The challenge and history of flight at the Caproni museum
(ANSA) - Trento, May 3 - A show of aircraft marking important milestones in Italian aviation history has opened at the Caproni Aeronautics Museum near Trento. Entitled The Challenge of Flight, the exhibit begins with the pioneering era, as represented by three original, wood-and-canvas aircrafts. These include the Ansaldo A.1, Italy's only domestically produced fighter aircraft of World War I.
Arriving too late to see any real action, it was however used by both sides in the Polish-Soviet War of 1919-1921.
In the post-WWI period, it was used as a trainer aircraft in both military and civilian flight schools.
The one on exhibit at the Caproni Museum is one of two surviving examples in the world, and the only one with the original lattices and silk wings.
It belonged to pilot Natale Palli, who accompanied nationalist Italian poet Gabriele D'Annunzio in his famous 1918 flight over Vienna in which they flew over 1,200 km roundtrip from Padua to Vienna to drop some thousands of propaganda leaflets. Also on display is the Caproni Ca.53.
Conceived for fast bombing runs, this large aircraft was built in a rare triplane layout, instead of the more common biplane.
The prototype, with fuselage and lattice in plywood-coated wood, was completed in 1918, but never made it to test-flight status due to engine problems.
It remains an interesting witness to the evolution of aviation after WWI.
Designed by Gianni Caproni in 1920, the Caproni Ca.60 was a 'flying palace' representing the first attempt worldwide to create a trans-atlantic airliner, years before Howard Hughes made his first efforts in the same direction.
It featured eight engines and three sets of triple wings, and only one example was built.
The Ca.
60 made one short flight on 4 March 1921 over Lake Maggiore, attaining an altitude of only 18 m (60 ft) before crashing and breaking up on impact.
The pilot escaped unscathed. While unsuccessful, the visionary force behind this craft makes it a milestone in aviation history.
Other aircraft on display are the North American Aviation T-6 Texan, a single-engine advanced trainer aircraft for US and British pilots during World War II and into the 1950s, and one of the first helicopters ever designed and produced in Italy: the Libellula II, an early 1960s co-axial twin-rotor helicopter designed by Ettore Manzolini.
The Caproni museum is named after its founder, Italian aviation pioneer Giovanni Battista Caproni (1886-1957), an aeronautical engineer and aircraft designer who also founded the Caproni aircraft-manufacturing company. The show is on view through June 5.
In the post-WWI period, it was used as a trainer aircraft in both military and civilian flight schools.
The one on exhibit at the Caproni Museum is one of two surviving examples in the world, and the only one with the original lattices and silk wings.
It belonged to pilot Natale Palli, who accompanied nationalist Italian poet Gabriele D'Annunzio in his famous 1918 flight over Vienna in which they flew over 1,200 km roundtrip from Padua to Vienna to drop some thousands of propaganda leaflets. Also on display is the Caproni Ca.53.
Conceived for fast bombing runs, this large aircraft was built in a rare triplane layout, instead of the more common biplane.
The prototype, with fuselage and lattice in plywood-coated wood, was completed in 1918, but never made it to test-flight status due to engine problems.
It remains an interesting witness to the evolution of aviation after WWI.
Designed by Gianni Caproni in 1920, the Caproni Ca.60 was a 'flying palace' representing the first attempt worldwide to create a trans-atlantic airliner, years before Howard Hughes made his first efforts in the same direction.
It featured eight engines and three sets of triple wings, and only one example was built.
The Ca.
60 made one short flight on 4 March 1921 over Lake Maggiore, attaining an altitude of only 18 m (60 ft) before crashing and breaking up on impact.
The pilot escaped unscathed. While unsuccessful, the visionary force behind this craft makes it a milestone in aviation history.
Other aircraft on display are the North American Aviation T-6 Texan, a single-engine advanced trainer aircraft for US and British pilots during World War II and into the 1950s, and one of the first helicopters ever designed and produced in Italy: the Libellula II, an early 1960s co-axial twin-rotor helicopter designed by Ettore Manzolini.
The Caproni museum is named after its founder, Italian aviation pioneer Giovanni Battista Caproni (1886-1957), an aeronautical engineer and aircraft designer who also founded the Caproni aircraft-manufacturing company. The show is on view through June 5.