Piaggio Stella P.VII
| Industry | Aerospace |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1933 |
| Products | Aircraft engines |
The Piaggio Stella P.VII marked the inaugural model in Piaggio Aerospace's P series of aircraft engines. Drawing on its prior license production of the Gnome-Rhône 7K, Piaggio marketed this engine for installation in various Italian aircraft throughout the pre-war era and during World War II, notably powering the record-setting Caproni Ca.133.
Development
After manufacturing engines under license from Gnome et Rhône, Piaggio engineered a seven-cylinder radial engine applying similar design concepts.[1] Designated P.VII to reflect its seven cylinders, this model was part of Piaggio’s Stella series—Italian for "star".[2] The initial run occurred in 1933, followed by multiple variants.[3] Among these, the P.VII Z variant featured a floatless Piaggio AS80 carburetor optimized for aerobatic maneuvers and powered the Caproni Ca.133 piloted by Renato Donati that set a record in 1933 for longest inverted flight duration.[2]
Variants
- P.VII C.15
- Supercharged engine delivering 331 kW (444 hp) at an altitude of 1,500 m (4,900 ft); introduced in 1933
- P.VII C.16
- Supercharged, rated at 338 kW (453 hp) at 1,600 m (5,200 ft); first flight in 1934
- P.VII C.16/35
- P.VII C.35
- Supercharged, producing 338 kW (453 hp) at 3,500 m (11,500 ft); debuted in 1935
- P.VII C.40
- Supercharged, outputting 287 kW (385 hp) at 4,000 m (13,000 ft); first flown in 1935
- P.VII C.45 / 2v
- Two-speed supercharged model rated at 287 kW (385 hp) at 4,500 m (14,800 ft); introduced in 1935
- P.VII R.C.10
- Equipped with supercharging and gearing, optimized for operation at 1,000 m (3,300 ft)
- P.VII R.C.35
- Supercharged and geared variant delivering 368 kW (493 hp) at an altitude of 3,500 m (11,500 ft); first flown in 1938
- P.VII R.C.45
- Supercharged and geared, rated at 287 kW (385 hp) at 4,500 m (14,800 ft); first flight occurred in 1935
- P.VII Z
- Naturally aspirated version tailored for aerobatic aircraft, rated at 272 kW (365 hp), initially flown in 1933
Applications
- Breda Ba.28
- Caproni Ca.101
- Caproni Ca.113
- Caproni Ca.133
- Caproni Ca.148
- Caproni Ca.310
- Caproni Ca.311
- Caproni Ca.316
- Hispano HS-42
- IMAM Ro.41
- North American Sk.14A
- Savoia-Marchetti S.71
- Savoia-Marchetti SM.85
Specifications (C.35)
See also
References
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- ↑ Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2123: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).