|
Franco Lucchini
Franco Lucchini, MOVM, (24 December 1914 – 5 July 1943) was an Italian World War II fighter pilot in the Aviazione Legionaria and in the Regia Aeronautica. During World War II he achieved 21 (22, according to other sources) individual air victories, plus 52 shared, to add to the five kills in Spain, during the Civil War.Spick 1999, p. 106. He was born in Rome, the son of a railway official. When he was sixteen, he got a glider pilot's license. In 1935, he enrolled in Regia Aeronautica as a Reserve Officer, with the rank of ''Sottotenente Pilota di Complemento''. In July 1936 he gained his military flight license at Foggia flying school. He was then commissioned (''in Servizio Permanente Effettivo'') on 13 August 1936 and in the same month was assigned to the 91a ''Squadriglia'', 10° ''Gruppo'', 4° ''Stormo'' C.T. in Gorizia. Spain Lucchini first saw action in the Spanish Civil War in 1937, with the 23° ''Gruppo CT''. During the conflict, flying a Fiat CR.32, he claimed ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Rome
, established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus (legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption = The territory of the ''comune'' (''Roma Capitale'', in red) inside the Metropolitan City of Rome (''Città Metropolitana di Roma'', in yellow). The white spot in the centre is Vatican City. , pushpin_map = Italy#Europe , pushpin_map_caption = Location within Italy##Location within Europe , pushpin_relief = yes , coordinates = , coor_pinpoint = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Italy , subdivision_type2 = Region , subdivision_name2 = Lazio , subdivision_type3 = Metropolitan city , subdivision_name3 = Rome Capital , government_footnotes= , government_type = Strong Mayor–Council , leader_title2 = Legislature , leader_name2 = Capitoline Assemb ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Foggia
Foggia (, , ; nap, label= Foggiano, Fògge ) is a city and former ''comune'' of Apulia, in Southern Italy, capital of the province of Foggia. In 2013, its population was 153,143. Foggia is the main city of a plain called Tavoliere, also known as the "granary of Italy". History The name "''Foggia''" (originally ''Focis'') probably derives from Latin "''fovea''", meaning "''pit''", referring to the pits where wheat was stored. The name's etymology remains uncertain however, as it could as well stem from "''Phocaea''", or possibly probably from the Medieval Greek word for "''fire''", which is "''fotia''", as according to legend the original settlers of the 11th century AD were peasants, allegedly after having iraculouslydiscovered there a panel portraying the Madonna Nicopeia, on which three flames burnt. The area had been settled since Neolithic times, and later on a Daunian settlement known as Arpi (in Greek ''Argos Hippium'' or ''Ἀργόριππα'') existed nearby, clos ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Alexandria
Alexandria ( or ; ar, ٱلْإِسْكَنْدَرِيَّةُ ; grc-gre, Αλεξάνδρεια, Alexándria) is the second largest city in Egypt, and the largest city on the Mediterranean coast. Founded in by Alexander the Great, Alexandria grew rapidly and became a major centre of Hellenic civilisation, eventually replacing Memphis, in present-day Greater Cairo, as Egypt's capital. During the Hellenistic period, it was home to the Lighthouse of Alexandria, which ranked among the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World, as well as the storied Library of Alexandria. Today, the library is reincarnated in the disc-shaped, ultramodern Bibliotheca Alexandrina. Its 15th-century seafront Qaitbay Citadel is now a museum. Called the "Bride of the Mediterranean" by locals, Alexandria is a popular tourist destination and an important industrial centre due to its natural gas and oil pipelines from Suez. The city extends about along the northern coast of Egypt, and is the largest city on t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bardia
Bardia, also El Burdi or Barydiyah ( ar, البردية, lit=, translit=al-Bardiyya or ) is a Mediterranean seaport in the Butnan District of eastern Libya, located near the border with Egypt. It is also occasionally called ''Bórdi Slemán''. History In Roman times the town was known as Petras Maior. During World War I, German U-boats made several landings in the port of Bardia in support of the Senussi order during the Senussi Campaign. During World War II, it was the site of a major Italian fortification, invested by the XXIII Corps under the command of General Annibale Bergonzoli. On 21 June 1940, the town was bombarded by the 7th Cruiser Squadron of the Mediterranean Fleet. The bombardment force consisted of the , British cruisers and , the Australian cruiser , and the destroyers HMS '' Dainty'', ''Decoy'', '' Hasty'', and . The bombardment caused minimal damage. The town was taken during Operation Compass by Commonwealth forces consisting mainly of the Australian 6 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Short Sunderland
The Short S.25 Sunderland is a British flying boat patrol bomber, developed and constructed by Short Brothers for the Royal Air Force (RAF). The aircraft took its service name from the town (latterly, city) and port of Sunderland in North East England. Developed in parallel with the civilian Short Empire, S.23 ''Empire'' flying boat, the flagship of Imperial Airways, the Sunderland was developed specifically to conform to the requirements of British Air Ministry List of Air Ministry specifications#1930.E2.80.931939, Specification R.2/33 for a long-range patrol/reconnaissance flying boat to serve with the Royal Air Force (RAF). As designed, it served as a successor to the earlier Short Sarafand flying boat. Sharing several similarities with the S.23, it featured a more advanced aerodynamic hull and was outfitted with various offensive and defensive armaments, including machine gun Gun turret#Aircraft, turrets, bombs, Parachute mine, aerial mines, and depth charges. The Sunderland ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Gloster Gladiator
The Gloster Gladiator is a British biplane fighter. It was used by the Royal Air Force (RAF) and the Fleet Air Arm (FAA) (as the Sea Gladiator variant) and was exported to a number of other air forces during the late 1930s. Developed privately as the Gloster SS.37, it was the RAF's last biplane fighter aircraft, and was rendered obsolete by newer monoplane designs even as it was being introduced. Though often pitted against more formidable foes during the early days of the Second World War, it acquitted itself reasonably well in combat. The Gladiator saw action in almost all theatres during the Second World War, with a large number of air forces, some of them on the Axis side. The RAF used it in France, Norway, Greece, the defence of Malta, the Middle East, and the brief Anglo-Iraqi War (during which the Royal Iraqi Air Force was similarly equipped). Other countries deploying the Gladiator included China against Japan, beginning in 1938; Finland (along with Swedish voluntee ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Fiat C
Fiat Automobiles S.p.A. (, , ; originally FIAT, it, Fabbrica Italiana Automobili di Torino, lit=Italian Automobiles Factory of Turin) is an Italian automobile manufacturer, formerly part of Fiat Chrysler Automobiles, and since 2021 a subsidiary of Stellantis through its Italian division Stellantis Italy. Fiat Automobiles was formed in January 2007 when Fiat S.p.A. reorganized its automobile business, and traces its history back to 1899 when the first Fiat automobile, the Fiat 4 HP, was produced. Fiat Automobiles is the largest automobile manufacturer in Italy. During its more than century-long history, it remained the largest automobile manufacturer in Europe and the third in the world after General Motors and Ford for over 20 years, until the car industry crisis in the late 1980s. In 2013, Fiat S.p.A. was the second largest European automaker by volumes produced and the seventh in the world, while FCA was the world's eighth-largest automaker. In 1970, Fiat Automobiles employ ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tupolev SB
The Tupolev ANT-40, also known by its service name Tupolev SB (russian: Скоростной бомбардировщик – ''Skorostnoi Bombardirovschik'' – high speed bomber) and development co-name TsAGI-40, was a high speed twin-engined three-seat monoplane bomber, first flown in 1934. The Tupolev design was advanced but lacked refinement, much to the dismay of crews, maintenance personnel, and Stalin, who pointed out that "there are no trivialities in aviation". Numerically the most important bomber in the world in the late 1930s, the SB was the first modern stressed skin aircraft produced in quantity in the Soviet Union and probably the most formidable bomber of the mid-1930s. It was produced in the Soviet Union and was also built under license in Czechoslovakia. Many versions saw extensive action in Spain, the Republic of China, Mongolia, Finland and at the beginning of World War II against Germany in 1941. It was also used in various duties in civil variants, as tra ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Messerschmitt Bf 109
The Messerschmitt Bf 109 is a German World War II fighter aircraft that was, along with the Focke-Wulf Fw 190, the backbone of the Luftwaffe's fighter force. The Bf 109 first saw operational service in 1937 during the Spanish Civil War and was still in service at the end of World War II in 1945. It was one of the most advanced fighters when it first appeared, with an all-metal monocoque construction, a closed canopy, and retractable landing gear. It was powered by a liquid-cooled, inverted-V12 aero engine. It was called the Me 109 by Allied aircrew and some German aces, even though this was not the official German designation. It was designed by Willy Messerschmitt and Robert Lusser who worked at Bayerische Flugzeugwerke during the early to mid-1930s. It was conceived as an interceptor, although later models were developed to fulfill multiple tasks, serving as bomber escort, fighter-bomber, day-, night-, all-weather fighter, ground-attack aircraft, and reconnaissance ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Polikarpov I-15
The Polikarpov I-15 (russian: И-15) was a Soviet biplane fighter aircraft of the 1930s. Nicknamed ''Chaika'' (''russian: Чайка'', "Seagull") because of its gulled upper wings,Gunston 1995, p. 299.Green and Swanborough 1979, p. 10. it was operated in large numbers by the Soviet Air Force, and together with the Polikarpov I-16 monoplane, was one of the standard fighters of the Spanish Republicans during the Spanish Civil War, where it was called Chato (snub-nose). Design and development The design for the 14th fighter for the VVS, the I-14, started as an advanced (for the era) monoplane under the direction of Andrei Tupolev. He grew concerned that the design would not mature, and ordered two backup biplane designs as the I-14A and B just to be safe. Polikarpov had just been released from prison in August 1932, and was handed the I-14A project. When both the I-14 and I-14A were ordered into production, Polikarpov's design, a development of the I-5 fighter became the famous ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Polikarpov I-16
The Polikarpov I-16 (russian: Поликарпов И-16) is a Soviet single-engine single-seat fighter aircraft of revolutionary design; it was the world's first low-wing cantilever monoplane fighter with retractable landing gear to attain operational status and as such "introduced a new vogue in fighter design".Green, William. "Polikarpov's Little Hawk". ''Flying Review'', November 1969. The I-16 was introduced in the mid-1930s and formed the backbone of the Soviet Air Force at the beginning of World War II. The diminutive fighter, nicknamed "''Ishak''" or "''Ishachok''" ("donkey" or "burro") by Soviet pilots, figured prominently in the Second Sino-Japanese War,Liss 1966, p. 10. the Battle of Khalkhin Gol, Winter War and the Spanish Civil War – where it was called the (" rat") by the Nationalists or ("fly") by the Republicans. The Finns called the aircraft as "( flying squirrel)". Design and development While working on the Polikarpov I-15 biplane, Nikolai ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Polikarpov R-Z
The Polikarpov R-Z was a Soviet Union, Soviet reconnaissance bomber aircraft of the 1930s. It was a revised version of the Polikarpov R-5 which was built in large numbers between 1935 and 1937. It was used in combat during the Spanish Civil War as well as the Winter War and Battle of Khalkhin Gol. Development and design The R-Z or R-Zet was developed at the aircraft factory Dux Factory, GAZ No 1 (State Aircraft Factory No 1) at Moscow as a development of, and a replacement for the Polikarpov R-5, the standard light reconnaissance bomber of the Soviet Air Force. Based on the R-5SSS, the most advanced variant of the R-5, the R-Z had a new, deeper, monocoque fuselage, with a sliding canopy for the pilot and fixed glazed fairing for the observer. The 544 kW (730 hp) Mikulin M-17, M-17F engine (a licensed built copy of the BMW VI) was replaced with the 611 kW (820 hp) Mikulin AM-34, M-34 engine. The R-Z first flew in January 1935 Gunston, 1995, p. unk. and was acce ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
