Fiat CR.42 - The Best Biplane Fighter of WW2?
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- Опубліковано 2 чер 2022
- The Second World War and biplanes: the two don’t really belong together. It was during this dark period that military aviation left behind the biplane design of the First World War. But a few of those made an impact in the opening years of the conflict, and the Italian Fiat CR.42 Falco was definitely one of them.
Game footage and aircraft models
War Thunder - / warthunder .
00:04 History
07:59 Head to Head
12:30 Conclusion
Disclaimer - This channel is apolitical. We do not endorse any kind of political view.
Corrections
None.
Music by order of appearance
History:
- Beautiful Oblivion by Scott Buckley ssoundcloud.comscottbuckley
Music promoted by httpswww.free-stock-music.com
Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)
screativecommons.orglicensesby4.0
- Trieste - Josh Lippi & The Overtimers - UA-cam Audio Library
- Sacred Garden by Guilherme Bernardes from Pixabay
Conclusion:
- Le nozze di Figaro, K. 492, Le nozze di Figaro, K. 492, Act I: Non più andrai (the Marriage of Figaro)
Artist
Tito Gobbi, Philharmonia Orchestra, James Robertson
Album
Puccini, G.: Tabarro (Il) (Gobbi, Mas, Prandelli) (1955)
Licensed to UA-cam by
WMG (on behalf of Naxos); UMPG Publishing, Memory Lane Music (Publishing), and 1 Music Rights Societies
Sources
- Gladiator vs CR.42 Falco - 1940-41 - Hakan Gustavsson & Ludovico Slongo
- Fiat CR.42 Aces of World War 2 - Hakan Gustavsson and Ludovico Slongo
- Italian Aircraft of World War II by Nico Sgarlato
- Profile Publications 16 - The Fiat CR.42
- Ali d'Italia 1 - Fiat CR 42 by Giorgio Apostolo
- Fiat CR 32/CR 42 in action by George Punka
- Fighter Aircraft Performance of WW2 - A Comparative Study - Erik Pilawskii
- Red Wings in the Winter War 1939 - 1940 by Carl-Fredrik Geust
I do not own any of the images used in this video. The owners of such images are identified in the video itself. - Авто та транспорт
![King Of The Skies In The Spanish Civil War | Fiat Cr.32 [Aircraft Overview #90]](/img/n.gif)
I love the Italian fighter designs, they generally had serious flaws often related to armaments more than anything else, but they were beautiful planes.
Would think 2 .50 would be better than 4 .303 but I didn’t fight in these planes so I can’t really talk
You are right. The problem seem to be how the overall design did not favor the placement of heavy guns like the 50 cal or 20 mm cannons in the wings of the MACCHI 202 or the Fiats. Thus they had to be mounted in the cowling where their rate of fire was slowed. It was only later with the Centauro and others that this problem was corrected.
@@guaporeturns9472 Atleast in Finnish use (Fiat g 50) the big armament issues didn't come from the power of the guns but rather their tendency to jam.
More guns = higher possibility that atleast one or two work
@@coleparker At least Italian planes of the period were beautiful , regardless of armament.🙂
@@guaporeturns9472 I love the Italian planes. The G-55 Centauro was one of the best, and even the Luftwaffe wanted them.
I have an un-explainable admiration for Italian fighters, as I have NO Italian blood or relatives. But for me , the CR.42 is one of my top favorites. I love how it looks ! I have built a model in 1/76 of the Fiat CR.42 Falco, and have plans to eventually build my own "Italian Air Force" to include at least one of every Italian plane of WW II, As many as possible in 1/76, but if any Italian aircraft models are only available in scales other than 1/76, I will include them in my collection so I have one of every Italian plane of WW II. Then I will look for any model kits of Italian WW I aircraft, Italian a/c just look so cool to me !
I think Sweden was the only nation to have both Gloster Gladiators and Fiat CR.42s. It would be interesting to hear which one the Swedish Air Force felt was the best. As they were the only ones who used both.
Yes that would be an excellent discussion to have with with them.
belgium too
the falco's performed a lot better against the germans
@@roelantverhoeven371 cool. How many did they have?
@@guaporeturns9472 only a squadrons worth. roughly 30-40 including spare parts. would be merely 20 at best if spares arent available
@@teodor9975 Is there any in depth literature on this squadron and their battles?
I once dated a beautiful Italian girl named Catsia Rosatelli. She had biplanes for extra lift, a wide undercarriage for bumpy landings, and good handling characteristics. I miss her.
I fell in love with an Italian night pilot. Never knew there could be such a warm heart behind two huge search lights.
I bet you do
Rosatelli is the sur name of chef project of cr 42...sorry for my bad english...as italian and i like Airplanes wwii
CR42 saw combat in the Battle of Britain. Didn't fare well, but it was there.
One landed on a beach, I think its at Duxford
@@benwilson6145 It's at RAF museum Hendon.
Hey there! Sorry for the long period between videos. I have a lot on my plate at the moment. I'll keep supporting the "Battle of Kuban" series, alternating with "Regular" videos. I hope you enjoy this one!
Pilot skill is another factor, I have Dust Clouds In The Middle East which has first person narrative from the Hurricane pilots that one had to be careful against a skilled Italian pilot, cheers
Cr-42. Gotta love it.
The avia b-534 is probably my favorite biplane of all time I hope it gets a video of its own!!
It certainly deserves a video, I will eventually do it.
I have a couple of AVIA watches, I wonder if there is any connection...? 🤔
I've read the Osprey's book about Gloster Gladiator vs CR42. Apparently the British biplane was slightly slower but more agile and better armed with 4 machine guns. The victory ratio was 1.2 in favour of the Gladiator.
For me it would be a joint first with the Gloster Gladiator and the Fiat CR.42. Definitely the pinnacle of the biplane.
Interestingly the Gladiator was the not only the last biplane to see frontline service for the British Royal Air Force but it was the last propeller driven aircraft designed by Gloster to see service. Its next aircraft to see service with the RAF was its first jet, Gloster Meteor. Talk about jumping a step.
True enough, given that "Pat" Pattle scored over half his 28 official victories in the Gladiator and more once he was sent to Greece, where he was re-equipped with a Hurricane after a few weeks, until his death over Piraeus Harbour near Athens.
I wonder how the pudgy F3f would have fared against these other biplanes? I love these final developments of the biplane.
A very neat little aircraft.
I don't know if it was the Best, but it was one of the best looking Biplanes ever made for sure.
Italian aircraft aren't given enough credit. They made some visually stunning designs. These machines are very interesting but there is very little information compared to other countries planes.
10:47 - the Soviet ShkAS mg on the I-153 had a far superior rate of fire compared to others, so it definitely had the best armament.
Yes 1650 RPM when synchronized. Compared to 1150 RPM for the British .303.
Great video!! As an Italian i saw in person in a museum all the Major fighters that the R.A. had, and i found your video to be very accurate and clear, i hope that One day u could bring the Re.2005, my fav fighter.
I will keep covering Italian aircraft, so I will eventually get to the Re.2005. Thank you!
I read an article account by an RAF Hurricane pilot who flew against the CR42 in North Africa.
I remember he said that the CR42 was a very manoeuvrable fighter, often expertly flown. But " if you gave it a squirt with 8 Browning's, it just fell out of the sky"
There were many other biplane fighters in action in WWII. Belgian Fairey Firefly biplane fighters were used against Luftwaffe during the German invasion of Belgium. During the invasion of Yugoslavia an Italian CR 42 downed a Yugoslav Hawker Fury biplane fighter. However, South African Air Force Fury biplanes had some succes against the Italian forces in East Africa in 1941 and destroyed two Caproni bombers as well as strafing many airfields, destroying fighters and bombers on the ground. Curtiss Model 68 Hawk III (Goshawk) biplane fighters of the Thai Airforce were used against the French in the Franco-Thai War and the Japanese invaders in December 1941. One of the most noteworthy biplane fighter victories in WWII was the air battle over Oslo where six Norwegian Gladiators shot down a Junkers 52 three-engine transport presumably filled with airborne troops, a Heinkel 111 two-engine bomber and three Messerschmitt 110 two-engine fighters for the loss of a single Gladiator.
One small note regarding the Italian 12.7mm machine gum. For Aviation use it was loaded with Frangible bullets, an unwise choice as they shattered on impact with any metal, and often failed to do real damage to engines. They could be and were lethal to unprotected pilots, but the advent of even minimal pilot armour tended to lessen that. The Italian 7.7mm guns did more damage, despite a lower velocity and lower weight of fire.
Excellent video! These aircraft were so close in capability that I suppose that it would come down to, as usual, the skill of the pilot.
Yeah .. who saw who first.. who was in what position when contact was made and so on
Most of the only dogfights between biplanes in WW2 were between Italian biplanes and Gloster Gladiators. A comparison would be interesting.
Years ago I knew a SAAF pilot who flew Gladiators in 40/41, I remember him saying that their "kites" had the advantage over the "eyties in their 42's"
best byplane has to be the fairy swordfish.what a combat plane the stringbag,well past its sell by date,yet the damage it done the bismark,taranto.great show and info.
Great video I really like the coverage of lesser-known world war 2 airplanes
Thank you!
There was an attempt to put a DB 601 on the 42. Looks pretty cool
Nice video of the Italian falcon. Like to see similar videos of other biplanes like the gladiator or I 153.
I will eventually do them. Thank you!
There is a CR42 and a Gladiator in the flying hanger at Duxford at the moment. They should both be flying by the summer of 2023 I believe.
Great video. I especially liked the in depth comparison of the four contenders for best biplane. If I had the money I would still go for the Gladiator as a fun plane to fly and wow everyone at air shows. I would add a heater as I like a bit of comfort.
Great video! It's only just struck me that I can't recall ever reading an account of a Gladiator vs Falco combat... I always wondered if they'd ever met in the air!
Squadron Leader Pat Pattle of 80 Sqn RAF shot down 10 CR 42s in 1941 flying the Gladiator, and obviously other pilots of his squadron also shot down CR 42s see details of 33 and 80 Squadrons RAF 1940-1941. RAF Hurricanes and Gladiators had domination of the skies over the Middle East the Italian Air Force including the CR 42 were no match for the RAF. It wasn’t until the Luftwaffe arrived with their Bf 109s that the RAF lost air superiority.
Dennis
Oh indeed they met over Malta.
Excellent presentation. Well done most informative and interesting.
Thank you!
Excellent analysis. Very well presented and argued. Now I need to find a good model kit. Thank you
I'm pleasantly surprised at professionalism & open discussion of various plusses & minuses. I subscribed.
Thank you and welcome!
Gladiator. The pilot with the better training and experience would probably be the deciding factor in 1v1 combat.
So you just contradicted yourself.. the question is about the aircraft , not the pilot. That said Italian and British had aces in the N. African campaign.
Didn't they test a version with a Daimler 601 that did something like 530 kph, wouldn't that been a surprise for allied pilots.
A biplane of theses designs doing that speed - scary.
A great examination of the CR-42 thanks.
THIS ! is a REALLY good quality, informative video...thank you.
Thank you!
A very well put together video thank you
Thank you!
Very interesting.
Thank you.
I would give it to the Gladiator.
My favorite biplane fighters of the war were the I-190, but only one was completed (I think).
And the I-195 - which even the prototype was not completed.
☮
Honorable mention of the Barrel Fighter!!
It was actually superior to the AAC's land-based P26 monoplane!
Very Educational! great comparisons. nice charts. Thanks!
Thank you!
Nice videos as always. Keep it up.
Thank you!
good video. and kudos for your pretty good pronunciation of Italian words and names!
As I researched it, the conclusion by the Italian Air ministry that the Bi-plane still had a role to play, was based on the success of the CR-32 in Spain. In addition the Air battles over Ethiopia, North Africa, and Greece showed that the Gladiator had a slight edge over the CR-42.
Why did it have a slight edge?
@@EneTheGene I am not really sure. The assessment was done by military pilots who were flying captured planes for evaluation. It could be that the Gladiators were slightly more maneuverable, and on the whole were a bit more heavily armed with the two extra guns being mounted in pods under the lower wings.
Gladiators has a slight by the fact that the gun they carry, the .303 machine gun, is slightly lighter than the CR.42's Breda
However, it should be noted that overall, CR.42 has a better performance record than the Gladiator due to a huge number of CR.42 flown by the Italian which contribute to higher kill counts and more promising pilots emerge from those victories.
@@Heylanda-fb9xb Interesting. Also I know that the Gladiator carried more weapons than the CR-42. I cited the evaluation conclusion from the Osprey monograph Gladiator Vs CR-42 Falco
My great uncle was an RAF pilot in the battle of El Alamein with the 250 squadron and flew a kitty hawk like you showed in the video
One area you omitted, structural strength, the Falco was probably the most robust of all these designs, it coud be dived wihout fear of structural failure!
I remember reading that later biplanes would stagger the upper and lower wings to achieve better lift. It's surprising to see that such a late biplane design didn't incorporate such a feature!
先日、ICMの１/３２ Fiat Cr.42をモーターライズで製作したばかしなんで興味深く拝見しました。やっぱ、地中海方面の戦闘でライバルはグラディエーターですね。
Отличные видео, товарищ))
I'm biased here,but I think that Polikarpov's I-153 takes the cake as an all around great fighter biplane,most versatile of all of those listed (except for naval version of Gladiator for carrier operations,but Soviets didn't built any carriers for to need naval version of I-153).4 SHKAS 7,62 MGs are no joke,with about 600 rounds per gun.Is just slightly slower than Cr.42 in top speed,can carry up to 4x100 kg bombs (4x50 was most common load,but still was much better than none for Gladiator and at best 100 kg for cr.42 and B-534).Can carry 8 rs-82 mm rockets.Turns greatly due to it's quite forward wings.Flat spin could be a problem, but it's low stall speed meant that rarely would someone make such an error in piloting.Low production variant for high altitude interception had closed cockpit (quite weird looking, I might add),and P variant had 2x20 mm cannons for if SHKAS feels anemic.
I'm open for counterargument,though.
Yes it was a great one for sure. All the planes mentioned were great though.. I love the last of biplane warplanes.. so cool.
I think it would be nice to know more about the Fokker G.I, maybe you can make an video about it?
For best biplane of WWII, I'd have to go with the Gladiator, just because of their role in the defence of Malta. Sometime, the technical abilities of an aircraft are less important than being just what is needed, and in the right place!
80% is just showin up :)
In the air battle over Oslo six Norwegian Gladiators shot down a Junkers 52 three-engine transport probably filled with airborne troops, a Heinkel 111 two-engine bomber and three Messerschmitt 110 two-engine fighters for the loss of a single Gladiator.
Read up on Pat Patle South African ace,41 official kills but Squadron records lost in retreat from Greece,most historians have his total as 60,but he got his first 15 kills in a Gloster Gladiator.Ace of Aces by ECR Baker is a good book about him.
i built about 50 , years ago, the Airfax 1/72nd styrene kit, Cr-42 in that camouflage, good-looking aircraft.
Shame the video ended with an example going down in flames, most unfortunate. Keep up the good work though!
Found it. Thanks.
Such a beautiful bird.
Well done great video how about a video on reconnaissance aircraft
Of the early war period
Some beautiful aircraft or a potez25
Video a plane never talked about
But many were made and served in so many wars
Take care 👍
Ps you forgot about the Japanese ki10 🤕
I did, in fact, forget about the Sino-Japanese war, and so I left out the Ki-10 and the Hawk III. I don't think either of the two would have taken the top spot, but they would probably make the video more complete. Thank you for your suggestion.
Been flying low tier Italian planes in war thunder recently and having alot of fun, ones like the re 2001 and fc.20, so it was great to hear about this one.
Yes it was the best but don't let the Gloster Gladiator fans hear you
lol yes the "I just Like it" factor is a tough one for me as I like the Gladiator is just got all the right lines but at the same time there's something very sweet about the Avia design its got a really nice shape.
I bet a Henschel 123 would be a seriously tough opponent for these fighters especially the light machine-gun armed planes. A lot of armour around the pilot and engine on that plane.
To think Mussolini took Italia into war in 1940, knowing that the CR-42 was his main fighter aircraft.
Out of these four, I personaly prefer the I-153, both because of its looks and its performance:
In WarThunder(yes i know, the grind is shit and its not as good of a sim as DCS or IL2 are, but it "works") Air Sim battles I use it as a small ground attacker because it got 4x 50kg bombs. Its small and agile so if there is a fighter near by, i can defend myself. And the four ŠKAS MGs arent half bad, tho i prefer the P version with two 20mms. Its speed also isnt bad and the handling is pretty nice except when you use rudder too much or try to aim at stationary target.
Btw, very nice video. Would be great if you did a vid on all four of the "best WW2 biplanes", but considering the Battle of Kuban series and the fact that not all of your viewers are interested in biplanes, i doubt you will make them.
Still, nice work mate, keep going. But if you need to, take your time. Cheers.
Also,there was low production run of high altitude interceptor variant of I-153,with closed cockpit and other features needed for operating it.
Hey Martin, I will eventually cover the other three biplanes. I think biplanes can be interesting, though I agree they attract less attention. But I'm going with the flow and doing what I like, and so, I will eventually come around and do a video on the other three. Thank you! 👍
@@AllthingsWW2 Glad to hear that.
Tho i have one question. Wasnt there an I-16 video on your channel like half a year ago? Or do i miss-remember? As I recall watching it but I cant find it in your videos.
No, I haven't covered the I-16 yet. The only video I took down from my channel was the one on the Ju 87 due to an issue with the audio.
I do think that camouflage is damn cool
Interesting. We should all remember that WW2 was fought with what you had on hand. A fact often forgotten? Such is the military!
It's a pity that the CR.42 was not matched with a Daimler Benz DB601, like some of the Macchi aircraft were - that would have been a sight!
There was a CR42 with a DB601 engine, but its performances were worse than the MC202 and than the Re2001, so the project aborted. Anyway, the CR42 DB was the fastest biplane of that era (about 540 km/h if I remember well)
War is tragic. However, the technology created centered around war, is absolutely amazing. War actually advances technology quicker than any other way.
Speaking only in war thunder, but the I 153 is so good that it can handle monoplane, and one variant have 2 20mms.
Personally, I'd have gone for the Avia B-534 ,granted less combat proven and maybe just my bias but a truly beautiful WW2 biplane fighter.
Not in the running but since it was a biplane.
I'll bring up the role of the Fairy Swordfish in sinking the German battleship Bismarck..
Assuming every biplane was obsolete by 1935, I would go with the plane which more closely fulfils the requirements. For example, having an enclosed cockpit does not automatically be the best choice as some nation preferred an open one. Other nations, like Great Britain preferred a closed cockpit due to usual bad weather conditions, but in Africa and the mediterranen, an open cockpit was to be preferred on a biplane because of low maximum ceiling and speed.
Another thing that we cannot easily judge is the "Feeling" of the plane, which is different from sustained max rate of turn or just the ability to get high fast. A smaller lower wing on a biplane is less destabilizing for the air flow on the upper main wing (a typical issue for biplanes) It also allows for a much sturdier wing construction that both give torsional resistance to the upper wing and makes the whole cabling more rigid at high speeds.
Control harmonisation is also extremely important on a plane for reducing fatigue for the pilot and it also can be very important into reducing the "stiffness", and with that the manoeuvrability, of the plane after a dive, or reducing the overall drag and loss of energy after an abrupt manoeuvre.
Finally engine is also a big factor, not just about power, but also about "taming" and capability of both the carburettor and the oil system to keep working smoothly in every flight condition.
Which one was the best biplane? I don't know as I haven flown any.
Fiat CR-42, THE Beauty
Se consideri che, a parte il primissimo impiego come caccia nelle fasi iniziali della guerra, il Fiat CR 42 fu poi usato prevalentemente come aereo di attacco al suolo e di supporto aereo ravvicinato (close air support) delle forze terrestri, andrebbe confrontato anche con il tedesco Henschel HS 123, altro iconico biplano della seconda guerra mondiale, anch’esso utilizzato fino alla fine della guerra.
Alla fine tutte le maggiori aviazioni avevano in servizio biplani in prima linea, almeno all’inizio della guerra
I prefer the Polikarpov I-153. But this is still a good plane.
hi, the winner according to your table is Avia B-534 if you take all versions in account.
Since the last version of Avia introduced shortly before war was Avia Bk-534, it had full instrument setup so it is a tie for the first place with Gladiator in equipment, and in armament it is clear winner and all others are lower, since Bk-534 had 2x7,92mm machine guns+ 1x20mm Oerlikon cannon.
Nice video - but I think you forgot one important factor regarding byplanes: all around visibility - in that category, I'd put the Chaika first
Yes, you are correct. I have to write a note somewhere for future videos. I keep forgetting that important category. Thank you.
I´d also give bonus points for enclosed cockpits, but that would sound like an obvious bias. Also, the B-534 was ready to be equipped with a propeller shaft mounted 20mm autocannon, and was also considered for the role of a naval fighter for the Graf Zeppelin aircraft carrier.
On the other hand, it had probably the worst cockpit visibility and thus situational awareness. But if it had as much time to be upgraded as the other 3, Im sure it would surpass them (as it was basically a modern monoplane fighter only with an additional upper wing).
Imagine a Merlin powered Gladiator!! (I have, and made a model of it)
G'day,
A Merlin powered Gladiator would be a Hawker Fury with it's Kestrel swapped out.
Even a re-engined Fairey Fox..., with it's rear Cockpit faired
As for the last, least important category here, i think the CR-42, with its stout, powerful look is the best looking among these machines. Dunno, it's got an intimidating, "mean business" appearance.
There was an experimental CR42 fitted with the German DB605 engine that recorded a top speed of 341 miles per hour. If that had been produced in numbers then that would undoubtedly be the best biplane fighter of the war, but it wasn't to be.
would have been a beast among biplanes, but by then still too slow.
@@charlesfaure1189 True.
@@vipertwenty249the experimental CR42 was fitted with a DB601, not with a DB605.
@@ferdinandocelotto You sure it was the 601? I always thought it was the 605.
@@vipertwenty249 I'm sure it was the DB601. You can find some photos also on Google. At the end of the evalutation, that solution was refused because the CR42 DB performances were worse than the MC202 and the Re2001 with the same engine.
10/10 ❤
A biplane that I love is the Hawker Fury, but probably it had not participated in the WW2.
CR42 and Me262 both produced during the same time for combat service in the same general theater of the same war by the same side.
And some are amazed at Mosin Nagants and AK74s serving side by side in Ukraine.
Mosins have definitely been around. So have AKs but the Mosin and 7.62x54r are truly over 100 yr old ideas that are still at least a bit relevant today.
Not sure how many kills Pat Pattle scored flying the Gladys, I think it was quite high, also the last biplane flying for the British was the Swordfish.
15 I think
The Gladiator according to your review. 3
Gloster Gladiators ;Faith, Hope, and Charity also successfully defended Malta in the initial stages of WW2 from the Italian airforce though vastly outnumbered. 👍🏻🏴
Although a great story it’s a bit of a myth. Worth looking up. But there were never only three GGs - I think there were only five at one point but only three were ever operational at a time. They didn’t register any kills until joined by hurricanes.
Being the best biplane fighter model of WW2 is a bit like being the best cavalry horse breed of WW1.
You forgot about invasion of Greece. I’m nearly sure some of them where used in that conflict
Yes, and they were also used against France and during the Battle of Britain. I only focused on the main aspects of its operational history. But now that you mentioned it, it would be cool to do a video on the Italian invasion of Greece.
@@AllthingsWW2 sounds great. First laminar flow plane vs one of the best of biplanes sounds interesting.
This does make one wonder what a modern Pitts Aerobics special would do if armed and put into the World War II conflict?!? 🤔
Too light for armament and ammo, much less fuel, self-sealing tanks, pilot armor.
@@charlesfaure1189 I would counter with "Lucas Physics" and Plot Armor!!!! 🤠👍
Favorite biplane fighter is a toss up between the Hawker Nimrod and I-15.
The best Biplane for WWII would be a Hybrid of
the I-153
with the Gladiators Equipment
a Italian Camouflage
enacting the Czech Attack Plan
will you do the Australian Boomerang next please? the first and last time we tried to do a fighter. maybe the wirraway?
Hey Matt, the Wirraway will be covered very soon! Thank you for the suggestion.
Served very well in East Africa along side the cr32. Unfortunately the British had the gladiator and also later hurricanes
The question to which plane is the best is the one that you would choose to have if you were a commander, if given the choice of the four I would go with the CR.42 based off range as most other stats are very close , I think having a quarter inch armour plate to protect the pilot outweights the radio option though.
Plus the .5 inch anti material gun would be more practical for its role as a non front line fighter in an anti bomber/ground attack/recon role that bi-planes were relegated too.
But where - on earth - are You stationed!? ..makes a difference too.
Supercharged, constant speed propeller on biplane, WOW
It’s a beautiful airplane and a great design, but this distinction is kind of like The Best Rumanian Artillery Piece of WWII.
Soviet biplane could mount anti bomber r 82 rockets and the shvak machine guns had an impressive 1300 rounds and an insane rate of fire.
There was a belief that bi-planes could out climb monoplanes and even attempts to fit temporary ‘climbing upper wings’ to Hurricanes which could be jettisoned at the desired height. It never caught on.
Polikarpov I 15 is my favorit.
Overall I would go with the Italian fighter. Japanese monooplanes did not have radios, armor or self sealing fuel tanks.
The gladiator with enclosed cockpit and better radios and equipment would likely be favored by pilots
Hi, I almost NEVER subscribe...idk? why....but YOUR video is SO GOOD that I DONT want to rely on yt occasionally giving me one...thank you again
Thank you and welcome! 👍
Hi! Very nice video as usual. Thank you very much for doing such comparison of aircraft’s as nice bonus.
You made some mistakes in your spreadsheets. But because it is Avia B-534 involved, I feel need to help you improve your data, little bit.
1. You wrote data for Gladiator Mk.I instead of MK.II
MK.II has takeoff weight 2206 kg, max speed at sea level 346 km/h, max speed 414 km/h at 4420 m, can reach 3000 m in 4.5 min, has ceiling 10200 m, and range of 714 km. (The size of its wings was exactly 30,01 m2, it´s not important diference)
2. You used incorrect size of wings for CR.42, it has 22,4 m2. (And 22,1 m2 was for CR.32).
3. Same for Avia B-534, it has size of wings 23,56 m2, not less.
4. Using simply hp, for the value of motor power, can lead to incorrect belief that your engines numbers are in imperial hp, aka hp(I). But all numbers you wrote about engine power, including Gladiators MK II Mercury VIII A, are in fact in unit horse, aka PS, aka metric horse power hp(M).
It will be OK if you just fix spreadsheet using hp(M) unit, instead hp.
(But it will be also nice, if you add two other columns for kW, and actual imperial hp(I), or rather simply hp, to make it clear for all folk around.)
Because you probably already know, I summarize more info for others.
Easiest conversion its 1 kW = 1,359622 hp(M), aka PS etc. = 1,341022 hp(I), aka hp.
Or reverse conversion: 1 hp(I) = 0,7457 kW = 1,01387 hp(M), and 1 hp(M) = 0,7355 kW.
(I apologize for my English, as you can see, I´m not a native speaker.)
Hi Michal, I've read everything you wrote and thank you for all the trouble. About the hp, it's hard to find room on the screen for such a large amount of information and keep it at a size that could be read on a cell phone. Your suggestion is, of course, the correct way to do it, and I will try to add it in the future. I am used to the SI system of units, and so I should use kW instead of hp, but I find that concerning engine power, Watt is a unit that would be seen in an engineering book and not in a simple conversation.
Thank you for the corrections and suggestions. I hope you enjoyed the video. 👍
@@AllthingsWW2
Thank you for the answer. Yes, I like the video. 👍 But that's not all I want to say. 🙂
Would it have been viable doctrine for the Italian air forces to field combined units of both biplanes and monoplanes? If the biplanes were viable in a close dogfight, but thwarted when approached from range, having monoplanes handy to intercept other fighters trying to boom and zoom on the biplanes could be useful and viable for Italy at the time.
Obviously it's better to have 1 fighter that can do both functions, but just going with what the Italians were working with - buying time until more fighter production is up and running.