The CR.42 Falco (Falcon) was the last of the great biplane
fighters entering flight testing in late May 1938. It was a successor of CR.32
that had claimed great success in the Spanish skies during the civil war.
The CR.42 was manufactured in
larger numbers than any other Italian fighter,
remaining in production as late as 1943.
Extremely light on the controls, universally
viewed as a delight to fly, superbly agile and
innately robust, the CR.42 synthesised a
decade-and-a-half of continuos fighter
development
Regia Aeronautica used them
on all fronts (e.g. North Africa, Mediterranean,
Battle of Britain and East Africa). The
Luftwaffe used more than 100, as night attack
aircraft in relatively quiet theatres and as
fighter-trainers.
It was remarkably fast for a
biplane with a top speed of 270 mph at 12,400 ft
and a marginal stability, the hallmark of a good
fighter. The CR.42 was a superb biplane that
gave an outstanding performance for its type,
but as a fighter it was under-gunned. Though
highly manoeuvrable, like all aircraft with a
lot of fabric covering it was very vulnerable to
enemy fire.
