Caproni Ca.73

Ca.73

Caproni Ca.73 airliner
Role	Airliner, later used as a bomber
Manufacturer	Caproni
First flight	1925

The Caproni Ca.73 was an Italian airliner produced during the 1920s which went on to serve as a light bomber in the newly independent Regia Aeronautica. It was an inverted sesquiplane with a biplane tail and two engines mounted in a push-pull configuration within a common nacelle mounted on struts in the interplane gap above the fuselage. The two pilots sat in an open cockpit, while ten passengers could be accommodated within the fuselage.

The publication of General Giulio Douhet's seminal treatise on strategic bombing Il dominio dell'aria (The Command of the Air) in 1921 had left Italy's military planners acutely aware of a lack of this capability. Established as a separate service in 1923, the Regia Aeronautica relied upon World War I-vintage Caproni Ca.3 bombers, and a replacement was soon sought. The immediate solution was to repurpose the Ca.73 as a warplane by adding a gunner's position in the nose, dorsally, and ventrally amidships. Bombs were carried on external racks on the fuselage sides.

Ca.73s remained in frontline service until 1934, and from 1926 onwards participated in Italy's military actions in North Africa.

Variants

Ca.73 – airliner powered by Isotta-Fraschini Asso 500 engines
- Ca.73bis – airliner powered by Lorraine-Dietrich engines
- Ca.73ter (later redesignated Ca.82) – bomber version with gun positions and fuselage bomb racks
- Ca.73quarter (later redesignated Ca.88) – bomber with revised control systems and strengthened airframe
  - Ca.73quarterG (later redesignated Ca.89) – bomber with glazed nose, underwing bomb racks, and retractable ventral gun turret
- Ca.74 (later redesignated Ca.80) – version powered by Bristol Jupiter engines
Ca.80 – the Ca.74 redesignated
- Ca.80S – air-ambulance and paratroop transport version
Ca.82 – redesignated Ca.73ter
Ca.88 – redesignated Ca.73quarter
Ca.89 – redesignated Ca.73quarterG

Operators

Military operators

Kingdom of Italy

Regia Aeronautica

Specifications (Ca.73)

General characteristics

Crew: two pilots
Capacity: ten passengers
Length: 15.10 m (49 ft 7 in)
Wingspan: 25.00 m (82 ft 0 in)
Height: 5.60 m (18 ft 5 in)
Wing area: 143.0 m² (1,539 ft²)
Empty weight: 3,400 kg (7,496 lb)
Gross weight: 5,390 kg (11,883 lb)
Powerplant: 2 × Isotta-Fraschini Asso, 373 kW (500 hp) each

Performance

Maximum speed: 180 km/h (112 mph)
Endurance: 3 hours
Service ceiling: 4,600 m (15,080 ft)

References

Taylor, Michael J. H. (1989). Jane's Encyclopedia of Aviation. London: Studio Editions. pp. 232–33.
World Aircraft Information Files. London: Bright Star Publishing. pp. File 891 Sheet 09.

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Caproni Ca.73.

Aircraft produced by Aeronautica Caproni
Establishments Taliedo	Ca.1 (1910) Ca.1 (1914) Ca.2 Ca.3 Ca.4 Ca.5 Ca.6 Ca.7 Ca.8 Ca.9 Ca.10 Ca.11 Ca.12 Ca.13 Ca.14 Ca.15 Ca.16 Ca.18 Ca.19 Ca.20 Ca.24 Ca.25 Ca.30 Ca.31 Ca.32 Ca.33 Ca.34 Ca.35 Ca.36 Ca.37 Ca.39 Ca.40 Ca.41 Ca.42 Ca.43 Ca.44 Ca.45 Ca.46 Ca.47 Ca.48 Ca.49 Ca.50 Ca.51 Ca.52 Ca.53 Ca.56 Ca.57 Ca.58 Ca.59 Ca.60 Ca.61 Ca.64 Ca.66 Ca.67 Ca.70 Ca.71 Ca.73 Ca.74 Ca.79 Ca.80 Ca.82 Ca.87 Ca.88 Ca.89 Ca.90 Ca.95 Ca.97 Ca.100 Ca.101 Ca.102 Ca.103 Ca.105 Ca.111 Ca.113 Ca.114 Ca.120 Ca.122 Ca.123 Ca.124 Ca.125 Ca.127 Ca.132 Ca.133 Ca.134 Ca.135 Ca.142 Ca.148 Ca.150 Ca.161 Ca.162 Ca.163 Ca.164 Ca.165 Ca.183bis Ca.193
Cantieri Aeronautici Bergamaschi (CAB)	PL.3 PS.1 A.P.1 Ca.135 Ca.301 Ca.305 Ca.306 Ca.307 Ca.308 Ca.308 Borea Ca.309 Ca.310 Ca.311 Ca.312 Ca.313 Ca.314 Ca.316 Ca.325 Ca.331 Ca.335 Ca.355 Ca.380
Caproni Reggiane	Ca.400 Ca.401 Ca.405
Caproni Vizzola	MF 2 F.4 F.5 F.6 F.7 A-10 A-12 A-14 A-15 A-20 A-21 C22 Ventura
Caproni Trento	Trento F-5
Other nominations	Sauro-1 Stipa CH.1 Campini N.1
See also: Giovanni Battista Caproni Gianni Caproni Museum of Aeronautics Agusta

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