Caproni Ca.71

Caproni

Industry	Aerospace
Founded	1908 in Italy
Headquarters	Italy
Products	Aircraft

Design

Despite the Regia Aeronautica (Italian Royal Air Force) showing little enthusiasm for the Caproni Ca.70 night fighter following its official evaluation in 1926, the Caproni firm proceeded to develop a variant. Initially labeled the Ca.70L, this model was later renamed the Ca.71. Mirroring the Ca.70's design philosophy, the Ca.71 prioritized excellent handling at low speeds and unobstructed visibility from both crew positions, ensuring that no structural components hindered either pilot’s line of sight. The aircraft featured biplane wings of unequal length and employed a tailskid landing gear system. A distinctive characteristic of its main landing gear was the incorporation of an oleo-pneumatic shock absorber, which permitted forward movement of the wheels along their linkage during ground maneuvers. Armament included a pair of fixed, forward-firing 7.7-millimeter Vickers machine guns complemented by a rear-mounted flexible 7.7-millimeter Lewis machine gun affixed to a Scarff ring.

The primary distinction between the Ca.71 and its predecessor, the Ca.70, lay in the engine configuration. The Ca.71 adopted a pusher setup in place of the Ca.70’s tractor-mounted Bristol Jupiter engine arrangement. Designed to accommodate powerplants ranging from 298 to 373 kilowatts (400 to 500 horsepower), the sole Ca.71 constructed was equipped with a 298-kW (400-hp) 12-cylinder Lorraine-Dietrich V-type engine. Although marginally heavier than the Ca.70, it remained largely similar in all other aspects.

Operational history

The Ca.71 took to the skies for the first time in 1927. While it demonstrated a marginally reduced maximum speed and a slightly diminished climb rate compared to the Ca.70, its design allowed for the installation of a more potent engine, potentially offsetting these shortcomings. Nevertheless, the Regia Aeronautica showed no greater enthusiasm for acquiring the Ca.71 than it had for the Ca.70, resulting in no additional units being produced.

Operators

Template:Country data Kingdom of Italy

Regia Aeronautica

See also

• Caproni Ca.70

References

• Green, William, and Gordon Swanborough. The Complete Book of Fighters: An Illustrated Encyclopedia of Every Fighter Aircraft Built and Flown. New York: SMITHMARK Publishers, 1994. ISBN 0-8317-3939-8.