![]() There were good marine planes however, like the CANT Z.506 Airone, a beautiful trimotor floatplane with two large floats under the engine nacelles. There was no “fleet air arm” per se, and planes were attached by regional squadrons to various task, but without much centralisation. The Regia Aeronautica was primarily an independent air force subordinated first and foremost to the Army. They also damaged HMS Indomitable 16 July 1943 but this was their last success. Later they sank a Flower-class corvette and a merchant ship, and badly damaged HMS Arethusa. When attacking a convoy (Operation pedestal) they sank HMS Foresight and the merchant ship MV Deucalion. In 1942, they torpedoed again HMS Liverpool, just repaired near Malta, the steamer Tanimbar and they finished off HMS Bedouin. In 1941 they would also damage HMS Manchester and sank a destroyer, HMS Phoebe, HMS Nelson, badly damaged the destroyer HMS Jackal and sank the SS Imperial Star, Empire Pelican, Empire Defender, Glenearn and Xhakdina. Both ships were written-off for almost a year in repairs and HMS Glasgow in Suda Bay, Crete. 1940, and in October also badly damaged the cruiser HMS Liverpool. They also attacked shipping in Alexandria, sank a merchant ship in Sept. Their best success was to badly damage the heavy cruiser HMS Kent. They learned on the fly, quite literally. The Aerosilurante unit was created in July 1940 and crews had little time to practice (col. The Regia Aeronautica’s anti-ship aviation The latter were fast at 450 kph, with a range of about 1,000 m (1,600 and 3,300 ft), and could carry two torpedoes, although one was more current, of the standard 457 mm model. ![]() Bombers and torpedo bombers were good, especially those of the Savoia-Marchetti SM.79 types, but they were never where it mattered. It range from problematic so simply inexistant. ![]() The greatest problem was that coordination between the fleet and air force. However the reality of warfare soon recalled the necessity of a true carrier: The Tarento raid was one of many demonstrating the issue. Mussolini himself boasted this “aircraft carrier Italy” was unsinkable. Part of the Regia Marina high command, and Mussolini himself, considered an aircraft carrier superfluous in its position: Arguably the central geographic location in the Mediterranean and shape of the peninsula made it the best “natural carrier”, fitting in the objective of a “Roman lake”. Savoia-Marchetti SM.79 Sparviero, the workhorse of the Regia Marina throughout the war. She was nearly completed and started early trials when Italy surrendered in September 1943. But the Aquila aircraft carrier would have been a remarkable ship, for her capabilities, despite being built in such a short time. The uncompleted 1916 Carraciolo class super-dreadnoughts were broken up due to the Washington treaty, and in WW2, the Capitani Romani class cruisers and Medaglie d’Oro class destroyers and many submarines were never completed, as the last of the Litorrio class, Impero. Both proceeded from ideas developed in 1928-1930 as a faction milited for their development, in the country which invented the concept of strategic bombardment, by General Douhet. The Aquila and Sparviero aircraft carriers were among the well-known unfinished ships of WW2.
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