The Fiat CR.32s fighter aircraft of just born 6th Stormo: on the fuselage the “Red Devil”, the insignia of the Stormo established on 5 January 1936 at Campoformido Airfield, near Udine, North-East Italy. The planes has the colors used in those years, all silver finish and tricolor with Savoia’s coat of arms on the rudder. At this time the CR.32 were the most modern Italian fighter and, in substance, the standard fighter plane of Italian Air Force. When the 6th Stormo (still existing with Tornado-IDS at Ghedi Air Base) was established the Italy is busy in the Abyssinian war. After few months the Italy will to go in Spanish Civil War. The peace is a peace well relative. Victor Sierra

A relative peacetime

Rome: 1935: a modern, for this time, Italian Regia Aeronautica’s Savoia Marchetti S.81 bomber overflying the Coliseum. For the Italy is a period of peace, but it’s a peace of brief time: the war against the Ethiopia begin on Autumn 1935 and afterwards is the Spanish Civil War. The S.81 of this photo is an aircraft of 11th Squadriglia of one of two Gruppi, 26th Gruppo, the other is the 29th Gruppo, of Regia Aeronautica’s 11th Stormo equipped with the new Savoia-Marchetti bomber, version powered by Piaggio P.IX radial engines, on 1935 and based at Rome, Ciampino Airport. Victor Sierra



Peace’s time

The G.55 Centauro number 5 (Yellow Five) of ANR-Aeronautica Nazionale Repubblicana’s Squadriglia “Montefusco-Bonet” on a Northern Italy’s airfield, 1944. The G.55 (an aircraft rebuilt from a G.59’s airframe) of Vigna di Valle’s Italian Air Force Museum has the same livery and the same number Yellow Five of the plane of this picture (G.55 Series 1 with wing mounted 20 mm cannon). Originally Squadriglia Complementare d’Allarme (Alert Complementary Unit), with base at Venaria Reale, Turin, the “Montefusco” was the first unit of ANR, the air force of Italian Social Republic (RSI), equipped with the Centauro and started its operations in January 1944. On 29 March 1944 the unit claimed an USAAF’s B-17, but the same day her leader, Capt. Giovanni Bonet, was killed in action. After that day the unit’s name was changed in Squadriglia “Montefusco-Bonet" with the Bonet’s signature on the aircraft’s engine cowling. The presence of the Bonet’s signature on the cowling of Yellow Five, note a serviceman resting under the wing, date therefore this picture later 29 March 1944. In May 1944 the Squadriglia “Montefusco-Bonet" was redeployed at Reggio Emilia and afterwards was integrated in the ANR’s 1st Gruppo Caccia (1st Fighter Group). Victor Sierra