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#Post#: 12424--------------------------------------------------
Plane of the Week: Reggiane Re.2001
By: vonofterdingen Date: September 7, 2020, 3:43 pm
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The Reggiane Re.2001 Falco II came up when I was reading up
on the P-47 Thunderbolt; it is odd to think that the two planes
have a similar design roots in the Seversky P-35. Though a fine
fighter in its own right, the Falco II was not as popular with
the Regia Aeronautica as the Macchi 202. The plane should not be
overlooked, however, as it was a formidable opponent to its RAF
contemporaries, even the Hurricane and Spitfire.
From Wikipedia
The Reggiane Re.2001 Falco II was an Italian fighter
aircraft, serving in the Regia Aeronautica (Italian Air Force)
during World War II. A contemporary of the renowned Macchi
MC.202, the production of this type was to be limited to only
252, but it was a flexible design that proved to be able to
undertake a number of roles. Thanks to its maneuverability it
could dogfight with more powerful opponents like the Supermarine
Spitfire. The Re.2001 became the basis of a later, more
formidable fighter, the Re.2005.
The Reggiane Re.2001 was a development of the Re.2000 Falco I
which had been rejected by the Regia Aeronautica primarily
because of its unprotected fuel tanks in the wing, which were
merely sealed voids between the spars, and secondly its engine.
This was the main problem the Falco II set out to fix, now
having a 1,175 hp Alfa Romeo inline engine (a more powerful and
reliable license-built German DB 601) rather than a 986 hp
Piaggio P.IX radial engine.
Incorporating much of the Re.2000's fuselage structure, even
retaining the entire tail unit, the Re.2001's wings were of
semi-elliptical design with three spars in each wing. The
initial design had conventional fuel tanks with 544 l total
capacity (five tanks, one in the fuselage and the others in the
wings). The armament consisted of Breda-SAFAT machine guns, with
two nose-mounted 12.7 mm (up to 800 rounds) and two 7.7 mm guns
in the wings, (1200 rounds total).
The new Falco II was considered equal by most experts with
the Macchi MC.202, but the Macchi fighter, having first call on
production for the Alfa Romeo R.A.1000RC.41-1a (the license
built DB 601) was still produced in greater numbers. The Re.2001
was then delayed because the Regia Aeronautica insisted on the
fuel tanks being placed inside the wings, which required a
substantial redesign of the wing structure. The first order,
amounting to 300 machines, was cut back with only 252 produced.
This number included 100 Re.2001 Serie I, Serie II and Serie III
with armament variations, the Reggiane Serie IV fighter-bomber
and 150 Re.2001 CN Caccia Notturna, night fighter.
Due to the wing redesign coupled with production delays, the
first production aircraft were finally cleared for operational
use in June 1941, nearly a year behind schedule.
Along with the fighter variant, two other main variants were
developed to suit specialized roles. The Re.2001 CB
(Cacciabombardiere, Fighter-bomber) version produced from 1942
could carry a 100 or 250 kg bomb under the fuselage for the
attack role. The CN (Caccia notturno, Night fighter) version was
adapted with the introduction of engine exhaust-flame dampers
and a 20 mm Mauser MG 151/20 cannon in two gondolas, one under
each wing, although many fighters retained the original
armament. A total of 34 CNs were produced of the 50 ordered.
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The Re.2001 reached operational status late in 1941 with 2°
Gruppo (part of 6° Stormo) that had returned from North Africa
without aircraft in September 1941. Its three Squadriglie, 150ª,
152ª and 358ª, were based at Gorizia and then relocated to
Rome-Ciampino in December. But due to technical reasons the unit
was not fully equipped and trained until February 1942. Finally,
on 4 May 1942, it moved to Caltagirone, in Sicily, with 18
Reggianes, under command of Colonnello Bajlon. In May 1942,
Re.2001s began to fly escort missions over Malta, encountering
British Spitfire Mk Vs. The first encounter took place on 12
May, when 15 Reggiane 2001s of 2° Gruppo, while escorting (with
Macchi MC.200s) three Savoia-Marchetti SM.84 of 4° Gruppo, were
attacked by nine Spitfires, and the Reggiane downed two British
fighters for no losses to themselves. During the violent air
combat, the Supermarine fighters shot down a Regia Aeronautica
bomber and badly damaged the other, but the Reggiane pilots
quickly reacted and shot down two Spitfires, one by Sergente
Paolo Morcino, that had to make a crash-landing (just like his
commander) close to Ispica, as his undercarriage had been
damaged by a 20 mm cannon shell.[5] That day actually the RAF
lost three Spitfires: one pilot, Sergeant Charles Graysmark of
601 Sqn was killed and another, Sergeant Cyril 'Joe' Bush of
(126 Squadron), wounded. Pilot Officer Michael Graves, 126 Sqn,
was also shot down but bailed out uninjured. In the afternoon of
15 May 1942, 19 Re.2001s flew to the airfields at Malta on a
hunting spree. Dogfights took place over the southern part of
the island and according to the Italians, the Allies lost four
aircraft, three falling into the sea east of Valletta and the
fourth, south of Kalafrana. Re.2001 MM.7210, hit during the
dogfight, made an emergency landing at Comiso, in Sicily. On 18
May, eight Re.2001s led by Tenente Remo Cazzolli of 152ª
Squadriglia flew to Malta in support of a maritime/land
reconnaissance of the island. The Re.2001s were attacked by four
Spitfires of 249 Squadron, three pilots each claiming a
Reggiane. Later records show that Cazzolli, a Spanish Civil War
veteran, was the lone victim, crashing north of Fort San
Leonardo, near Marsaskala, and was captured. By the end of
June, 22° Gruppo based at Rome-Ciampino received their first
Re.2001 CBs and redeployed to Monserrato, Sardinia. They were
later transferred to Sicily to participate in the raids on
Malta.[9] On 12 July, over Malta, Canadian ace "Buzz" Beurling
from 249 Sqn shot down the Reggiane Re.2001s of Tenente
Colonnello Aldo Quarantotti and Tenente Carlo Seganti, of 150ª
Squadriglia Caccia, mistaking them for Macchi C.202s. But two
days later, he was in turn badly shot up by Reggianes.
Beurling's aircraft was "riddled by better than 20 bullets
through the fuselage and wings". "An explosive bullet nicked my
right heel", he recalled. Generally slower than contemporary
fighters, still the Reggiane against the Hawker Hurricane fared
better and could take on this opponent on a more equal basis,
although the Hawker was noticeably faster at most altitudes.[3]
The Spitfire V had an even more greater speed advantage.
especially above 7,000 m (23,000 ft). However, at lower and
medium altitudes, the Re.2001 was able to hold its own.
On 12 August 1942, two Re.2001G/Vs, modified to carry single
640 kg (1,410 lb) fragmentation bombs and accompanied by a
fighter escort of Re.2001s, carried out a successful attack on
HMS Victorious during Operation Pedestal. Reportedly, the
Re.2001s were not challenged because of their similarity in
appearance to Sea Hurricanes. During the attack, a direct hit
was scored on the aircraft carrier's flight deck but the bomb
failed to explode and fell harmlessly into the sea.
Beginning in spring 1942, Reggiane Re.2001 CN night fighters
were issued to 59° Gruppo, and primarily used in the defence of
Italian cities. As the tide of war shifted, the Re.2001 units
were constantly moved from base to base, and finally by 10 July
1943, when the invasion of Sicily began, all available Re.2001
fighters were diverted to defend Italy and nearby Mediterranean
islands held by Italian forces.
Later in 1943, the fighter in all of its variants was used to
defend northern and central Italy. Fighter pilots praised the
Re.2001's handling qualities (some considered it more
maneuverable than the Macchi C.202); however, like many Italian
combat aircraft, the type experienced poor serviceability and
many of the units using the Re.2001 were not fully equipped.
The complexity of the Re.2001 design led to higher costs (in
1942, the production cost of the Re.2001 was 600,000 lire versus
520,000 lire of the Macchi C.202) and slowed production rates
which also limited its effectiveness as a fighter. Due to
attrition, only 33 Re.2001s were available at the Armistice of 9
September 1943.[9] Furthermore, poor serviceability meant that
only nine Re.2001s survived the division of Italy, eight going
to the Italian Co-Belligerent Air Force with the Allies, and one
to the Italian Social Republic.
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In game…
I usually enjoy flying Italian planes. I love the Re.2001 due
to its maneuverability; it also has a bit more firepower than
some of its fellow Italian fighters. To me, this plane flies
like a biplane such as the CR42, but without the visibility
limitations. I am pretty comfortable in the Re.2001 taking on
P-39s, P-40s, Hawker Hurricanes, and just about any allied
bomber aircraft in Western Desert and MTO scenarios, two of my
favorite theaters.
And one more thing: Italian planes always look so damn cool.
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#Post#: 12425--------------------------------------------------
Re: Plane of the Week: Reggiane Re.2001
By: ben_wh Date: September 7, 2020, 5:18 pm
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von,
Thanks for the write up - good choice of an Italian plane that
is not showcased often. It is a very interesting looking plane
- you can see it as a more aerodynamic version of the Re.2000 or
a shorter version of Re.2005. As you stated it saw actions over
Sicily, Malta and other parts of MTO.
In-game: for a plane with relatively small production number
(~230+) there have been at least 3 mod versions to choose from:
- an early Franken from Ectoflyer, Spitwulf and others (day and
night fighters, plus a naval version),
- one with improved 3D by Red_Fox90 (day and night fighter
loadouts) and
- another one with more recent 3D upgrade from stanislao here
HTML https://il2freemodding.createaforum.com/ww2-axies-single-engine/reggiane-re-2001-'falco-ii'/<br
/>in this site (very nice 3D and skins, but you may miss the 630
kg
bomb and night fighter loadout)
As you said it is very maneuverable but speed is an issue,
especially when going up against Spitfire over Matla.
Cheers,
#Post#: 12429--------------------------------------------------
Re: Plane of the Week: Reggiane Re.2001
By: robyfongaro Date: September 8, 2020, 3:30 am
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Exactly von,
As i said in the P-47, the Reggiane aircrafts do find an
ancestor in the Seversky P-35, iirc i think the designer at the
Officine Reggiane saw the P-35 and basically eyeballed it, or
something similar; in fact, the Re.2000 Falco, is basically a
slightly upgraded copy of the P-35: slightly bigger and with
retractable instead of semi-retractable landing gear, but that's
where the differences end.
P-35
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Re.2000
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The main problen that Italy had at the beginning, which is kinda
the same problem that Japan had, was that it lacked powerful
enough engines, in fact the Freccia and the Saetta had the FIAT
A.74, which was basically an evolution of P&W Twin Wasp Junior
for only 840 HP, while the Falco had the Piaggio P.XI for 1.000
HP, which was basically a licenced Gnome-Rhone 14K. Decent
engines and decent aircrafts but underperforming when compared
to the other contemporaries.
It was only by switching the engines with the DB-601 (and later
the DB 605) produced under licence by Alfa Romeo, that FIAT,
Officine Reggiane and Macchi were able to remedy to the
shortcomings of the previous fighters.
I problem that i have is that until they put 20mm on the
fighters; only 2 '50 cals and sometimes 2 more '30 cals, don't
quite cut it for me.
[quote author=vonofterdingen link=topic=1770.msg12424#msg12424
date=1599511404]
And one more thing: Italian planes always look so damn cool.
[/quote]
I agree on this; we Italians do know how to design 8) . Tho my
favourite Italian fighter is the FIAT G.55 Centauro.
#Post#: 12430--------------------------------------------------
Re: Plane of the Week: Reggiane Re.2001
By: vonofterdingen Date: September 8, 2020, 3:45 pm
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Well said, Roby. And I agree about the cannons. Even a single
cannon makes a big difference with a plane's armament. I think
even the US planes with the 6 .50 caliber guns would have
benefited from a cannon in the nose. This is one reason I have
always loved to fly the P-39 in game.
Agreed too on the Centauro; perhaps it was the most beautiful
aircraft of the period.
#Post#: 12431--------------------------------------------------
Re: Plane of the Week: Reggiane Re.2001
By: JG51_Ruski Date: September 8, 2020, 5:10 pm
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Sharp looking plane Von and thanks for the opportunity to saddle
up planes I've never flown before
#Post#: 12432--------------------------------------------------
Re: Plane of the Week: Reggiane Re.2001
By: cafs Date: September 8, 2020, 5:52 pm
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Another hit, Von, thanks.
Well said, ben and Roby, that Re.2001 by Dimon, Stanislao and
CWatson have a big 3d improvement.👍👍
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