During March 1943, the Corpo Aereo Italiano was detached to Odessa airbase, joining Reggiane Re. This aircraft was both fast and maneuverable. On 7 March 1942, the carrier USS Wasp delivered the first Spitfires to Malta, and the Axis' air-superiority started to shift in favour of the Allies. This infographic shows the main types of fighter aircraft deployed by the Italian Air Force (Regia Aeronautica) in World War Two. Other defects, like the unreliability of the radio sets and of the oxygen systems, and the limited armament, could not be addressed with such ease. [13] A speed of 603 km/h (375 mph) was recorded during testing, while an altitude of 5,486 m (18,000 ft) was attained within the space of six minutes; in addition, little of the favourable manoeuvrability of the earlier C.200 had been lost. [13] Breda would eventually produce the majority of the type. [47] The Macchi could out-turn the Spitfire, but the Folgores suffered from the lack of a more powerful armament and, without radios, the Regia Aeronautica pilots were forced to communicate with one another by waggling their wings and, consequently, had to adopt formations that were too tight and less effective in combat. Mixed units (such as the 51° Stormo, Sardinia) were formed with C.202s, yet were often serving with C.205s as well. [12] Jettisonable tanks, containing either 22 or 33 gallons of fuel, could be installed upon some of the later built aircraft. [33] The Breda fired 12.7x81 mm "Vickers" ammunition — while its cartridges were longer than the 13 x 64 mm rounds of its German rough equivalent, the MG 131, the 81 mm Italian rounds were still shorter than the standard 12.7x99 mm rounds of the American "Ma Deuce"; with the result that the energy at the muzzle was 10,000 joules vs. 16,000. Italian Macchi C.202 Folgore fighter plane of World War II. On the night of 28 December 1941 the SAS managed to destroy a further nine aircraft. An MC-205, among the best WW2 Italy airplanes The Royal Italian Air Force – The Regia Aeronautica – was considered one of the most advanced in the world. [65], After the abandonment of advanced airfields between December 1942 – January 1943 at Voroshilovgrad, Stalino and Tscerkow, the Italian air units were operated in a series of defensive actions against a more potent Soviet air offensive, consisting mainly of Ilyushin IL-2s Shturmoviks and Petlyakov Pe-2s. The top scoring Italilan pilots in this theatre included Capitano Furio Niclot-Doglio (a 7 kills ace, shot down and killed on 27 July 1942 by RAF ace George "Screwball" Beurling) and Sergente Ennio Tarantola. Nijboer, Donald: "Spitfire V vs C.202 Folgore – Malta 1942 (Osprey Duel ; 60)". The Macchi C.202 Folgore (Italian "thunderbolt") was an Italian fighter aircraft developed and manufactured by Macchi Aeronautica. [72] During 1944, the Air Force of the Independent State of Croatia, Zrakoplovstvo Nezavisne Države Hrvatske (ZNDH), received several batches of C.202s. The surviving aircraft were operated by the Aeronautica Militare Italiana, where they were used as trainer aircraft as late as 1948 before being phased out entirely. During July 1939, the Regia Aeronautica requested that Reggiane construct a single prototype Re.2000 that was powered by a German Daimler-Benz DB 601Aa, liquid-cooled supercharged inverted V-12 engine rated at 1,175 PS (1,159 hp, 864 kW); this became the Re.2001. During January, eight brand-new Folgore fighters arrived at Zagreb's Lucko airfield. The unpressurised cockpit had an armor plate fitted behind the armored seat for protection. Both pilots flew with 51° Stormo C.T., the most successful Italian unit over Malta, having reportedly achieved a score of 97 aircraft destroyed for the loss of only 17 Folgores. [42] The 4º Stormo flew its last mission on Malta on 19 May before moving back to North Africa. This, coupled with the 32 Cant Z.1007s, was one of the most powerful fighter forces that the Italians fielded in the war, and constituted almost a tenth of the overall Folgore production. 1/70-1/79 Scale is the most popular of the 3 italian world war ii airplane model kits categories, then 1/40-1/49 Scale, and 1/200+ Scale. )JGr and equipped with Fiat G.50, Macchi C.200 and Fiat CR.42 fighters. Castoldi, whose background included working on Schneider Trophy racers design, followed Celestino Rosatelli as the main designer of new fighters for the RA. [46] At the end of June, however, about 60 C.202s could be mustered in Sicily to operate against Malta, which had been receiving the Spitfire Mk. [21], The fuselage of the C.202 was a semi-monocoque shell, comprising four light-alloy beams, complete with longerons and ovoidal bulkheads. [4] As with the C.200, to counteract the torque of the engine, Castoldi extended the left wing by 21 cm (8.5 inches); this meant that the left wing developed more lift, offsetting the tendency of the aircraft to roll to the left due to the rotation of the propeller. Following the 1943 Armistice with Italy, the type was mostly used as a trainer aircraft. Speed, armament, and production numbers for each type are displayed. Green, William. As a reconnaissance plane/torpedo bomber, Botha had quite a long list of drawbacks. During November 1939, the Italian automotive company Alfa Romeo acquired a license to produce the DB 601Aa as the Alfa-Romeo RA.1000 R.C.41-I Monsone; it was this engine that was to be used in the production of the C.202. [21], The main coolant radiator was housed in a rectangular fairing under the fuselage beneath the cockpit, and the oil cooler was placed under the nose within a streamlined, rectangular housing. Type: Single-seat fighter plane. Others served as trainers in the Axis-aligned Aeronautica Nazionale Repubblicana (National Republican Air Force) of the Italian Social Republic (RSI) and the Luftwaffe (German Air Force). It was operated mainly by the Regia Aeronautica (RA; Royal (Italian) Air Force) in and around the Second World War. The oxygen system was also regarded as being inefficient, causing, at least during the first sorties, up to 50/60 per cent of the pilots to abandon their missions and in some cases having been determined to have caused fatal accidents. Messerschmitt Bf 109 formation. "Hawker in Mediterraneo (in Italian). [13] The prototype differed in some respects from the production aircraft; the headrest fairing incorporated two windows for rear visibility, while production versions replaced this with a narrower, scalloped headrest. [19] For some time, supplies of the DB 601 engine continued to be provided directly from Germany in order to supplement Italian production. Behind the canopy, the pilot's headrest was fixed to a triangular turn-over pylon which was covered by a streamlined, tapered fairing. [44] However, it was during this time that the Axis had to abandon their plans for the invasion of Malta (known as Operation C 3) due to the aircraft and men being necessary elsewhere. [79] The C.202 was often considered to have been superior to both the British Hawker Hurricane and the American Curtiss P-40 Kittyhawk that it commonly fought against, at first on the Libyan front, as well as being the equal of the Supermarine Spitfire Mk. [76], As a consequence of the Allied aerial bombing against the Italian Social Republic, during which the manufacturing facilities of the Macchi company had sustained damage during 1944, both the production life and combat career of both the C.202 and the further refined C.205 were effectively cut short and greatly diminished. [23][11] A synchronizing unit allowed the nose guns to fire through the propeller disk, but with a 25% loss in ROF (Rate of Fire). Although these forces were insufficient they nevertheless achieved notable successes. [2][67] Furthermore, it was increasingly recognised that 20 mm cannons were required in order to cause enough damage, thus a mixture of Bf 109F/Gs, Macchi MC.205s and Fiat G.55s were deployed to replace the remaining C.202s as soon as possible. [56] As per company tradition, Macchi aircraft designed by Mario Castoldi received the "C" letter in their model designation, hence the Folgore is commonly referred to as the C.202 or MC.202. This is a list of aces in World War II from Italy.A flying ace or air ace is a military … [61] Pilots of 16° Gruppo Assalto, an attack unit, downed no fewer than 10 aircraft. [72] During a period of intensive activity over the summer, the squadron had claimed some 20 Allied aircraft shot down. [citation needed]. Upon entering service, the type became Italy’s first single-seat, all-metal monoplane that had an enclosed cockpit and retractable undercarriage. The Breda design was as heavy as the Browning M2, the model from which it was derived. [11] His new project was robust and small, utilizing a conventional but complex structural arrangement based on his experience with wooden designs, and at the same time paying great attention to its aerodynamics (Castoldi had previously designed the MC.72, the world's fastest aircraft of its time). [25] The C.202 was lightly armed by the standards of the time carrying the same armament as the C.R.32, a 1933 design. [13], By the signing of the 1943 Armistice with Italy, there were only 186 Folgores remaining, of which roughly 100 aircraft were still considered to be in a serviceable condition. Ghergo, Federico. [73], On 24 April 1944, the first confirmed air victory was claimed by Unteroffizier Leopold Hrastovcan against an American B-24 that was shot down near the village of Zapresic (Zagorje). Flag images indicative of country of origin and not necessarily the primary operator. The large two engined P-38 looks nothing like your typical World War 2 fighter, looking more like a heavy fighter, but the Lightning (namesake of the F-35 Lightning II), or Fork Tailed Devil to the Germans and Two Planes One Pilot to the Japanese was an extremely fast and maneuverable plane. Blackburn Botha is one of the rare aircraft in the history of aviation that has been replaced with an older version. Post-war, some of the aircraft which had survived the conflict were joined by a small number of newly manufactured C.205s. [7] During late 1941, it commenced offensive operations over Malta and in North Africa, where Italian and German forces were engaged in heavy combat against British and later American operations. All written content, illustrations, and photography are unique to this website (unless where indicated) and not for reuse/reproduction in any form. [40] Over the skies of the besieged island, the new Macchi fighter was not only used to conduct fighter operations, but also for performing ground attack runs and aerial reconnaissance missions. Italy airplanes were renowned worldwide. [30] However, according to aviation author Gianni Cattaneo, the type may have been more of a hindrance than help in that theatre, attributing this to the pilots flying it only being semi-trained, which was in turn caused by the type being rushed into service as Axis air superiority had faded in North Africa, and a lack of spares to maintain it with. [52] Squadron Leader Dennis Harry Clark, D.F.C. The C.202 series, powered by an inline engine, was a further Macchi development of the radial-engined C.200 Saetta monoplane fighter. [12][11] Another of its positive attributes was its extremely strong construction, which allowed its pilots to dive the aircraft steeply. Conceptual and prototype designs evolving during the war are also included in this listing. The first batch of 16 "Folgores" delivered to the ZNDH was from the XII series, built by Breda following the German occupation of Northern Italy. [17], In order to expand production, the Milan-based industrial manufacturer Società Italiana Ernesto Breda was selected to also construct the C.202. [20], The Macchi C.202 Folgore was an Italian fighter aircraft, developed from the earlier C.200 Saetta; its principal difference was its use of an Italian-built version of the German Daimler-Benz DB 601Aa engine and the adoption of a revised streamlined fuselage. )JGr, had reportedly initially regarded the Macchis as "old, weary and unusable", and described the morale of his men as "low", and his unit's results as "nil", primarily because of the NDH's underdeveloped air-raid warning system, which saw the Croatian Macchi fighters often taking off to intercept attacking Allied bombers that were already flying overhead. [48], Nevertheless, the C.202's pilots were able to achieve many successes against the British Spitfires. During March 1944, they were scrambled for the first time against an American raid west of Zagreb, but combat was avoided: Croatian Macchi pilots had been initially instructed to attack only those aircraft which had already been damaged or had become separated from their main formations. [61], By 21 February 1943 the 5ª Squadra Aerea still had the 6°Gruppo C.T. [5] Seventeen of these victories were obtained in 73ª Squadriglia, 9° Gruppo (from 4° Stormo). Oxford, UK: Osprey Publishing, 2014. On 23 December 1942, the Regia Aeronautica authorized the use of under-wing jettisonable tanks on the C.202s of 6° and 7° Gruppo based in Pantelleria, significantly boosting their endurance. According to aviation author Giuseppe Ciampaglia, in comparison to the Bf 109E/F, which was rated at typically requiring 4,500–6,000 man-hours per aircraft to complete, the Macchi routinely needed in excess of 22,000 man-hours. [40], The presence of the Folgores in Maltese skies was to last only until the end of November, when most of the unit was transferred to the deteriorating North Africa front. [74] At the end of the summer, those C.202s that were still in a flight-worthy condition, based in Borovo, were used by Croatian cadets for training purposes. The Macchi C.202 Folgore is regarded as the most successful Italian fighter aircraft of World War Two. [66][60], The C.202s played a significant role in the defense of Sicily and Southern Italy against bombing attacks launched by the USAAF, however, by the time of Allied invasion of Sicily during July 1943, their effectiveness had been diminished considerably as a result of attrition, which had reduced the number available. Two weeks later, another four aircraft arrived; one of these was reportedly lost during a test-flight. Recommended to you based on your activity and what's popular • Feedback By the end of 1942, U.S. B-17 and B-24 strategic bombers had begun launching daytime raids on Italian cities, and the Italian Regia Aeronautica badly needed more cannon-armed fighters to have any hope of shooting the huge aircraft down. Data from The Macchi C.202[88] The Complete Book of Fighters[89], Aircraft of comparable role, configuration, and era, Sgarlato Nico, Folgore Monography Feb 2008, Air Force of the Independent State of Croatia, List of Regia Aeronautica aircraft used in World War II, Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum. composed of 356ª, 382ª, 361ª and 386ª Squadriglia. Macchi 202s of 1° Stormo based at Uadi Tamet had been transferred from Italy one month before and recently relocated from Bir el Merduma because the airbase was too exposed to SAS attacks. Nearly 34,000 Me 109s were built throughout the course of the war, with licensed models adding another … [14] The performance figures gathered during these tests indicated that Italy had caught up with both Britain and Germany in the field of fighter airplanes. "Macchi M.C.202 and M.C.205V. Both the wing and fuselage structures were of a conventional metal design, having a single vertical tail with two elevators, and a wing of relatively conventional design with two main spars and 23 ribs. After this attack the Italians were forced to move their remaining aircraft well away from the front lines to avoid incurring further losses to such raids. During the 1930s, the Italian military authorities chose to adopt only radial engines to power their aircraft; consequently, during the second half of the 1930s, the Italian aeronautical industry had been sufficiently de-incentivised to the point of completely avoiding the development of more powerful engines based on streamlined liquid-cooled designs, which would become popular abroad. The birth of the best Italian fighter plane of WW2, the Macchi C.205V Veltro was harassed by high authorities within the Italian Air Ministry who, for some reasons, preferred to support the all-new Fiat G.55 Centauro and Reggiane Re 2005 instead of moving ahead at a much faster pace with a natural development of an already well-established MC.202 Folgore. [72], According to aviation authors Dragan Savic and Boris Ciglic, Croatian pilots did not at first have a high opinion of the Macchi fighter, in part due to its armament consisting of just a pair of 12.7 mm and two 7.7mm machine guns, which were regarded as scarcely effective against the heavily armed US four-engined bombers. The Macchi C.202 Folgore (Italian "thunderbolt") was an Italian fighter aircraft developed and manufactured by Macchi Aeronautica. [57] 2001 effort; but, by employing both mass production techniques and less expensive advanced technologies, the production cost was slightly less than that of the Reggiane Re.2001, (525,000 lire vs 600,000); this latter, the only other DB 601 fighter in mass production, was slower and heavier (2.460/3.240 kg)[16] but had a bigger wing and a more advanced and adaptable structure. The rate of fire was about 18 rounds/second (1,080 rounds per minute) or 0.63 kg (1.39 lb). )JGr; this unit was equipped with Macchis. We do not sell any of the items showcased on this site. [37][38], From early October 1941, the Italian units commenced extensive operations over Malta, which provided many opportunities for encounters with RAF fighters. The support for the engine, originally steel, was replaced with a lighter aluminium structure.[82]. During one such mission, on 11 December 1942, which involved the escorting of several Junkers Ju 52s en route to Stalingrad, Tenente Pilota Gino Lionello was shot down and forced to bail out from his Folgore. [21] From the cockpit aft, the fuselage was formed into a round monocoque structure; the aft fuselage tapered into the tail and contained the radio, oxygen and flight control mechanisms. 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