Fiat G.50

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Fiat G.50
Fiat G.50
Fiat G.50
Type: Fighter plane
Design country:

Italy 1861Kingdom of Italy (1861-1946) Italy

Manufacturer:

Fiat

First flight:

February 26, 1937

Number of pieces:

791

Fiat G.50 under British control in North Africa
Fiat G.50 of the Finnish Air Force

The Fiat G.50 Freccia (German: Pfeil) was an Italian fighter aircraft of the late 1930s that was used in World War II and in some minor conflicts. In addition to the Italian, the air forces of Spain , Finland , Croatia and the German Empire also used the aircraft type.

history

The design work for the Fiat G.50 began in 1935. The prototype took off about two years later on February 26, 1937 in Marina di Pisa on its maiden flight , piloted by test pilot Giovanni de Briganti .

The G.50 was the Italian Air Force's first hunting deck with a retractable landing gear. At the start of construction, this aircraft no longer met the requirements. It was extremely agile, but at the same time clearly underpowered. Its somewhat hard controls and landing behavior that took some getting used to, required a lot of experience from the pilot in order to be able to withstand the enemy aircraft with this machine. A total of around 791 copies of this aircraft type were produced.

variants

Model picture Fiat G.50V
  • G.50

First production version.

  • G.50 bis (first flight September 1940)

Development of the G.50 version with extended range; 421 built

  • G.50 ter

More powerful version with a 1,000 PS (735 kW) Fiat A.76; one built

  • G.50V (V - Veloce, first flight August 25, 1941)

Liquid-cooled V12 variant with a Daimler-Benz DB 601 , problems with the control devices and the cooling system; one built

  • G.50 to A / N

Prototype of a two-seat fighter-bomber; one built

  • G.50B (Bicommando, first flight April 26, 1940)

Two-seat trainer. 108 aircraft built

  • G.50N

Fighter aircraft for aircraft carrier use; a test aircraft

  • G.51

Projected production version of the G.50V, abandoned in favor of the Fiat G.55

  • G.52

Projected version of the G.50, powered by a Fiat A.75 RC53. The engine never came into being and the G.52 was never built

commitment

Fiat G.50 Freccia, 150a Squadriglia, 2 ° Gruppo CT, October 1940

During the first combat contacts with the British Hawker Hurricane , the technical deficiencies and the weak armament consisting of only two Breda machine guns were dozen of Italian fighter pilots doomed. At dive speeds of over 500 km / h, the machine was extremely difficult to maneuver and, under certain circumstances, individual parts of the wings or the fuselage could come loose, which led to further losses for the Italian Air Force. During the Allied invasion of Italy, the air force tried to intercept the American and British bomber squadrons. With 840 hp, the engine, which was clearly too weak, was often not able to bring the fighter planes up to the altitude of the bombers in the first place.

Technical specifications

Parameter Data
length 7.79 m
span 10.96 m
Wing area 18.15 m²
height 2.96 m
Preparation mass 1975 kg
Max. Takeoff mass 2415 kg
drive 1 × 14-cylinder radial engine Fiat A.74 RC 38 with 840 PS (618 kW)
Top speed 472 km / h
maximum range 670 km
Service ceiling 9835 m
Armament 2 synchronized MG Breda-SAFAT (12.7 mm)

See also

literature

  • Srecko Bradic: Fiat G.50 - the Italian arrow. Flieger Revue X, Issue No. 52, pp. 16–37

Web links

Commons : Fiat G.50  - collection of pictures, videos and audio files