Fiat CR.1
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| CR.1 | |
|---|---|
| Type | Fighter |
| Manufacturer | Fiat |
| Designed by | Celestino Rosatelli |
| Introduction | 1924 |
| Primary users | Regia Aeronautica Latvian Air Force |
The Fiat CR.1 was an Italian biplane fighter aircraft of the 1920s. Of wood and fabric construction, it was designed by Celestino Rosatelli, from whom it gained the 'CR' designation. Its most distinctive feature was that as an "inverted sesquiplane" the lower wings were longer than the upper ones.
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[edit] Design and development
Regia Aeronautica requested two prototype aircraft of Fiat in the early 1920s. The results were designated MM.1 and MM.2, identical except for rudder (one had a rounded, counterbalanced rudder) and engines (they had differing marks of Hispano-Suiza piston engine).
The airplane was a biplane of conventional layout, with fixed tailskid landing gear and open cockpit, with the pilot's head aligned with the trailing edge of the upper wing. The V8 engine powered a fixed-pitch two-blade wooden propeller. The landing gear had a fixed axle between the wheels. It carried two synchronized 7.7 mm Vickers machine guns firing thru the propeller arc.
The two prototypes were evaluated against another biplane fighter, the SIAI S.52, and proved superior in maneuverability and top speed. Accordingly, contracts were issued to three Italian companies for three batches of production aircraft, to be designated CR.1:
- 109 units to be built by Fiat;
- 40 units to be built by OFM of Napoli;
- 100 units to be built by SIAI.
After two pre-production prototypes were again flight-tested, a total of 240 units were placed in Italian military service, beginning in 1925.[1]
[edit] Operational history
The Regia Aeronautica ordered 240 CR.1s and began equipping its 1st Fighter Group in 1924. By 1926 twelve Italian fighter squadrons had been allocated the aircraft. The same year Fiat introduced an updated all-metal version, the CR.20.
Though both Belgium and Poland evaluated and rejected the aircraft, an export order was received from Latvia. Their nine CR.1s, fitted with the 300 hp Hispano-Suiza HS8N8 engine, served in Latvian Naval Aviation until 1936.
In the 1930s some CR.1s were fitted with Isotta Fraschini Asso Caccia engines of 440 hp, which improved their performance. These units were given to Squadriglia 163, based at Rodes on the Aegean Sea. Those units were retired from active service in 12937
[edit] Variants
- MM.1
- Prototype.
- MM.2
- Prototype.
- CR.1
- Single-seat fighter biplane
- CR.2
- One evaluation model, equipped with a Armstrong Siddeley Lynx radial engine.
- CR.5
- One evaluation model, equipped with an Alfa Romeo Jupiter radial engine.
- CR.10
- One evaluation moded, equipped with a Fiat A.10 Vee engine with two Lamblin radiators.
[edit] Operators
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[edit] Specifications (CR.1)
This aircraft article is missing some (or all) of its specifications. If you have a source, you can help Wikipedia by adding them.Data from Encyclopedia of Military Aircraft[2]
General characteristics
- Crew: one, pilot
- Length: 6.24 m (6.16 m alternate) (20 ft 6 in)
- Wingspan: 8.95 m (29 ft 4 in)
- Height: 2.40 m (7 ft 20 in)
- Wing area: 23 m² (247.5 ft²)
- Empty weight: 839 kg (1,850 lb)
- Max takeoff weight: 1,155 kg (2,546 lb)
- Powerplant: 1× Isotta-Fraschini Asso V8 engine, 239 kW (320 hp)
Performance
- Maximum speed: 270 km/h (146 knots, 168 mph)
- Range: 650 km (351 nm, 405 mi)
- Service ceiling 7,450 m (24,440 ft)
- Wing loading: 48.43 kg/m² (9.92 lb/ft²)
Armament
- 2 × fixed forward 7.7 mm (0.303 in) machine guns
[edit] See also
Related lists
[edit] References
- ^ html CR.1 history
- ^ Jackson, Robert, The Encyclopedia of Military Aircraft, Paragon, 2002. ISBN 0-75258-130-9
[edit] External links
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