Fiat CR.1

infobox Aircraft
name = CR.1
type = Fighter
manufacturer = Fiat


caption =
designer = Celestino Rosatelli
first flight =
introduction = 1924
retired =
status =
primary user = Regia Aeronautica
more users = Latvian Air Force
produced =
number built =
unit cost =
developed from =
variants with their own articles = 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.

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. [ [http://www.europa1939.com/aviones/cazas/fiatcr.1 html CR.1 history] ]

Operational history

The Regia Aeronautica ordered 240 CR.1s and began equipping its 1st FighterGroup 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

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.

Operators

;flag|Italy|1861
*"Regia Aeronautica";LAT
*Latvian Air Force

pecifications (CR.1)

aircraft specifications
plane or copter?= plane
jet or prop?= prop
ref=Encyclopedia of Military Aircraft [Jackson, Robert, "The Encyclopedia of Military Aircraft", Paragon, 2002. ISBN 0-75258-130-9]
crew= one, pilot
capacity=
length main= 6.24 m (6.16 m alternate)
length alt= 20 ft 6 in
span main= 8.95 m
span alt= 29 ft 4 in
height main= 2.40 m
height alt= 7 ft 20 in
area main= 23 m²
area alt= 247.5 ft²
airfoil=
empty weight main= 839 kg
empty weight alt= 1,850 lb
max takeoff weight main= 1,155 kg
max takeoff weight alt= 2,546 lb
more general=

engine (prop)=Isotta-Fraschini Asso
type of prop=V8 engine
number of props=1
power main= 239 kW
power alt= 320 hp
power original=

max speed main= 270 km/h
max speed alt= 146 knots, 168 mph
cruise speed main=
cruise speed alt=
never exceed speed main=
never exceed speed alt=
stall speed main=
stall speed alt=
range main= 650 km
range alt= 351 nm, 405 mi
ceiling main= 7,450 m
ceiling alt= 24,440 ft
climb rate main=
climb rate alt=
loading main= 48.43 kg/m²
loading alt= 9.92 lb/ft²
mass/power main= 4.66 kg/kW
mass/power alt= 7.67 lb/hp
more performance=
armament=
* 2 × fixed forward 7.7 mm (0.303 in) machine guns
avionics=

ee also

aircontent
related=

similar aircraft=

sequence=

lists=
* List of fighter aircraft
see also=

References

External links

* [http://www.europa1939.com/aviones/cazas/fiatcr1.html Fiat CR.1 (Spanish)]