Macchi C.205

The Macchi C.205 (also known as MC.205, "MC" standing for ("Macchi Castoldi")
 Veltro (Italian: Greyhound) was an Italian World War II fighter aircraft built by the Aeronautica Macchi. Along with the Reggiane Re.2005 and Fiat G.55, the Macchi C.205 was one of the three "Serie 5" Italian fighters built around the powerful Daimler-Benz DB 605 engine. The C.205 was a development of the earlier C.202 Folgore. With a top speed of some 640 km/h (400 mph) and equipped with a pair of 20 mm cannon as well as 12.7 mm Breda machine guns, the Macchi C.205 Veltro was highly respected by Allied and Axis pilots alike. Widely regarded as one of the best Italian aircraft of World War II, in action it proved to be extremely effective, destroying a large number of Allied bombers and capable of successfully clashing on equal terms with fighters such as the North American P-51D Mustang, a capability which encouraged the Luftwaffe to use a number of these aircraft to equip one Gruppe.
However, while the C.205 was able to match the best Allied opponents in speed and maneuverability, it was introduced late in the conflict. Moreover, due to the poor Italian industrial capacity of the time, only a small production run was delivered before the end of the war. Like the Spitfire, the Veltro was tricky in its construction and thus slow to build. Italy's highest scoring ace, Adriano Visconti, achieved 11 of his 26 credited victories in the few weeks he was able to fly the Veltro, with the top scoring Sergente Maggiore pilota Luigi Gorrini shooting down 14 enemy aircraft plus six damaged with the C.205

In 1941, seeking to further improve the performance of the C.202 fighter, the Regia Aeronautica decided to license-build the German DB 605 1,100 kW (1,475 hp) liquid-cooled supercharged inverted V-12 engine in Italy, which Fiat produced as the RA.1050 R.C.58 Tifone (Typhoon). Fighter manufacturers were invited to enter versions of their designs using this engine as the caccia della serie 5 ("series-5 fighter") and were provided with imported DB 605s for prototype use. All of the designs used the number 5 in the name, with the Macchi becoming the C.205 (instead of C.202bis or C.203).
Macchi had used a licence-built DB 601 engine in the C.202, an engine which was closely comparable in size to the later, more powerful DB 605. This meant that the C.202 airframe could be easily adapted for the DB 605. The C.205V Veltro first flew on 19 April 1942, and was considered a stop-gap measure with the definitive variant being the 205N Orione (N stood for "new"). In testing, the Fiat G.55 Centauro and Re.2005 Sagittario proved to be better performers at high altitude due to their larger wing area. In fact, the Veltro used the same wing as the earlier Folgore but its weight had increased from 2,350 kg (5,180 lb) to 2,581 kg (5,690 lb) and the wing loading from 140 kg/m² to 153.6 kg/m². The Veltro's performance was similar to German designs with their higher wing loading, and was at its best at medium altitudes where it could reach 642 km/h (399 mph). The C.205 Veltro was placed in production until the G.55 and the Re.2005 could become available.
The first 100 Veltro Serie I were only machine-gun-armed, but many were also fitted with the 20 mm MG 151 cannon. There were no Serie II built, but 150 Serie III were ordered, which were fitted with wing cannons as a standard.
The necessity to re-engineer the forward fuselage was time-consuming but, after several months of delays, the "205N" was ready. The C.205N1 first flew on 1 November 1942, with armament consisting of a 20 mm cannon firing through the propeller hub, and four cowling-mounted 12.7 mm (.5 in) Breda-SAFAT machine guns for which it carried 300-400 and 1,400 rounds of ammunition respectively. This configuration allowed a higher ceiling, but less speed (629 km/h/391 mph), however, the better aerodynamics (with a longer and more streamlined rear fuselage) provided an overall advantage over the Macchi C.205V/MG151 (620 km/h/385 mph).
The maiden flight of the second prototype, the C.205N2, took place on 19 May 1943, reaching 628 km/h (390 mph) during testing, which was marginally slower than the C.205N1 with a correspondingly longer time to reach its operational altitude. It was equipped with one engine-mounted 20 mm cannon, two wing-mounted 20 mm cannon, and two fuselage-mounted 12.7 mm (.5 in) machine guns. The ammunition load comprised 600 or more 12.7 mm (.5 in) rounds, and a maximum of around 900 20 mm rounds which was much heavier than that carried by the C.205N1, and more than that of the Reggiane and the Fiat which carried 490-550 and 650 20 mm rounds respectively. Although 1,200 aircraft were initially ordered, the design was abandoned due to the Armistice between Italy and Allied armed forces.
The N-series aircraft should have performed better than the C.205V, but Macchi test pilot Guido Carestiato noted that their flying characteristics were inferior to the lighter and more agile C.205 Veltro. The later series also experienced overheating while climbing.

The C.205, known initially as the C.202bis, was generally similar to the previous Folgore, although there were numerous differences in the fuselage: the tail was larger, the cockpit and its hump were redesigned, the antenna mast was bigger and some modifications were made to the wings.
The C.205 was a single-seat, all-metal, monoplane fighter, intended primarily as an interceptor but with ground attack and escort capabilities. The long nose housed the DB605 engine which drove a three-blade, constant-speed metal propeller, with the main fuel tank situated between the engine and the cockpit. The radiator was located under the centre section of the fuselage beneath the cockpit while the short rear section housed the radio equipment, oxygen cylinder and an 80 L (20 US gal) reserve fuel tank. The wings were made of light aluminium alloys and steel, having two spars and three sections, housing two additional fuel tanks, and the fully retractable wide-set main undercarriage gear. Apart from the all-metal flaps in the inner wing, all the other control surfaces were metal-framed and fabric-covered. Veltros had self-sealing fuel tanks, an armoured seat, and armoured windscreen as standard. The cramped cockpit possessed a limited field-of-view, but some examples were fitted with a rear-view mirror.
The 827 kg/1,823 lb (normal) payload consisted of the fully equipped pilot (85 kg/187 lb), fuel (307 kg/677 lb), two Breda machine guns and two Mauser MG 151/20 cannon (60 and 84 kg/130 and 185 lb respectively), 740 rounds of 12.7 mm (.5 in) ammunition (76 kg/168 lb), 500 rounds of 20 mm ammunition (100 kg/220 lb), and other sundry items such as oil (33 kg/73 lb), oxygen cylinder (12 kg/26 lb) and radio equipment. Additionally, 100 L (30 US gal) fuel tanks or 160 kg (350 lb) of bombs could be carried on two underwing hardpoints.[6] Due to a lack of passenger transport aircraft, modifications were made to a C.205 to enable it to carry eight passengers in the belly of the fuselage and, among others, three pilots of 51° Wing (including Adriano Visconti) made the journey from Sardinia to Italy after the Armistice in this manner.
Veltros originally had "tropical" pattern camouflage, with a sand brown base coat and irregular black-green lines all over their surface (referred to as "smoke rings"). Those in service with Aeronautica Nazionale Repubblicana were painted an overall dark green (nearly black), while others adopted a variation of the "tropical" pattern or carried a camouflage pattern based on the German "Splinter Pattern" consisiting of RLM 74 and 75, Gey/Green over RLM 76 Blue.

General characteristics
  • Crew: 1
  • Length: 8.85 m (29 ft 0 in)
  • Wingspan: 10.58 m (34 ft 9 in)
  • Height: 3.05 m (10 ft 0 in)
  • Wing area: 16.80 m² (180.8 ft²)
  • Empty weight: 2,581 kg (5,690 lb)
  • Loaded weight: 3,408 kg (7,513 lb)
  • Max. takeoff weight: 3,900 kg (8,600 lb)
  • Powerplant: 1 × Fiat RA.1050 R.C.58 Tifone liquid-cooled supercharged inverted V12 engine, 1,475 hp (1,100 kW)
Performance
  • Maximum speed: 640 km/h (345 kn, 400 mph) at 7,500 m (24,600 ft)
  • Range: 950 km (515 nmi, 590 mi)
  • Service ceiling: 11,500 m (37,730 ft)
  • Wing loading: 202.9 kg/m² (41.55 lb/ft²)
Armament
  • Guns:
    • 2 × 12.7 mm (.5 in) Breda-SAFAT machine guns, 400 rpg, in the nose
    • 2 × 20 mm MG 151 cannon, 250 rpg, in the wings
  • Bombs: 2 × 160 kg (350 lb) bombs

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