Other Forces

The SAAF’s CR.32

This Fiat CR.32 in South African Air Force colors is the plane of this type seized at Addis Ababa airport after the conquest of Ethiopian capital by the British Forces in May 1941 (notice in background a Vickers Wellesley single engine bomber). Likely an aircraft of the Regia Aeronautica’s 410th Squadriglia, Italian military registration MM1191 (or according other sources MM4191), this CR.32, with a No 41 SAAF Squadron’s pilot at the controls, on 2 August 1941 left Addis Ababa direct to South Africa, Zwartkop Air Station, reached on 9 August after a stop in Kenya, at Nairobi. In South Africa the plane, now SAAF Serial No. 21, was allocated, on September, to No 42 Squadron for use by the “Air Commando” display tour. On April 1942 the CR.32 SAAF No 21 was switched to No 6 Squadron at Durban for anti-aircraft practice and communications and during this activity, on 18 July, was lightly damaged by a forced land on a beach near Durban caused by an engine failure. On November of the same year the aircraft was given to Natal University Air Training Squadron for instruction use. On December 1944 the CR.32 result still with the Natal University ATS, but disappeared during the following months perhaps broken up on 1945. Victor Sierra