-2600A propellers: due to the worsening of the diplomatic relationship between Rome and Washington, his request was not accepted).

The CANTZ511 was then provided with four Piaggio P.XII RC.35 1500 hp engines, the only ones to guarantee acceptable performances on an aircraft weighing 34 tons. In April 1941, the prototype flew from Monfalcone to Grado (far from the unsafe Yugoslavian border) for other trials. On January 1942, the hydroplane had to be employed on different long range routes, as the war against the United States prevented the civil use of CANTZ511 in the Atlantic area. The ideas were actually original and unusual. Among the projects taken into consideration, were plans to free fifty Italian soldiers and pilots imprisoned in Jeddah by Arab-English forces; to bomb some Russian ports on the Black Sea (Bathumi and Poti), on the Caspian Sea (Baku), or British bases on the Persian Gulf (Oil ports in Bahrein). Some had the odd idea of a spectacular mission (taking off from Bordeaux and twice supplying from German supply-submarines) in the skies of New York, launching one ton of tri-coloured leaflets.

Some others thought about a non-stop Rome-Buenos Aires raid (8000 km!). None of these projects was carried out. And it was a real pity, as the test pilot Mario Stoppani - between the end of February and the beginning of March 1942, during the last trials - succeeded in taking off and landing (full loaded) with very rough sea, with 1.5 metres high waves and winds blowing at 55-65 kmh.

CANT Z 1007



The three-engine formula, much developed by Italian manufacturers, had another noteworthy representative in the CANT Z. 1007, the bomber that, together with the SM.79 and BR.20, constituted the Regia Aeronautica's standard equipment during the conflict. A total of 560 aircraft were built in three production series from 1939 to 1943. The Alcione was widely used on all fronts, proving to be an effective aircraft, despite the emergence of problems of structural weakness in extreme climates, such as Africa and Russia, due to its being built entirely of wood.

The project was launched in 1935 with the first prototype flying on 3/11/37. However, flight tests did not produce the expected results. This was due, above all else, to the engines, 3 Isotta-Fraschini Asso XI liquid-cooled engines driving two bladed wooden propellers, that proved incapable of generating their rated power of 840 hp. With the aim of improving the aircraft's performance, a series of modifications were carried out, including the introduction of a three bladed Alfa Romeo metal propeller. The first production series consisting of 34 aircraft was characterized by the installation of anular-type frontal radiators. Nevertheless, the problems concerning the lack of reliability of the engines remained virtually unsolved in the aircraft that were built from 2/39-10/39. The problem was so great that the evaluation tests, carried out mainly by units of the 16th Stormo based in Venice, advised against the Z.1007's being used operationally.

In the meantime, the design had been completely reworked, incorporating three 1,000 hp Piaggio IX radial engines. The new prototype, called the Z.1007bis, first flew in 1938 and was substantially modified as compared to its predecessor. Apart from the engines, the cross-section of the aircraft had been enlarged and completely reworked, while the overall dimensions had been increased. Other changes regarded the defensive positions on the back and belly and the tail planes, characterized by lower horizontal empennages. In the course of production, the Series I-III of the Z.1007bis had a single rudder and fin while the Series IV-IV had twin fins and rudders. The effectiveness of the changes became apparent during flight-testing and official evaluations carried out on 8 pre-series aircraft. The Z.1007bis proved to have a maximum speed of 283 mph at an altitude of 15,100 ft, a range of 1,242 miles and a maximum ceiling of 27,630 ft. The crew consisted of 5: a pilot, a co-pilot, a radio operator/gunner, a tail gunner and a gunner that operated either of the beam guns. Defensive armament consisted of 2-12.7mm machine guns in ventral and top turrets and 2-7.7mm machine guns in beam positions. The Z.1007bis had a maximum bomb load of 2,646 lbs of bombs or 2 17.7-inch torpedoes.

The final version was the Z.1007ter, of which only 35 were produced and which appeared in early 1943 using the Piaggio P.XIX radial engine that gave the Z.1007ter a top speed of 304 mph and a ceiling of 32,890 ft.

Deliveries of the Z.1007bis to the units commenced in the spring of 1940 to the 106th and 107th Groups of the 47th Stormo, although none could be considered operational when Italy entered the war in 6/40. The Z.1007's first mission occurred in 9/40 when several of the single fin types were incorporated into the unit sent to Belgium to bomb England. It was not an outstanding debut as the CANTs carried out only a few missions on the English Channel front and with little success.

However, in 10/40, the Z.1007 was largely used in the invasion of Greece, followed by service in the Mediterranean, North Africa and especially against Malta. On the Russian front, the use of the three engine bombers was sporadic and intermittent. At the time of the armistice, the few remaining Z.1007's were split about evenly between the pro-Axis and Co-Belligerent air forces. At its height, the Z.1007 was used by 4 Stormos, 7 Groups and 2 squadrons.

CANT Z 1018 "Leone"



Arguably the finest bomber produced in Italy during World War II and fully a match for any medium bomber produced by Germany or the Allies, the Leone (lion) appeared too late to influence Italy's fate in the war and was therefore built only in very modest numbers. The design was the last by Filippo Zappata before he left CANT for Breda, and also his first airplane of all-metal construction. The Z.1018 embodied the lessons of all of Zappata's previous warplanes for CANT. The Z.1018 was a very clean design of the classic cantilever low-wing monoplane type with two wing-mounted engines, tailwheel landing gear incorporating main units that retracted into the rear of the engine nacelles, and a glazed nose incorporating the bombardier station. The first prototype was basically an aerodynamic test machine, and differed from its successors in being of all-wood construction with a tail unit that comprised a dihedraled tailplane carrying endplate vertical surfaces.

The prototype made its maiden flight in 1940 and was soon followed by five more prototypes of all-metal construction with lengthened fuselage, the cockpit moved forward from the original position over the wing, and a revised tail unit incorporating a single vertical surface. These prototypes were used for the evaluation of a number of power plants including: two 1,500-hp Piaggio P.XII RC.35 radials, two 1,400-hp Piaggio P.XV RC.45 radials, two 1,400-hp Alfa Romeo 135 RC.32 Tornado radials and two 1,475-hp Fiat RA.1050 RC.58 Tifone inverted-Vee engines.

It was clear from the beginning of the flight test program that the performance of the Leone was so high that a production order was certain. This materialized in 1941 in the form of a contract for 300 aircraft to be powered by two Alfa Romeo 135 RC.32 or Piaggio P.XII RC.35 engines, depending on availability. In the event that the Alfa Romeo radial engine was available in larger quantities, and production started in 1943 with a powerplant of two such engines. By the time of the Italian armistace in 9/43 however, deliveries had reached only 10 pre-production and five production warplanes, and a few of these machines saw limited service with the 101st Bombardment Group. Such was the potential of the basic design that two important derivatives were proposed. The first of these was a heavy fighter was a fixed forward armament of 7 20mm cannon as well as a defensive outfit based on three 12.7mm trainable machine guns. The second was a night-fighter with German Lichtenstein SN-2 radar with the antenna in the nose. Both these fighter models had an estimated maximum speed of 395 mph, but neither reached the hardware stage.

IMAM RO.37



The Meridionali (formally IMAM) Ro.37 design and production began in 1934. The Ro.37 was a biplane with unequal span wings and mixed construction of wood and metal, a fixed tail wheel and wheel spats for all three wheels. It was crewed by two and was intended as a two-seat fighter/reconnaissance aircraft. Originally, the Ro.37 was powered by 700-hp Fiat in-line engine.

An improved version, the Ro.37bis was powered by a 560-hp Piaggio radial engine; the top speed was 205 mph at 16,405 ft with a service ceiling of 23,620 feet and a range of 696 miles. The Ro.37bis was armed with 2 fixed forward firing 7.7mm machine guns and a flexible rearward firing 7.7mm machine gun and could carry a bomb load of 397 pounds.

Both the Ro.37 and Ro.37bis were quite popular and over 635 were built (160 Ro.37 and 475 Ro.37bis). Export orders were received from Central and South American countries as well as Afghanistan and Hungary.

The Ro.37 and Ro.37bis were involved in the Spanish Civil War from 10/36 and were used extensively by the Regia Aeronautica during the invasion of Abyssinia between 10/35 and 5/36, and occupation of that country until 1941.

When World War II started, 275 Ro.37 and RO.37bis were in service as follows: 30th Recon Flight at Palermo; 120th Recon Flight at Tirana [Albania]; 122nd Recon Flight at Mellaha; 136th Recon Flight (Tripoli); 127th and 137th Recon Flights at El Adem; 110th Recon Flight (Ro.37) at Addis Abeba; 27th Recon Flight at Casabianca; 42nd Recon Flight at Bari; 121st Recon Flight at Airasca; 131st Recon Flight at Napoli-Capodichino; 31st Recon Flight (Ro.37) at Venari Reale; 33rd Recon Flight at Bresso; 39th and 40th Recon Flights (Ro.37s) at Venaria Reale; 114th Recon Flight (Ro.37) at Tornino-Mirafiori; 118th, 123rd and 132nd Recon Flights at Levaldigi; 129th Recon Flight (mix Ro.37bis/Ca.311) at Mondovi; 24th, 35th and 115th Recon Flights (Ro.37) at Verona-Boscomantico; 25th Recon Flight (Ro.37) at Jesi; 28th Recon Flight (Ro.37) at Lucca-Tassignano; 29th Recon Flight (Ro.37) at Arezzo; 32nd and 125th Recon Flights at Udine-Campoformido; 34th and 128th Recon Flights (Ro.37) at Parma; 36th and 87th Recon Flights (Ro.37) at Padova; 38th and 116th Recon Flights at Gorizia-Merna; and 113th Recon Flight at Bologna-Borgo Panigale.

The Ro.37s saw front-line action in the North African campaign, the Balkans and on the Eastern Front. After they were withdrawn from front-line service, RO.37's were used as utility planes and ambulances and at the time of the armistice on 9/8/43, had been completely retired from service.