| Caproni Vizzola F.6 | |
|---|---|
| The Caproni Vizzola F.6M prototype after replacement of the radiator bath under its nose with a ventral radiator. | |
| Role | Fighter |
| Manufacturer | Caproni |
| First flight | F.6M: September 1941 F.6Z: August 1943 |
| Primary user | Regia Aeronautica |
| Number built | 2 |
The Caproni Vizzola F.6 was an Italian fighter aircraft built by Caproni. It was a single-seat, low-wing cantilever monoplane with retractable landing gear. Only two prototypes were built, one of a model designated F.6M and the other of a model designated F.6Z.
Contents |
The genesis of the F.6 design was the desire to adapt the airframe of the Caproni Vizzola F.5 fighter to mount the German Daimler-Benz DB 605A liquid-cooled inverted V-12 engine. To accomplish this, the Caproni company retained the F.5's fuselage but replaced its wooden wings with metal ones. The new aircraft—designated F.6M, with "F" standing for Fabrizi, the designer of the F.5, and "M" for Metallico -- also had double the armament of the F.5, with four instead of two 12.7-millimeter (0.5-inch) Breda-SAFAT machine guns; the prototype F.6M flew with two of these mounted in the fuselage and provision for two more in the wings, although the wing guns never were mounted.[1]
The F.6M prototype first flew in September 1941, with a deep radiator bath under its nose. However, the radiator bath created too much aerodynamic drag, and it was replaced with a ventral radiator.[1]
The sole F.6M prototype was damaged in a collision while at Bresso airfield. After this accident, Caproni decided to end the F.6M project and instead concentrate on the more advanced Caproni Vizzola F.7 fighter.[1]
Shortly after Caproni began to design the F.6M, it began work on a second F.6 prototype, this one designed to use the Isotta-Fraschini R.C.25/60 Zeta 24-cylinder X-type engine and designated the F.6Z, with "Z" standing for Zeta. The aircraft was to carry three 12.7-millimeter (0.5-inch) Breda-SAFAT machine guns, one in the fuselage and two in the wings. Problems with engine development greatly delayed the F.6Z, but it finally flew for the first time in August 1943.
Testing in August and September 1943 showed that the F.6Z's engine, rated at 1,118 kilowatts (1,500 horsepower), was producing only 894 kilowatts (1,200 horsepower), and this problem was not solved before the World War II Italian armistice with the Allies of 8 September 1943 brought the F.6Z project to an end. The sole F.6Z prototype was the only fighter to be powered by the Zeta engine.[2] One other fighter type, the Reggiane Re.2004 was also planned with this engine, but was not realized.[3]
Data from [2]
General characteristics
Performance
Armament
|
||||||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||