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RSI soldiers waiting to enter in action. Front of the Gothic line. DVX

Waiting for action

The No. 22, April 8, 1943, of  &quot;Tactical and Technical Trends&quot; a bulletin biweekly, and later monthly, published by the U.S. Military Intelligence Service from June 1942 to June 1945, printed an article entitled &quot;Italian Fighter Planes&quot;. This is the chapter dedicated to MC.202. &quot;The Macchi-202, one of the best Italian fighters, is a single-seat, low-wing cantilever monoplane, powered by one, twelve-cylinder, Daimler-Benz 601 A/1 engine of the inverted &quot;V&quot; liquid-cooled type. It is of all-metal construction with smooth stressed skin and has moderately tapered wings with a span of 34 feet 8 inches and a gross area of 181 square feet. The fuselage is oval, with the cockpit over the trailing edge of the wing. Camber-changing flaps are interconnected with the ailerons. It has an adjustable stabilizer and a hydraulically operated landing gear retracting inward into the wings. The tail wheel is fixed. The latest type of engine is reported to develop 1,150 hp at 16,000 feet, which would permit a sea-level speed of 295 mph, a cruising speed of 310 mph at 18,000, and a maximum speed of 360 mph at 20,000. The airplane is believed capable of reaching an altitude of 18,000 feet in approximately 7.2 minutes. 
The service ceiling with a normal load is 35,000 feet, and the range is 425 miles at normal cruising speed. On some models the engine is fitted with an air filter connected to the landing gear. The filter apparently operates only when the wheels are down. The metal propeller is three-bladed. There are apparently two fuel tanks, one in the fuselage below the pilot's seat, holding 71 U.S. gallons, and the other behind his head and shoulders with a capacity of 34 U.S. gallons. Both tanks are of standard light-alloy construction and are self-sealing, having five protective layers on the inside. However, a recent airplane is reported to have had three tanks, a main tank aft of the cockpit holding 111 U.S. gallons and an auxiliary tank of 25 U.S. gallons built into each wing next to the fuselage, each connected with the main tank. The standard armament consists of two synchronized 12.7-mm Breda machine guns mounted over the engine and firing through the propeller. There is provision for mounting two 7.7-mm guns in the wings outboard of the propeller arc, but none have been found actually installed. This aircraft is believed to be equipped to carry two 220-pound bombs. Eight-millimeter armor protection is used for the head, shoulders, and bucket seat, but no bulletproof windshields have been reported. 
This airplane has been almost entirely used for fighting and ground attack. It has operated extensively against Malta, and in the defense of the North African ports in the Libyan campaigns, and is now in action in Tunisia&quot;. Victor Sierra