Modern/Post-War Photos

An historical plane’s revival

Stato Maggiore Aeronautica

Another historical Italian aircraft, believed disappeared, dig up: on 21 January the chief of staff Italian Air Force, Lt. Gen. Giuseppe Bernardis, has officially presented the sole still existing exemplar of IMAM Ro.37bis, an observation and reconnaissance plane of XX century’s Thirties employed in the war against the Ethiopia, in the Spanish Civil War and in the Second World War. The plane, presented on Flight’s Park and Museum Volandia, near Milan-Malpensa Airport, but destined to Italian Air Force’s Musem of Vigna di Valle, near Rome, is a former Afghan Air Force’s Ro.37bis. The Afghan Air Force on September 1937, with eight Breda trainers and some bombs, purchased sixteen Ro.37bis (version of Ro.37 with 560-HP Piaggio P.IX RC.40 radial engine in place of the in line engine Fiat A.30 RA) employed until the end of Forties. On 2005, after the arrival of Italian contingent in Afghanistan of the NATO Mission ISAF, at Kabul Airport the wreck of six Ro.37bis and three engines, abandoned and forget for decades, was unveiled by the Italian during the control’s missions of Afghan capital’s airport. On September 2006 the wrecks was transferred in Italy by a return flight of an Italian Air Force’s C-130J. With wrecks, in very poor conditions, was rebuilt in collaboration within Italian Air Force and a private company a single aircraft. The livery choose is those of a Italian Regia Aeronautica’s Ro.37bis employed on Italian East Africa late Thirties by 110th Squadriglia. Victor Sierra