Supermarine Spitfire. European Users, part eleven. Italian Spitfire users.

 

In 1942 the Italians managed to capture a single Spitfire Mk. V, which was transferred in September of that same year to the experimental centre in Guidonia (Regia Aeronautica's -Italian Air Force- experimental test centre), close to Rome. However,  as we couldn't find any graphical evidence of this captured Spitfire, we decided not to draw it.
After Italy switched sides and joined Allies, the Italian Co-Belligerent Air Force (the name given to the pro-Allied Italian Air Force) was equipped with the Spitfire Mk. V, more exactly the 51º Stormo Caccia Terrestre (51st Land Fighter Wing).
This unit, composed of three Gruppi (squadrons) flew the Spitfire Mk. V together with the Macchi C.205 from 1944 until the end of the war.

After the war, around 150 Spitfire Mk. IX were bought from the British and were used by the 51º and 5º Stormos plus the Scuola di Vuolo (Flight School). 
In December 1947 Italian Spitfires were assigned registration numbers ranging from MM. 4000 to MM.4285 (the letters 'MM' stands for 'Matricola Militare' - Military Number Plate-). This numbering did not include those aircraft that had previously been written off due to accidents. Additionally, two registrations, (which by a strange coincidence were MM. 4040 and MM.4140) were assigned to non-existing aircraft by mistake.

In 1949 the Italian took over two ex-Turkish Spitfire Mk. IX under unclear circunstances. 
Both Stormos ceased to employ the Spitfire in 1950. They were later used until mid-1952 in flight schools. After 1952 most Spitfires were scrapped, while some were employed for fire-fighting training and thirty units, which were in the best technical conditions, were sold to Israel. 

Sources:
1st AJ Press - Monografie Lotnicze 40 - Supermarine Spitfire part 3 (translated)
2nd https://it.wikipedia.org/wiki/51º_Stormo (translated)
3rd https://it.wikipedia.org/wiki/5º_Stormo (translated)
4th https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Supermarine_Spitfire_operators#Italy

Caproni Ca.310, part three, domestic users

 

The Caproni Ca.310 'Libeccio' (South-Western wind in Italian) was a low-wing monoplane reconnaissance-bomber. Its design was basically a developed version of the previous Ca.309 with retractable landing gear and better engines. The fuselage was of welded steel tube construction, covered with light alloys fabrics and panels, with the empennage and tail unit being made out of wood with plywood skin on its fixed portions and fabric covering on control surfaces.

Above the fuselage, mounted in line with the trailing edges, was a manually operated dorsal turret equipped with a single 7,7mm Breda-SAFAT machine gun. 

Most of the Libeccios were meant to be exported but, as most orders were either cancelled and many of the delivered aircraft were returned to Italy, the Regia Aeronautica (Royal Italian Air Force) received most of the produced ones, 193 of a total of 312 exemplars (though, according to other sources, the total number of manufactured Libeccios was circa 250. Regia Aeronautica did not equip entire units with the Libeccio, but assigned one aircraft per squadron for auxiliary duties. In total, the Regia Aeronautica operated 193 Ca.310 and Ca.310bis. They were used as squadron hacks, training aircraft and light passenger and cargo airplanes, mainly in the North African Theatre.

The only unit that was almost fully equipped with the Libeccio was the 12º Gruppo/50º Stormo Assalto (12th Squadron/50th Assault Wing) which received the ex-Hungarian machines as an interim replacement for the Breda Ba.65 in 1940. In this squadron, together with other types, they served until 1941 when they were replaced by the ground attack variant of the Fiat Cr.42. 

There was also an Idro (Italian word for "Hydro") version, equipped with floaters. This was intended to be used for naval reconnaissance purposes and had reduced bow glazing and no weapons. In August 1940 when the Italian Regia Marina (Royal Italian Navy) was looking for a replacement for the IMAM Ro.43 observation biplane, Caproni presented the Ca.310 Idro. There was a single prototype of this variant, which was converted later into the Ca.316. It seems that the Kingdom of Yugoslavia showed interest on this variant, after a demonstration flight was made at hydroplane station in Divulje, as they ordered six Ca.310bis Idro machines to serve with the Royal Yugoslav Navy in February 1939. These aircraft were intended to perform reconnaissance and target towing duties and their delivery deadline was 30th June 1941. However, by April 1941, when Yugoslavia was invaded by the Axis, only two Piaggio engines had been delivered. We drawn a hypothetical version of this aircraft serving with Yugoslavia. The Italian one should be regarded as speculative.

After the Italian Armistice in September 1943, some machines served with the Italian Co-Belligerent Air Force which, after the end of the war, were kept on active service with the Aeronautica Militare (Post-War Italian Air Force) until 1948. 

Sources:

1. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caproni_Ca.310

2. https://www.britmodeller.com/forums/index.php?/topic/235096763-caproni-ca310/

3. https://www.valka.cz/topic/view/16154/Caproni-Ca-310-Libeccio

4. https://comandosupremo.com/caproni-ca-310/

Martin Baltimore, part four

The Martin Baltimore Mk.V saw service with many foreign countries. That way, the Baltimore equipped a wing from the Italian Co-Belligerent Air Force, the so-called Stormo Baltimore. They used them for around six-months and mainly operated over Greece and Yugoslavia during 1944-1945 provinding supplies for the partisans operating there.
It also served with the Free France's Air Force as, together with Douglas A-24 Dauntless, it equipped one of their squadrons, the GB I/17 "Picardie" which was based in Syria from 1943 to 1945.
It played a key role when serving with the Royal Hellenic Air Force when, from early 1943, the 13th Light Bomber Squadron received the Baltimore which employed them in various types of missions. In May 1944 they were rebased to southern Italy where, as part of the allied Balkan Air Force, they performed operations in the Balkans, in Yugoslavia and Albania mainly. In November 1944 the axis troops began to retreat from Greece and the squadron was transferred to Hassani Airfield, in Athens, where they took part in operations against the remaining axis forces mainly in Crete and the Aegean isles. Later they took part in the Greek Civil War for a brief period as they were retired in April 1946.
It saw also service with the Turkish Air Force as 72 of them were sold to the neutral Turkey in August 1944 in order to form and equip their first bomber regiment.

Sources:
1. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Martin_Baltimore
2. AJ Press - Mongrafie Lotnicze 97 - Martin Baltimore (translated)
3. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/13th_Light_Bomber_Squadron
4. http://www.americancombatplanes.com/a23_1.html

Macchi C.205 Veltro - Italian Co-Belligerent Users

After the armistice of 8th September, there were just 50 Veltros in the south, plus other six of them flying from the centre of Italy to the south. All those 56 of them would be the backbone of the early Italian Co-Belligerent Air Force serving mainly in the 51º Stormo (51st Air Regiment).
Some of them were originally unfinished Macchi C.202 that were finished as Veltros with the available engines at the factories.
Approximately 20 of them were converted following this technique, however, it's not clear if all of them received the 20mm cannons in the wings.
During 1944 eighteen Veltros of the Serie III replaced their cowling machine guns with an additional fuel tank and received the name of Macchi C.205S.

Sources:
1. https://it.wikipedia.org/wiki/Macchi_M.C.205
2. Salamander Books - The Complete Book of Fighters

Macchi C.202 - Co-Belligerent users

On 3rd September 1943, the armistice of Cassibile was signed and Italy was divided in two sides, the pro-German fascist ones, in the Italian Social Republic and the pro-Allied one in the so called "Regno del Sud" (Southern Kingdom) also known as Co-Belligerents.
The Co-Belligerents had their own air force too which eventually flew allied airplanes too, like the Bell P-39 Airacobra or the Supermarine Spitfire, among others.
The Macchi C.202 also served with the Co-Belligerent Air Force and some others were converted into the better C.205 by fitting its engine into the C.202 fuselage.
Their main operation base was at Lecce, in the Italian region of Puglia with Brindisi, also in Puglia, as a secondary one. They served with the 9th, 10th and 21st Gruppi (meaning literally groups, but it's the closest equivalence to a Squadron) in September 1943 and, by the summer 1944 they were still active in the 9th, 10th, 12th, 21st and 155th Gruppi serving together with the improved Macchi C.205.
When the war ended, those that were still in flying conditions and that weren't converted into C.205s to be sold abroad, were used as advanced trainers by the newly created Aeronautica Militare until 1948 in the Lecce Flying School.

Sources:
1. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Macchi_C.202
2. Salamander Books - The Complete Book of FIghters

Macchi C.200 - Italian Co-belligerent users

When Italy signed the armistice, in September 1943, the country was splitted in two, the followers of Mussolini, and the co-belligerent ones, that sided with the Allies.
In that context, both sides reorganized their units creating new armies, air forces and even navies. In the case of the co-belligerents, those were the grounds of the actual Italian army.
As the Macchi C.200 was greatly outdated by 1943 its use was limited. It was only used by the 8º Gruppo Autonomo Caccia Terrestre (8th Autonomous Land Fighter Squadron), which was based in Leverano, at the very southern part of Italian peninsula. It was also employed by 371ª Squadriglia Autonoma Caccia Terrestre (371th Autonomous Land Fighter Flight) that was also based in Leverano.
However, as those units were re-organized and received better airplanes, the Macchi C.200 were relegated to the training roles, where some of them, 23 more exactly, were used in the inmediate postwar period.

Sources:
1. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Macchi_C.200
2. https://it.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aeronautica_Cobelligerante_Italiana (translated)