http://comandosupremo.com/g55.html Documenting the Italian political and military actions of World War Two Wed, 08 Feb 2012 21:26:09 +0100 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 http://comandosupremo.com/g55.html/comment-page-1#comment-621 RB Tue, 21 Jun 2011 22:58:22 +0000 http://comandosupremo.com/?p=976#comment-621 Few know that this fighter could do 417 mph in level flight with boost! Not bad in 1943. The G55 and it's stable mates, the Macchi 205 and Re 2005, were tested against the Bf 109G-4 and Fw 190A-5. It was best of the 3 Italian designs overall and right behind the Fw 190. It had excellent handling at all altitudes. None of the other 4 could say that. Although the Re 2005 was the better dogfighter up high, it couldn't be mass produced as efficiently. The MC 205 was a handful if pressed hard in a stall turn and lose control, so it wasn't a real contender. The Fiat took 3x the man hours to build than the German Bf 109, but steps were taken to bring that under 2x. Thus it was pick for the practical choice as the standard Italian fighter of northern Italy by the Luftwaffe. Notice how similar the plane looks to the US P-51 from the top, front and back due to the wing shape and the ventral scoop. Many were shot down by Luftwaffe pilots 'by mistake'. Many were also scuttled by their pilots in protest to their German masters. Few know that this fighter could do 417 mph in level flight with boost!
Not bad in 1943.
The G55 and it’s stable mates, the Macchi 205 and Re 2005, were tested against the Bf 109G-4 and Fw 190A-5. It was best of the 3 Italian designs overall and right behind the Fw 190.
It had excellent handling at all altitudes. None of the other 4 could say that.
Although the Re 2005 was the better dogfighter up high, it couldn’t be mass produced as efficiently.
The MC 205 was a handful if pressed hard in a stall turn and lose control, so it wasn’t a real contender.
The Fiat took 3x the man hours to build than the German Bf 109, but steps were taken to bring that under 2x. Thus it was pick for the practical choice as the standard Italian fighter of northern Italy by the Luftwaffe.
Notice how similar the plane looks to the US P-51 from the top, front and back due to the wing shape and the ventral scoop. Many were shot down by Luftwaffe pilots ‘by mistake’.
Many were also scuttled by their pilots in protest to their German masters.

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