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The Caproni Ca.331 ''Raffica'' ("Gust of Wind" or "Fire Burst") was an Italian aircraft built by
Caproni Caproni, also known as ''Società de Agostini e Caproni'' and ''Società Caproni e Comitti'', was an Italian aircraft manufacturer. Its main base of operations was at Taliedo, near Linate Airport, on the outskirts of Milan. Founded by Giova ...
in the early 1940s as a tactical
reconnaissance aircraft A reconnaissance aircraft (colloquially, a spy plane) is a military aircraft designed or adapted to perform aerial reconnaissance with roles including collection of imagery intelligence (including using Aerial photography, photography), signals ...
/light
bomber A bomber is a military combat aircraft that utilizes air-to-ground weaponry to drop bombs, launch aerial torpedo, torpedoes, or deploy air-launched cruise missiles. There are two major classifications of bomber: strategic and tactical. Strateg ...
and also as a
night fighter A night fighter (later known as all-weather fighter or all-weather interceptor post-Second World War) is a largely historical term for a fighter aircraft, fighter or interceptor aircraft adapted or designed for effective use at night, during pe ...
.


Development


Ca.331 O.A. (Ca.331A)

In response to a 1938 Italian
Air Ministry The Air Ministry was a department of the Government of the United Kingdom with the responsibility of managing the affairs of the Royal Air Force and civil aviation that existed from 1918 to 1964. It was under the political authority of the ...
requirement for a new tactical reconnaissance aircraft with combat capability,
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Cesare Pallavacino of the Caproni companys Caproni Bergamaschi subsidiary began the design of the Ca.331 O.A. (O.A. standing for ''Osservazione Area'',
Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, a Romance ethnic group related to or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance languag ...
for "Area Observation"), also designated Ca.331A, in October 1938. It was innovative for Caproni in being of all-metal construction. The Ca.331 O.A. prototype, a twin-engine low-wing
monoplane A monoplane is a fixed-wing aircraft configuration with a single mainplane, in contrast to a biplane or other types of multiplanes, which have multiple wings. A monoplane has inherently the highest efficiency and lowest drag of any wing con ...
with an unstepped cockpit and glazed nose, had
duralumin Duralumin (also called duraluminum, duraluminium, duralum, dural(l)ium, or dural) is a trade name for one of the earliest types of age hardening, age-hardenable aluminium–copper alloys. The term is a combination of ''Düren'' and ''aluminium'' ...
stressed skin on both its fuselage and wings, and its wings were of an inverted gull-wing configuration. It had two
Isotta Fraschini Isotta Fraschini () is an Italian luxury car manufacturer, also producing trucks, as well as engines for marine and aviation use. Founded in Milan, Italy, in 1900 by Cesare Isotta and the brothers Vincenzo, Antonio, and Oreste Fraschini, in 195 ...
Delta RC.40 engines rated at 574
kilowatt The watt (symbol: W) is the unit of Power (physics), power or radiant flux in the International System of Units (SI), equal to 1 joule per second or 1 kg⋅m2⋅s−3. It is used to quantification (science), quantify the rate of Work ...
s (770
horsepower Horsepower (hp) is a unit of measurement of power, or the rate at which work is done, usually in reference to the output of engines or motors. There are many different standards and types of horsepower. Two common definitions used today are t ...
) each. The aircraft employed a three-man crew of pilot, observer/gunner, and radioman/gunner, and was armed with four 12.7-millimeter (0.5-inch)
Breda-SAFAT machine gun Breda-SAFAT (''Società Italiana Ernesto Breda per Costruzioni Meccaniche / Breda Meccanica Bresciana'' - ''Società Anonima Fabbrica Armi Torino'') was an Italian weapons manufacturer of the 1930s and 1940s that designed and produced a range of m ...
s—two of them in fixed mounts in the wing roots firing forward, one in a dorsal turret, and one in a ventral mount. The Ca.331 O.A. also had a
bomb bay The bomb bay or weapons bay on some military aircraft is a compartment to carry bombs, usually in the aircraft's fuselage, with "bomb bay doors" which open at the bottom. The bomb bay doors are opened and the bombs are dropped when over the ...
capable of carrying up to 1,000 kilograms (2,205 pounds) of bombs and four external bomb racks under its wings.''Aerofan'' Issue 76, January–March 2001 The Ca.331 O.A. prototype first flew on 31 August 1940, at
Ponte San Pietro Ponte San Pietro (Bergamasque: ) is a ''comune'' in the province of Bergamo, Lombardy, northern Italy. It is about northeast of Milan and about west of Bergamo. Sights include the Villa Mapelli Mozzi. Geography Ponte San Pietro is built on ...
with Caproni test pilot
Ettore Wengi Ettore is a given name, the Italian version of Hector. People *Ettore Arrigoni degli Oddi (1867–1942), Italian naturalist *Ettore Bassi (born 1970), Italian actor and television presenter *Ettore Bastianini (1922–1967), Italian opera singer *Et ...
at the controls. Its original
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propeller A propeller (often called a screw if on a ship or an airscrew if on an aircraft) is a device with a rotating hub and radiating blades that are set at a pitch to form a helical spiral which, when rotated, exerts linear thrust upon a working flu ...
s proved inadequate, but their replacement with
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-built propellers in 1941 resulted in the aircraft having improved performance which, in fact, exceeded expectations. In 1941, Caproni Bergamaschi delivered the prototype to the ''
Regia Aeronautica The Royal Italian Air Force (''Regia Aeronautica Italiana'') (RAI) was the air force of the Kingdom of Italy. It was established as a service independent of the Regio Esercito, Royal Italian Army from 1923 until 1946. In 1946, the monarchy was ...
'' (Italian Royal Air Force), which began official tests at
Guidonia Montecelio Guidonia Montecelio (), commonly known as Guidonia, is a town and ''comune'' in the Metropolitan City of Rome Capital, Lazio, central Italy. Geography The municipality of Guidonia Montecelio, formed by the main towns of Guidonia and Montecelio, l ...
with good results. However, the ''Regia Aeronautica'' handed the aircraft back to Caproni Bergamaschi without a production order. The German Air Force (''
Luftwaffe The Luftwaffe () was the aerial warfare, aerial-warfare branch of the before and during World War II. German Empire, Germany's military air arms during World War I, the of the Imperial German Army, Imperial Army and the of the Imperial Ge ...
'') then requested control of the aircraft for trials at its test center at
Rechlin Rechlin is a municipality in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, Germany, around 100 km (60 mi) northwest of Berlin. The town's airport has a long history and was the Luftwaffe's main testing ground for new aircraft designs in Nazi Germany. ...
in Germany. Although the ''Luftwaffe'' was impressed with the aircraft—probably more so than the Italians—no German order for it resulted. The Ca.331 O.A. won widespread praise from both the Italian and German pilots—including German
fighter ace A flying ace, fighter ace or air ace is a military aviation, military aviator credited with shooting down a certain minimum number of enemy aircraft during aerial combat; the exact number of aerial victories required to officially qualify as an ...
Werner Mölders Werner Mölders (18 March 1913 – 22 November 1941) was a World War II German Luftwaffe pilot, wing commander, and the leading German fighter ace in the Spanish Civil War. He became the first pilot in aviation history to shoot down 100 ...
(1913–1941) -- who tested it, and the chief of the German ''Luftwaffe'',
Hermann Göring Hermann Wilhelm Göring (or Goering; ; 12 January 1893 – 15 October 1946) was a German Nazism, Nazi politician, aviator, military leader, and convicted war criminal. He was one of the most powerful figures in the Nazi Party, which gov ...
(1893–1946), was given a demonstration of its capabilities at Guidonia Montecelio in January 1942. The reasons for the lack of a production order by either Italy or Germany remain obscure and a matter of debate. Reasons given by various sources include a supposed overreliance on the use of materials in the Ca.331s construction that may have been in scarce supply (although this itself is controversial) in wartime Italy and Germany; the use of too many parts in the Ca.331, uncommon with other Italian aircraft (although it is not clear what specifically these may have been); political problems that Caproni company founder
Gianni Caproni Giovanni Battista "Gianni" Caproni, 1st Count of Taliedo (July 3, 1886 – October 27, 1957) was an Italian aeronautical engineer, civil engineer, electrical engineer, and aircraft designer who founded the Caproni aircraft-manufacturing company ...
(1886–1957) may have had with the
Italian Fascist Italian fascism (), also called classical fascism and Fascism, is the original fascist ideology, which Giovanni Gentile and Benito Mussolini developed in Italy. The ideology of Italian fascism is associated with a series of political parties le ...
government (which have not been identified clearly); an unwillingness of the Italian military to cooperate too closely with their German counterparts for fear of being dominated by Germany in the event of a German victory in
World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
; or simply that the Ca.331 was under development for so long that the requirement for it disappeared before it could enter production, a common problem in the Italian aircraft industry during the World War II years.For a discussion of these issues, se
warbirdsform.com GOT: The Caproni Ca. 331
The sole Ca.331 O.A. prototype was at the Caproni company airfield at
Taliedo Taliedo is a peripheral district ("quartiere") of the city Milan, Italy, part of the Zone 4 administrative division, located south-east of the city centre. The informal boundaries of the district are three main city streets, respectively Via Mecen ...
at the time the
Italian armistice The Armistice of Cassibile ( Italian: ''Armistizio di Cassibile'') was an armistice that was signed on 3 September 1943 by Italy and the Allies, marking the end of hostilities between Italy and the Allies during World War II. It was made public ...
with the
Allies An alliance is a relationship among people, groups, or states that have joined together for mutual benefit or to achieve some common purpose, whether or not an explicit agreement has been worked out among them. Members of an alliance are calle ...
took effect on 8 September 1943. Seized by German forces, it was disassembled, shipped to Germany, and later scrapped.


Ca.331 C.N. (Ca.331B)

By 1942, the war situation had changed to the point where Italy perceived a greater need for air defense capabilities. Accordingly, in May 1942 the Italian Air Ministry ordered the second Ca.331 prototype, originally planned as a second Ca.331 O.A., to be completed instead as the first prototype of a night fighter version of the aircraft. The night fighter prototype was designated Ca.331 C.N., with "C.N." standing for ''Caccia Notturna'', Italian for "Night Fighter" it also was known as the Ca.331B. The Ca.331 C.N., which first flew in the summer of 1942, differed from the Ca.331 O.A. in having a stepped cockpit and less nose glazing. Its armament was installed in the spring of 1943 and consisted of four fixed forward-firing 20-millimeter
Mauser Mauser, originally the Königlich Württembergische Gewehrfabrik, was a German arms manufacturer. Their line of bolt-action rifles and semi-automatic pistols was produced beginning in the 1870s for the German armed forces. In the late 19th and ...
MG 151 cannon The ''Maschinengewehr'' (MG) 151 is a belt-fed autocannon for aircraft use, developed in Nazi Germany from 1934 to 1940 and produced by Waffenfabrik Mauser during World War II. It was originally produced in 15.1 mm caliber from 1940, with a ...
and four 12.7-millimeter (0.5-inch) Breda-SAFAT machine guns—two of them forward-firing and fixed, one in a dorsal turret, and one in a ventral mount. Its original 596-
kilowatt The watt (symbol: W) is the unit of Power (physics), power or radiant flux in the International System of Units (SI), equal to 1 joule per second or 1 kg⋅m2⋅s−3. It is used to quantification (science), quantify the rate of Work ...
(800-
horsepower Horsepower (hp) is a unit of measurement of power, or the rate at which work is done, usually in reference to the output of engines or motors. There are many different standards and types of horsepower. Two common definitions used today are t ...
) 12-cylinder air-cooled
Isotta Fraschini Isotta Fraschini () is an Italian luxury car manufacturer, also producing trucks, as well as engines for marine and aviation use. Founded in Milan, Italy, in 1900 by Cesare Isotta and the brothers Vincenzo, Antonio, and Oreste Fraschini, in 195 ...
Delta IV engines were replaced by the spring of 1943 with 633-kilowatt (850-horsepower) versions of the Delta IV with two-stage
supercharger In an internal combustion engine, a supercharger compresses the intake gas, forcing more air into the engine in order to produce more power for a given displacement (engine), displacement. It is a form of forced induction that is mechanically ...
s. Like the Ca.331 O.A. prototype, it was at the Caproni company airfield at Taliedo when the Italian armistice with the Allies took effect on 8 September 1943, and it suffered the same fate: The Germans seized it there, disassembled it and shipped it to Germany. A second Ca.331 C.N. prototype was constructed, differing from the first in having an armament of two 20-millimeter Ikaria cannon and four 12.7-millimeter Breda-SAFAT machine guns, all mounted in the nose. It was still being assembled when Italy surrendered to the Allies on 8 September 1943, was seized by the Germans and shipped to Germany, destined never to fly. Various modifications were proposed for production models of the Ca.331 C.N. Engines proposed for production models included the German 1,099-kilowatt (1,475-horsepower)
Daimler-Benz DB 605 The Daimler-Benz DB 605 is a German aircraft engine built during World War II. Developed from the DB 601, the DB 605 was used from 1942 to 1945 in the Messerschmitt Bf 109 fighter, and the Bf 110 and Me 210C heavy fighters. The DB 610, a pa ...
, the Italian 931-kilowatt (1,250-horsepower)
Isotta Fraschini Zeta The Isotta Fraschini Zeta was an air cooled X engine with 24 cylinders developed by the Italian engineering company Isotta Fraschini in the 1940s. It was developed as an indigenous alternative to the imported Daimler-Benz DB 605 that was being bu ...
R.C.42, and the
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RA-1050 RC.58 ''Tifone'' (Italian for "Typhoon"), an Italian copy of the DB 605 expected to give the Ca.331 C.N. a top speed of per hour. Italian authorities also made various aggressive plans for production of Ca.331 C.N. aircraft, with as many as 100 built by May 1942 toward an eventual total production run of 1,000 aircraft. However, all production plans were cancelled in January 1943.


Other variants

Germany considered building a dual-control combat trainer version of the Ca.331 to be designated the Ca.331G. Nothing came of the proposal. An
anti-tank Anti-tank warfare refers to the military strategies, tactics, and weapon systems designed to counter and destroy enemy armored vehicles, particularly tanks. It originated during World War I following the first deployment of tanks in 1916, and ...
version mounting a 37-millimeter cannon also was proposed, but none were built.


Operators

; *''
Regia Aeronautica The Royal Italian Air Force (''Regia Aeronautica Italiana'') (RAI) was the air force of the Kingdom of Italy. It was established as a service independent of the Regio Esercito, Royal Italian Army from 1923 until 1946. In 1946, the monarchy was ...
'' for evaluation only. ; *''
Luftwaffe The Luftwaffe () was the aerial warfare, aerial-warfare branch of the before and during World War II. German Empire, Germany's military air arms during World War I, the of the Imperial German Army, Imperial Army and the of the Imperial Ge ...
''


Variants

;Caproni Ca.331 O.A. (or Caproni Ca.331A) :Tactical reconnaissance aircraft/light bomber prototype (one built) ;Caproni Ca.331 C.N. (or Caproni Ca.331B) :Night fighter prototype (two built) ;Caproni Ca.331G :Proposed German dual-control combat trainer (none built) ;Caproni Ca.333 :Proposed floatplane version


Specifications (Ca.331 C.N.)


Notes


References

*''Aerofan'' Issue 76, January–March 2001 * * * {{Portal bar, Italy, Companies, Aviation Ca.331 1940s Italian fighter aircraft 1940s Italian military reconnaissance aircraft 1940s Italian bomber aircraft Aircraft first flown in 1940 Twin piston-engined tractor aircraft