COMBAT 122 AIRCRAFT Marco Mattioli SAVOIA-MARCHETTI S.79 SPARVIERO BOMBER UNITS 122 SAVOIA-MARCHETTI S.79 SPARVIERO BOMBER UNITS SERIES EDITOR TONY HOLMES 122 Marco Mattioli SAVOIA-MARCHETTI S.79 SPARVIERO BOMBER UNITS C O N T E N T S CHAPTER ONE BIRTH OF A BOMBER 6 CHAPTER TWO INTO THE SPANISH ARENA 9 CHAPTER THREE WORLD WAR 30 CHAPTER FOUR WAR OVER THE MEDITERRANEAN 56 CHAPTER FIVE WAR OVER NORTH AFRICA 70 CHAPTER SIX IN EAST AFRICAN SKIES 81 APPENDICES 91 COLOUR PLATES COMMENTARY 92 INDEX 96 6 CHAPTER ONE Birth Of A BOMBer ChAPter ONe BIRTH OF A BOMBER Conceived as a fast eight-passenger airliner in 1933 by Alessandro The S.79’s forebear, I-MAGO, during Generale Valle’s East African tour in August Marchetti, chief designer of the Società Idrovolanti Alta Italia (SIAI), 1935. Portly Generale Valle is standing fifth the iconic S.79 had sufficient performance to make it suitable for from right, with his back to the camera. In employment by the Regia Aeronautica. The S.79P (P for passengers) January 1936 the aircraft tasted war for the first time (Aeronautica Militare (AM)) prototype completed its maiden flight on 2 October 1934 at Cameri airfield near Novara, northern Italy, with test pilot Adriano Bacula at the controls. Bearing the registration I-MAGO (in Latin, imago means ‘image’ and mago ‘wizard’ in Italian), the aircraft earned its first laurels during 1935 when it set several world speed records (with different payloads) over increasing distances. The trimotor soon attracted the interest of the Regia Aeronautica and, bearing the military serial MM260, it was chosen to transport Generale di Squadra Aerea Giuseppe Valle, Undersecretary and Chief of Staff, to East Africa to organise the invasion of Abyssinia. On 1 August 1935, flown by Tenente Colonnello Attilio Biseo and Capitano Gori Castellani, the aircraft flew from Rome for Massawa, in Eritrea, with an Egyptian stopover at Cairo, in just 12 hours. This performance was repeated on the return flight on 5 August, when the aircraft averaged 230 mph. This remarkable round trip made Generale Valle a strong supporter of the S.79, and he pressed for the development of a bomber variant, designated the S.79M (M for military). On 3 October 1935 the Second Italo-Abyssinian war commenced, and S.79P I-MAGO soon saw combat for the first time. On 6 January CHAPTER ONE Birth Of A BOMBer 7 1936, the aircraft, flown by Tenente Colonnello Biseo and Maggiore Angelo Tondi, transported Generale Valle on another East African inspection tour. British authorities delayed I-MAGO’s onward journey at Cairo until the evening, and when the flight was resumed both worsening weather and a shortage of fuel forced the pilots to make a safe landing at dusk on a sandy coastal A three-ship formation of 52a Squadriglia beach. The crew then informed Massawa of their situation by radio, and (XXVII Gruppo, 8° Stormo) aircraft in flight the base duly supplied the necessary fuel to enable them to reach their over the Italian mainland in the late 1930s (AM) destination the following day. While overflying the frontline in the Ogaden region of eastern Abyssinia on 13 January 1936, I-MAGO was fired upon three times by Abyssinian troops. No damage was inflicted on the transport. Three days later, with Generale Valle’s tour completed, the S.79P flew back to Italy in just ten hours. Following its Abyssinian ‘baptism of fire’, I-MAGO was posted to the Guidonia-based 12° Stormo Bombardamento ‘Sorci Verdi’ (‘Green Mice’), this bomber unit being charged with evaluating the new trimotor. After successfully performing test bombings on the Furbara range north of Rome, I-MAGO served as both the stormo’s ‘hack’ and as a VIP transport. On 8 July 1936 the S.79M prototype, MM20663, made its first flight with Tenente Colonnello Biseo at the controls, the aircraft subsequently being assigned to 12° Stormo exactly three weeks later. During the second half of 1936 and into 1937 the ‘Green Mice’ received an initial 24 machines (MM20663 to MM20686), which were introduced into service by the Regia Aeronautica’s most skilful pilots. The S.79s quickly showed their outstanding speed to the world in a series of record flights, with the aircraft always crewed by 12° Stormo personnel. Generale Valle’s early relationship with the Sparviero (Sparrowhawk) also continued when he unofficially flew the Regia Aeronautica’s first operational sortie against Britain’s Royal Navy. On 18 August 1937, with Tenente Mancinelli as his co-pilot, Valle undertook a photo-reconnaissance mission over the Mediterranean Fleet’s Malta home at an altitude of 6500 ft, returning to Sicily after a flight lasting 1 hr 15 min. Two days later, on 20/21 August 1937, the Regia Aeronautica took part in the international Istres-Damascus-Paris race with five specially modified S.79 Corsa (race) machines. Painted red, with green stripes along their fuselages, these specially modified trimotors lacked the type’s distinctive dorsal humps but displayed the Sorci Verdi badge that was destined to become famous during World War 2. ‘Seeing the green mice’ (far vedere i sorci verdi in Italian) means ‘accomplishing outstanding deeds’, and the S.79 Corsas featuring three green mice on their fuselages proved worthy of their emblem. Each of the five racers carried a registration derived from their pilots’ surnames – I-BIMU (Attilio Biseo and, remarkably, Bruno 8 CHAPTER ONE Birth Of A BOMBer Mussolini, Il Duce’s third son), I-TOMO (Tondi and Moscatelli), I-CUPI (Cupini and Paradisi, although some sources give this as I-CUPA), I-FILU (Fiori and Lucchini) and I-LICA (Lippi and Castellani). There was also a sixth aircraft, the humped I-ROTR (Rovis and Trimboli). The S.79s dominated the event, with I-CUPI, I-FILU and I-BIMU taking the first three places, while another two were placed sixth and eighth. Needless to say, such a resounding success was fully exploited by the Fascist propaganda machine, which proudly announced that the S.79 was a mainstay of the An ex-S.79T of the Rome-to-Rio Atlantic Regia Aeronautica. flight at a Brazilian airport, serving with the Aviacão Militar Brasileira (Brazilian Military Aviation). Its former codes and serials have been removed, and the aircraft bears the iN BrAZiLiAN SerViCe Brazilian national colours on its rudder. Note the North American AT-6 Texan in the In the wake of this triumph, on 24 January 1938 three S.79 Corsa, foreground and the Focke-Wulf Fw 58 converted into T variants (T for transatlantic), flew 6200 miles from Weihe light transport landing in the background. The latter machines were Dakar, in Senegal, to the Brazilian city of Rio de Janeiro at an average license-built in Brazil from 1938 (via author) speed of 250 mph. Two trimotors, I-BISE, flown by Colonnello Biseo, and I-BRUN, piloted by Tenente Bruno Mussolini, reached Rio on the evening of 25 January. The third, I-MONI, flown by Maggiore Nino Moscatelli, suffered mechanical problems and forced-landed at Natal, in northeastern Brazil. It joined the other two S.79s in Rio the following day. This remarkable flight was again fully exploited by Fascist propaganda (which highlighted the participation of Il Duce’s son) and the three S.79s were then presented to the Aviacao Militar Brasileira (Brazilian Military Aviation). On 27 April 1938, I-BISE, I-BRUN and I-MONI duly became K-422, K-420 and K-421, respectively. Thenceforth, these trimotors flew in Brazilian colours. On 9 May 1938 they were assigned to the Escola de Aviacão Militar (Military Aviation School), where Maggiore Nino Moscatelli acted as instructor on at least three flights, made on 28 June (serial not reported) and 1 and 8 July 1938 (K-421 and K-420, respectively). On 28 October 1938 K-420 (MM356), flown by pilot Loyola Daher, collided with Stearman K-211, serial number A7603. Apparently, K-420 was later repaired, for it was recorded as flying in September 1941. The aeroplane was struck off Escola de Aviacão charge on 12 February 1943. On 9 July 1939 an unidentified S.79 flow by Major Rubens Canabarro Lucas set a speed record by flying from Porto Alegre to Rio in 2 hr 50 min at an average speed of 263 mph. The last official flight of an S.79 in Brazilian colours was made by K-422, with a pilot by the name of Maldonado at its controls, on 29 June 1943. The Brazilian S.79s’ service ended on 25 October 1944 when K-421 (MM358) and K-422 (MM359) were officially grounded by the Escola de Aeronautica. CHAPTER ONE Birth Of A BOMBer 9 ChAPter tWO INTO THE SPANISH ARENA A striking in-flight photograph of 28-14 and The Spanish Civil War, which broke out on 18 July 1936, provided an 28-15 from 280a Squadriglia. For the 11 excellent opportunity to test the S.79 in combat, the trimotors being October 1937 raid on Sastago bridge, these two trimotors were flown by Tenente Pucci despatched as part of the Regia Aeronautica’s Aviazione Legionaria (with Maggiore Muti on board) and Tenente (expeditionary corps) that had been hastily formed to provide logistical Colonnello Cupini, respectively. Both aircraft and tactical support for the pro-fascist Nationalists led by Generalissimo were damaged in combat with Grupo 21’s I-16 fighters (AM) Francisco Franco. At dawn on 14 February 1937 1a Sezione S.79 (1st S.79 Section) left Guidonia airport, northeast of Rome, and, four hours later, landed at Palma de Mallorca’s Son San Juan airfield in the Balearic Islands. 1a Sezione comprised three S.79s (MM20680, MM20685 and MM20686) from 12° Stormo’s 205a Squadriglia, flown, respectively, by Capitano Gori Castellani (co-pilot Sottotenente Aurelio Pozzi), Tenente Tullio De Prato (co-pilot Sergente Moretti) and Tenente Edvige Pucci (co-pilot Sottotenente Adolfo Rebez). This section flew its first combat sortie three days later, targeting Republican warships in the Gulf of Valencia. On 13 March at 0850 hrs all three 1a Sezione S.79s – ‘1’ (Maggiore Ettore Muti and Capitano Castellani), ‘2’ (Tenente De Prato and Sottotenente Rebez) and ‘4’ (Tenente Pucci and Sottotenente Pozzi) – bombed Sabadell airfield. Three bombs from S.79 ‘1’ were dropped on a hangar near the port of Barcelona, while the remaining two trimotors expended their ordnance in four runs. Despite a fierce response by anti-aircraft defences, all three aircraft returned to Palma unscathed. Three days later 1a Sezione S.79s ‘1’ (Tenente De Prato), ‘2’ (Capitano Castellani) and ‘3’ (Tenente Pucci) 10 CHAPTER TWO iNtO the SPANiSh AreNA bombed Barcelona, killing seven and wounding 30 civilians. On 20 March the S.79s moved to Sevilla-Tablada on mainland Spain, and three days later the section left Sevilla for Salamanca. 23 March also saw 2a Sezione S.79 set off from Italy for Palma. This section’s trimotors, individually numbered 1, 2 and 3, were flown by Capitano Giovanni Raina and Tenenti Paolo Moci and Carmelo Giurleo, respectively. However, only the first two S.79s reached their destination at 1430 hrs, for Tenente Giurleo became lost over Sardinia owing to bad weather. On 26 March 1a Sezione left Salamanca for Soria, and the next day two 2a Sezione S.79s, ‘1’ (Capitano Raina and Maggiore Muti) and ‘2’ (Tenente Some of 1a Sezione’s S.79 crewmen at Palma de Mallorca upon their arrival on 14 Moci and Sottotenente Enzo Simoni), attacked Celrà airfield near Gerona February 1937. Note the ‘Green Mice’ at 0710 hrs. Because of a defective bomb-bay door, S.79 ‘1’ targeted San emblem and three black identification Juan railway junction instead as a target of opportunity. On 1 April another stripes on the fuselage. Among the unit’s Avieri, kneeling in the centre is Airman Ugo nine S.79s, led by Maggiore Mario Aramu, arrived at Palma as a welcome Accorsi (Accorsi) addition to the Sparvieri force in Spain, which was now 14 strong. Two days later, on 3 April, 2a Sezione left Palma for Sevilla, but it was not an uneventful move. The S.79 crews spotted five steamers near Ibiza, then the bombers were targeted by anti-aircraft fire off Cabo de Gata and, as they prepared to land at Sevilla at 1500 hrs, they were intercepted by a German fighter, whose pilot misidentified them. Luckily, no damage was incurred. The very next day the 2a Sezione war diary reported ‘Aircraft camouflaged and new markings. Aircraft numbered 28-11 and 28-12’. In fact, the designation ‘28’ identified the S.79 for the war’s duration. Unfortunately, the flying career of 28-12 was brief, for on 7 April it caught fire while being refuelled on Sevilla airfield and was totally destroyed. None of the personnel involved, including pilot Tenente Moci, were hurt. The following day 2a Sezione moved to Soria airfield. Later, the code ’28-12’ was allotted to another trimotor. Previously, on 5 April, three 1a Sezione S.79s had been ordered to bomb Celrà airfield again. Tenente Balletta’s MM21159 yawed on takeoff at 1230 hrs and was damaged, leaving the remaining two trimotors, 28-1 (Maggiore Mario Aramu) and 28-3 (Tenente Giorgio Mayer) to perform the mission. The target was struck at 1415 hrs by 28-1, but Mayer in 28-3, having failed to find the target, was obliged to release his bomb load into the sea. Ten days later 1a Sezione’s S.79 28-1 (Maggiore Aramu, with Tenente Balletta) bombed the port of Cartagena at 0725 hrs. Aramu’s aircraft dropped five 250 kg bombs in two runs, hitting a fort but missing a number of moored naval ships. According to Italian Intelligence, those lucky naval targets were the light cruisers Libertad and Mendez Nuñez, three large and four small submarines, the tug Canguro and the aircraft transport Dedalo. A powerplant in Bilbao was targeted on 22 April, when four S.79s, three from 1a Sezione and Tenente Moci’s 28-11 from 2a Sezione, damaged it and