From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Italian racing seaplane
The
Fiat C.29
was an Italian
racing seaplane
designed by
Celestino Rosatelli
and built in the late-1920s by
Fiat Aviazione
especially for the 1929
Schneider Trophy
air race. Unused in the race, of the three aircraft built, two were destroyed in flying accidents while the third is on display in a museum.
[1]
Design and development
[
edit
]
First flown by
Francesco Agello
at
Desenzano del Garda
in early June 1929, this twin-float
monoplane
racer was noted to be laterally unstable. Unusually, the wing structure featured a wooden
spar
but was skinned with
aluminium alloy
sheeting. The aircraft used the
Fiat AS.5
V-12 engine, specifically designed for this aircraft to minimise frontal area. On 12 June 1929, Agello hit the wash of a boat on landing which caused the first prototype, works number
129,
to bounce in the air, stall and dive vertically into the water. Agello was rescued unharmed after being thrown out of the
cockpit
. The second prototype,
130,
was quickly completed, this aircraft having larger
tail surfaces
to correct the stability problems.
On 12 August 1929, whilst demonstrating the aircraft to a British aviation magazine representative, the second prototype was written off after sinking back onto the water on its third attempt at a takeoff, again Agello was relatively unscathed but the aircraft was destroyed, the engine sinking 300 ft (90 m) to the bottom of
Lake Garda
and was never recovered.
[2]
Italo Balbo
ordered a third aircraft to be built,
130bis,
and sent directly to England without being test-flown for the approaching Schneider Trophy competition. The C.29 did appear at
RAF Calshot
but did not fly during the competition, the Italian team placing second, fourth and sixth using
Macchi M.52
and
M.67
racers.
Aircraft on display
[
edit
]
The third and sole remaining C.29 is on display at the
Italian Air Force Museum
.
[3]
Operators
[
edit
]
-
Kingdom of Italy
Specifications (C.29)
[
edit
]
Data from
Eves
[4]
General characteristics
- Crew:
1
- Length:
5.45 m (17 ft 11 in)
- Wingspan:
6.6 m (21 ft 8 in)
- Height:
2.75 m (9 ft 0 in)
- Wing area:
8 m
2
(86 sq ft)
- Max takeoff weight:
1,160 kg (2,557 lb)
- Powerplant:
1 ×
Fiat AS.5
V-12 liquid-cooled piston engine, 750 kW (1,010 hp)
- Propellers:
2-bladed fixed-pitch propeller
Performance
- Maximum speed:
560 km/h (350 mph, 300 kn)
See also
[
edit
]
Aircraft of comparable role, configuration, and era
References
[
edit
]
Wikimedia Commons has media related to
Fiat C.29
.
Notes
[
edit
]
Bibliography
[
edit
]
- Eves, Edward
The Schneider Trophy Story
. Shrewsbury. Airlife Publishing Ltd., 2001.
ISBN
1-84037-257-5
.