DONE +++ DB601-powered Macchi C.200A escort fighter (CAI, Belgium, late '40)

[Dizzyfugu]

Beauty pics in delay, but finally... a 1:72 Macchi C.200A, aircraft '83-9' of the Corpo Aero Italiano (CAI) 83° Squadriglia, 18° Gruppo, 56° Stormo, Italian Royal Air Force (Regia Aeronautica); Ursel Airfield (Belgium), Autumn 1940:

1:72 Macchi C.200A, aircraft '83-9' of the Corpo Aero Italiano (CAI) 83° Squadriglia, 18° Gruppo, 56° Stormo, Italian Royal Air Force (Regia Aeronautica); Ursel Airfield (Belgium), Autumn 1940 (Whif/Hobby Boss kit conversion) by dizzyfugu, on Flickr

1:72 Macchi C.200A, aircraft '83-9' of the Corpo Aero Italiano (CAI) 83° Squadriglia, 18° Gruppo, 56° Stormo, Italian Royal Air Force (Regia Aeronautica); Ursel Airfield (Belgium), Autumn 1940 (Whif/Hobby Boss kit conversion) by dizzyfugu, on Flickr



Some background:
The Macchi C.200 Saetta (Italian: both Arrow or Lightning), or MC.200, was a World War II fighter aircraft built by Aeronautica Macchi in Italy, and used in various forms throughout the Regia Aeronautica (Italian Air Force). The MC.200 had excellent manoeuvrability and general flying characteristics left little to be desired. Stability in a high-speed dive was exceptional, but it was underpowered and underarmed for a modern fighter.
Macchi's lead designer was Mario Castoldi, the creator of several racing aircraft which competed for the Schneider Trophy, including the M.39, which won the competition in 1926. He also designed the M.C. 72. In designing a modern fighter, Castoldi proposed a modern all-metal cantilever low-wing monoplane, with retractable landing gear, and an enclosed cockpit. The fuselage was of semi-monocoque construction, with self-sealing fuel tanks under the pilot's seat, and in the centre section of the wing. The distinctive "hump" elevated the cockpit to provide the pilot with a relatively unobstructed view over the engine. The wing had an advanced system whereby the hydraulically actuated flaps were interconnected with the ailerons, so that when the flaps were lowered the ailerons drooped as well.

1:72 Macchi C.200A, aircraft '83-9' of the Corpo Aero Italiano (CAI) 83° Squadriglia, 18° Gruppo, 56° Stormo, Italian Royal Air Force (Regia Aeronautica); Ursel Airfield (Belgium), Autumn 1940 (Whif/Hobby Boss kit conversion) by dizzyfugu, on Flickr

1:72 Macchi C.200A, aircraft '83-9' of the Corpo Aero Italiano (CAI) 83° Squadriglia, 18° Gruppo, 56° Stormo, Italian Royal Air Force (Regia Aeronautica); Ursel Airfield (Belgium), Autumn 1940 (Whif/Hobby Boss kit conversion) by dizzyfugu, on Flickr


Power was initially provided by the 650 kW (870 hp) Fiat A.74 radial engine, although Castoldi preferred inline engines, and had used them in all of his previous designs. With "direttiva" (Air Ministry Specification) of 1932, Italian industrial leaders had been instructed to concentrate solely on radial engines for fighters, due to their better reliability. The A.74 was a re-design of the American Pratt & Whitney R-1830 SC-4 Twin Wasp made by engineers Tranquillo Zerbi and Antonio Fessia and was the only Italian engine that could provide a reliability similar to Allied products.

1:72 Macchi C.200A, aircraft '83-9' of the Corpo Aero Italiano (CAI) 83° Squadriglia, 18° Gruppo, 56° Stormo, Italian Royal Air Force (Regia Aeronautica); Ursel Airfield (Belgium), Autumn 1940 (Whif/Hobby Boss kit conversion) by dizzyfugu, on Flickr

1:72 Macchi C.200A, aircraft '83-9' of the Corpo Aero Italiano (CAI) 83° Squadriglia, 18° Gruppo, 56° Stormo, Italian Royal Air Force (Regia Aeronautica); Ursel Airfield (Belgium), Autumn 1940 (Whif/Hobby Boss kit conversion) by dizzyfugu, on Flickr


And there was another issue: range. The early C.200 only had a range of 570 km (354 mi), and this was not acceptable for escort missions. So Castoldi reverted to his preferred V engine arrangement and obtained several downrated Daimler Benz DB601 V12 engines from Germany, which were experimentally mated with the C.200 airframe. In parallel, Fiat tried the same with its G.50 fighter, and plans were made for a thoroughly modified C.200 with this new engine (leading to the C.202).

In order to increase the range, an additional fuselage tank was added inside of the front fuselage structure, which could be lightened due to the new engine's reduced size, and provisions were made for streamlined underwing slipper tanks outside of the landing gear wells. A radiator was installed under the fuselage, and the cockpit received a closed canopy for better comfort on the longer escort missions. The basic armament, consisting of a pair of 12.7 mm (.5 in) Breda-SAFAT machine guns in the front fuselage, was retained.

1:72 Macchi C.200A, aircraft '83-9' of the Corpo Aero Italiano (CAI) 83° Squadriglia, 18° Gruppo, 56° Stormo, Italian Royal Air Force (Regia Aeronautica); Ursel Airfield (Belgium), Autumn 1940 (Whif/Hobby Boss kit conversion) by dizzyfugu, on Flickr

1:72 Macchi C.200A, aircraft '83-9' of the Corpo Aero Italiano (CAI) 83° Squadriglia, 18° Gruppo, 56° Stormo, Italian Royal Air Force (Regia Aeronautica); Ursel Airfield (Belgium), Autumn 1940 (Whif/Hobby Boss kit conversion) by dizzyfugu, on Flickr


Called C.200A ('Autonomia' = range), 14 airframes were converted into this escort fighter configuration in 1940. Tests were carried out during the summer, and this initial batch of aircraft was ready for service in mid September. For field trials they became a part of the Corpo Aero Italiano (CAI), an expeditionary force of the Italian Royal Air Force (Regia Aeronautica) that supported the German Air Force (Luftwaffe) and participated in the Battle of Britain during the final months of 1940 during World War II.
The C.200As operated from Belgium along side Fiat CR.42 biplanes. The latter was a manoeuvrable and fast biplane fighter, and despite its good manoeuvrability and speed (440+ km/h) it was technically outclassed by the faster Hurricane and Spitfire of the British Royal Air Force – so there were high hopes in the new long range fighter.

1:72 Macchi C.200A, aircraft '83-9' of the Corpo Aero Italiano (CAI) 83° Squadriglia, 18° Gruppo, 56° Stormo, Italian Royal Air Force (Regia Aeronautica); Ursel Airfield (Belgium), Autumn 1940 (Whif/Hobby Boss kit conversion) by dizzyfugu, on Flickr

1:72 Macchi C.200A, aircraft '83-9' of the Corpo Aero Italiano (CAI) 83° Squadriglia, 18° Gruppo, 56° Stormo, Italian Royal Air Force (Regia Aeronautica); Ursel Airfield (Belgium), Autumn 1940 (Whif/Hobby Boss kit conversion) by dizzyfugu, on Flickr


The C.200A actually excelled with its good range of 620 ml (1.000 km), but the machines turned out to be underpowered and underarmed. Any aerodynamic benefit of the sleeker nose section was eaten up by the large radiator and the weight penalty of the extra internal fuel. The fixed slipper tanks under the wings hampered performance even more, even if emptied, so that only a few escort missions alongside Fiat BR.20 bombers of 13° and 43° Stormo were made - the results were so abysmal (10 of the 14 deployed aircraft were lost in just three missions, three of them through technical failures, the rest were shot down) that the experimental type was already retired in December 1940.

1:72 Macchi C.200A, aircraft '83-9' of the Corpo Aero Italiano (CAI) 83° Squadriglia, 18° Gruppo, 56° Stormo, Italian Royal Air Force (Regia Aeronautica); Ursel Airfield (Belgium), Autumn 1940 (Whif/Hobby Boss kit conversion) by dizzyfugu, on Flickr

1:72 Macchi C.200A, aircraft '83-9' of the Corpo Aero Italiano (CAI) 83° Squadriglia, 18° Gruppo, 56° Stormo, Italian Royal Air Force (Regia Aeronautica); Ursel Airfield (Belgium), Autumn 1940 (Whif/Hobby Boss kit conversion) by dizzyfugu, on Flickr

1:72 Macchi C.200A, aircraft '83-9' of the Corpo Aero Italiano (CAI) 83° Squadriglia, 18° Gruppo, 56° Stormo, Italian Royal Air Force (Regia Aeronautica); Ursel Airfield (Belgium), Autumn 1940 (Whif/Hobby Boss kit conversion) by dizzyfugu, on Flickr

1:72 Macchi C.200A, aircraft '83-9' of the Corpo Aero Italiano (CAI) 83° Squadriglia, 18° Gruppo, 56° Stormo, Italian Royal Air Force (Regia Aeronautica); Ursel Airfield (Belgium), Autumn 1940 (Whif/Hobby Boss kit conversion) by dizzyfugu, on Flickr


Anyway, Mario castoldi did not give up on the inline engine, and the experience with the C.200A lead directly to the C.202, a development of the earlier C.200 Saetta, with an Italian built version of the Daimler-Benz DB 601Aa engine and with a redesigned, more streamlined fuselage. The C.202 entered service in July 1941.

From the time Italy entered war on 10 June 1940, until the armistice of 8 September 1943, the C.200 flew more operational sorties than any Italian aircraft. The Saetta ranged over Greece, North Africa, Yugoslavia, France, across the Mediterranean and Russia (where it obtained an excellent kill to loss ratio of 88 to 15).  Over 1,000 were built by the time the war ended.

1:72 Macchi C.200A, aircraft '83-9' of the Corpo Aero Italiano (CAI) 83° Squadriglia, 18° Gruppo, 56° Stormo, Italian Royal Air Force (Regia Aeronautica); Ursel Airfield (Belgium), Autumn 1940 (Whif/Hobby Boss kit conversion) by dizzyfugu, on Flickr

1:72 Macchi C.200A, aircraft '83-9' of the Corpo Aero Italiano (CAI) 83° Squadriglia, 18° Gruppo, 56° Stormo, Italian Royal Air Force (Regia Aeronautica); Ursel Airfield (Belgium), Autumn 1940 (Whif/Hobby Boss kit conversion) by dizzyfugu, on Flickr





Specifications:
    Crew: 1
    Length: 8.25 m (27 ft 1 in)
    Wingspan: 10.58 m (34 ft 8 in)
    Height: 3.05 m (10 ft 0 in)
    Wing area: 16.82 m² (181.00 ft²)
    Empty weight: 1,964 kg (4,330 lb)
    Loaded weight: 2,200 kg (4,840 lb)
    Max. takeoff weight: 2,395 kg (5,280 lb)

Powerplant:
    1× Daimler Benz DB 601 A liquid-cooled V12 engine, 634kW (850 hp) at takeoff

Performance:
    Maximum speed: 504 km/h (313 mph) at 4,500 m (14,765 ft)
    Range: 1.000 km (620 mi)
    Service ceiling: 8,900 m (29,200 ft)
    Rate of climb: 15.3 m/s (3,030 ft/min)
    Wing loading: 131.7 kg/m² (26.9 lb/ft²)
    Power/mass: 0.286 kW/kg (0.176 hp/lb)

Armament:
    2× 12.7 mm (.5 in) Breda-SAFAT machine guns with 370 RPG
    Two fixed slipper tanks under the wings with 200 L (52.8 US gal; 44.0 imp gal) each



1:72 Macchi C.200A, aircraft '83-9' of the Corpo Aero Italiano (CAI) 83° Squadriglia, 18° Gruppo, 56° Stormo, Italian Royal Air Force (Regia Aeronautica); Ursel Airfield (Belgium), Autumn 1940 (Whif/Hobby Boss kit conversion) by dizzyfugu, on Flickr

1:72 Macchi C.200A, aircraft '83-9' of the Corpo Aero Italiano (CAI) 83° Squadriglia, 18° Gruppo, 56° Stormo, Italian Royal Air Force (Regia Aeronautica); Ursel Airfield (Belgium), Autumn 1940 (Whif/Hobby Boss kit conversion) by dizzyfugu, on Flickr

1:72 Macchi C.200A, aircraft '83-9' of the Corpo Aero Italiano (CAI) 83° Squadriglia, 18° Gruppo, 56° Stormo, Italian Royal Air Force (Regia Aeronautica); Ursel Airfield (Belgium), Autumn 1940 (Whif/Hobby Boss kit conversion) by dizzyfugu, on Flickr

1:72 Macchi C.200A, aircraft '83-9' of the Corpo Aero Italiano (CAI) 83° Squadriglia, 18° Gruppo, 56° Stormo, Italian Royal Air Force (Regia Aeronautica); Ursel Airfield (Belgium), Autumn 1940 (Whif/Hobby Boss kit conversion) by dizzyfugu, on Flickr

[NARSES2]

Really nice model but the scheme is gorgeous 

[Dizzyfugu]

Yes, it's Greeeeeen! 

[zenrat]

Bravo. 

[Dizzyfugu]

Bravo. 

Thank you very much - incidental sister ship to your C.202 pre-production model, yet rather different. 

[Captain Canada]

Gorgeous. Excellent work on this one.....she looks so pudgy and powerful. Lovely ! Great selection of photos as always ! Beauty eh !

[Dizzyfugu]

Thank you very much! 

[Hotte]

Lovely Macchi 

Hotte

[kitbasher]

Very pugnacious, well done