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Silver Wings 1/32 FIAT CR.42 Falco (Hawk) by Luca Bossi |
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Designed as an interim fighter until the Italian monoplane fighters were available in sufficient numbers, the Fiat CR.42 was a modern biplane fighter that served the Regia Aeronautica in a multitude of roles including fighter, ground attack and night fighter duties. The Fiat CR.42 was also used by several foreign air forces who put the plane to good use and production was even resumed by the Germans in 1944. The Fiat CR.42 represented the culmination of a design formula that had begun in the 1920s. Designed by Celestino Rosatelli, the Fiat CR.42 was an aerodynamically refined aircraft, its clean lines hinted at what might have been had the fighter developed along the same lines as the Grumman F4F Wildcat; the F4F having started out life as a biplane. The Fiat CR.42 was used as a fighter by the Regia Aeronautica in the early phases of WWII over France, the English Channel, Greece and North Africa. Fiat CR.42AS Various modifications were made to the CR.42s beginning in 1941. The first modification consisted of installing light bomb racks on aircraft at unit level. These racks could carry bombs weighing up to 220.5 lbs (100 kg). The ground attack role became an important factor in CR.42 operations in North Africa. This modified aircraft, also equipped with a sand filter under the engine cowling was designated CR.42AS (Africa Settenirionale; North Africa). It was believed that some ground attack CR 42s were equipped with two 12.7mm machine guns or 20mm cannons under the wings, however, there is no evidence supporting this claim. Several CR.42s were modified with an internal auxiliary fuel tank for operations against Crete. These aircraft received the designation CR 42Egeo (Aegean). Fiat CR.42CN Another specialized version of the aircraft was the CR.42CN (Caccia Notturna; Night Fighter) for home defense duties. The CR.42CN was equipped with exhaust flame dampers, augmented instrumentation and a two-way radio for night flying. This variant was also fitted with two small searchlights mounted beneath the lower wing. An airstream-driven generator, mounted on the upper wing center section, powered the lights. A total of 1768 CR 42 Falcos were produced for the Regia Aeronautica between February of 1939 and June of 1943. The vast majority of the Falcos manufactured were of the CR 42 day fighter version. Reference: Fiat CR 32/CR 42 in Action, Aircraft Number 172, Squadron/Signal Publications. |
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Here I present three Silver Wings Fiat CR 42 in 1/32. The three builds are: 1) Fiat CR 42 "83-15" M.M.6975 of the 83rd squadron, 56th wing,Maldegem (Belgium) November 1940, Battle of Britain. Pilot W.O.Serg.Maj.Sozzi who is quoted by (ace) Luigi Gorrini as on November 23 1940 during combat with Spitfires, intervening in his defense was seriously wounded in the lungs by three bullets but managed to make an emergency landing on the beaches near Calais and thus surviving. For this act he was awarded a fourth silver medal. 2) Fiat CR 42 CN (night fighter) M.M.7584 of the 300th squadron, 167th CN Autonomous Group based in Ciampino (Rome) in September 1942 and flown by Captain Ricci. 3) Fiat CR 42 AS (ground attack) of the 358th squadron, 58th Group, 50th Stormo Assalto, Abu Nimeir, August 1942. Colours and Markings: The camouflage consists of standard schemes: - giallo mimetico 4 - ITALERI 4646AP - marrone mimetico 2 - ITALERI 4641AP - verde mimetico 2 - ITALERI 4723AP - nocciola chiaro 4 - ITALERI 4643AP - grigio azzurro chiaro 1 – TAMIYA XF19 - verde oliva scuro 2 (self-made) Decals are self-made by my brother Marco. References: 1) Fiat CR 32\42 in Action N.172, Squadron/Signal Publications 2) Fiat CR 42 Falco Ali d'Italia N.1 and Ali e Colori N.1, La Bancarella Aeronautica 3) I Caccia della Serie I (Series I Fighters) Albertelli Edizioni |
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Aircraft: Fiat CR.42 Manufacturer: FIAT S.A. Type: Fighter Year: 1939 Engine: FIAT A.74 RC 38, 14-cyclinder radial, air-cooled, 870hp Wingspan: 31 ft 10 in (9.70 m) Length: 27 ft 3 in (8.30 m) Height: 10 ft 10 in (3.30 m) Weight: 5,060 lb (2,295 kg) (Loaded) Maximum Speed: 273 mph (440 km/h) at 19,685 ft (6,000 m) Ceiling: 34,450 ft (10,500 m) Range: 490 miles (785 km) Armament: 2 x 12.7mm SAFAT machine guns; 2 x 220.5 lb (100 kg) bombs Crew: 1 |
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