RN Aquila
The Aquila was a carrier of the Royal Navy during World War II, achieved by reusing and modifying the hull of the liner Rome. It was the first Italian aircraft carrier with a flight deck to be built, but never came into active service.
Despite the fascist government had always opposed the construction of aircraft carriers, in the aftermath of Gavdos and Matapan (where the Italian navy lost at a stroke, three heavy cruisers) which made clear the significant contribution that a coordinated Air Force could use give, it was decided to urgently provide the Navy with an aircraft carrier.
Among the possible candidates for processing in the trans-Atlantic aircraft carrier was chosen Rome, as despite being a relatively new ship (he had 15 years of age) need of renovation works and installation of a new engine plant would then be transferred relatively easily from the shipping company.
The transformation of transatlantic Rome "in aircraft carrier was ordered in July 1941.
The original plan amendment, developed by General Gustavo Bozzoni Naval Engineers, was not followed because of a major limitation was the fact that operating the planes, once launched, would not be recovered, given the difficulty of landing maneuver and the long training required for pilots to maintain it. The realization
final saw the passive protection achieved by 18 watertight bulkheads, of which 11 twin, double bottoms controcarene external and filled with concrete up to the waterline. The application of controcarene would allow the ship is to reach high speeds and to improve protection against underwater torpedoes. The counter also saw a passive armor to fuel depots and ammunition, while filling controcarene thick reinforced concrete, which is also in the project and Bozzoni who gave evidence to the excellent performance of the outbreak in the tank, requiring little steel for its implementation with respect to a classical armor. The hull, including controcarene, was lengthened by about 5 meters.
The engine was built using equipment originally intended for two light cruisers Capitani Romani class , became available after the cancellation of the planned construction of four of the twelve, with eight boilers and four turbines. The power of each of the groups boiler / turbine was also reduced from 50,000 to 37,500 hp, for a total of 150,000 hp, allowing the ship to reach a maximum speed of 30 knots.
The flight deck, from bow to stern continuous and sustained by specific structures, it had a massive island with decks on the starboard side, about amidships, with the dashboard and a number of pitches for anti-aircraft weapons. On either side of the hull were Similar plots for the equipment antisilurante.
L 'Aquila was equipped with two catapults Demag compressed air produced in Germany and two trucks. The hangar was divided into four sections by partitions fire. He could take on 51 fighter aircraft type Reggiane Re.2001 including 10 on the flight deck, hangar and the remaining 26 suspended from the sky the same hangar (ingenious device invented to increase the carrying capacity of the vessel). It was also planned to build a version of Re.2001 to folding wings that could have led to 66 fighters the ability to boarding.
armament, intended primarily for air defense, was made up of individual guns (8 pieces 135/45 mm and twelve from 65/44 mm) installed in the bow, stern and on shelves on either side of the flight decks of 22 plants and six times 20/65mm guns installed on the sides of the flight deck and in front of and behind the island.
Although it was damaged in November 1942 while he was still under construction, at the time of the armistice of 8 September 1943, the ship had already completed 90%, almost ready for testing and sea trials and had already made the first static test of the engine, but did not have time to enter active service. On September 9, was sabotaged and abandoned by the crew, and fell to the Germans took possession for the authorities of the Italian Social Republic, which tried completion, without success, due to continuous Allied bombings, like the one in the port of Genoa in June 16, 1944 when the ship was severely damaged. The Germans began partially dismantled to recycle iron and finally April 19, 1945 the ship was attacked by the media onslaught of Italian divers Mariassalto part of the Italian co-belligerent forces of the Kingdom of the South, to prevent the Germans or use the big boat to sink and block the entrance to the port of Genoa. At the end of the war was found still afloat, semi-submerged April 24, 1945 and placed in the middle of the harbor in a final attempt to block the passage between the basin of the lighthouse and the western ports. Towed by the British to Bettolo dropped, there remained a few years until it was towed to La Spezia in 1949, which was demolished in 1952.
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RN Hawk
In 1936 developed a project to turn the auxiliary port in the ship passenger Augustus of 30,418 tons. The idea was abandoned and then resumed in 1942.
L ' Augustus had been until 1936, the largest ship in the world. At the time, no ship had a capacity of 28,000 hp that the Augustus, reached thanks to the four MAN Diesel Savoy 2-stroke double-acting.
Renamed Falco "and then " Hawk", the passenger ship Augustus should undergo major changes with the total demolition of the superstructure, installation of controcarene and the construction of the flight deck. From the transformation of
notonave " Augustus " should have been a result escort carriers. The aircraft carrier was to be equipped with a single hangar with 2 lifts and closed above with a flight deck that finished 45 meters ahead of the bow. The budget airline would have been hunting for 34 or more 9 16 fighter bombers / torpedo.
The engine would have been the original, able to push the drive at a speed of 20 knots, while the hull was with a flight deck without insulation.
The conversion work began in September 1942 Ansaldo shipyards in Genoa. The hull
armistice will be captured by the Germans and sunk to block access to the port of Genoa.
The wreckage will be recovered after the war and later demolished in 1951.
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The Italian aircraft carrier from I to World War II
The experience of World War I, however, was decisive in convincing the higher ranks of the Royal Navy of the utility and convenience to enter a or more carriers in the fleet composition. This approach, which would drag on until the second World War II, influenced a number of factors: the experience
Italian war, in terms of shipbuilding, was limited primarily to the Adriatic Sea, with its very small distances, did not hear that much about the need for the type of naval aircraft carriers;
the constitution, in 1922, the Royal Air Force as a weapon of self-made by the fascist regime, certainly did not help to address the problem peacefully, because over time it developed a heated rivalry between the two arms that went heavily to influence the discourse Aviation ship, which would have been expected for effective and extensive cooperation;
the substantial opposition, manifested by the regime, towards the construction of aircraft carrier unit (despite the flourishing of studies and projects that we will see later) on the one hand due to the sympathy expressed by the scheme to aviation, weapon "fascist" for excellence, to the detriment of the navy, on the other to a consideration of theoretical, namely, that the geography of Italy made it a sort of "natural gate" stretched to the middle of the Mediterranean, which made unnecessary the construction of naval units of the type carrier. This last point deserves further study
because, under certain conditions, could also be accepted. The geographical position of the Italian peninsula is actually quite central in the Mediterranean and the to be able to monitor this sea and, if necessary, cut it in half. This is because the airports of Sardinia and Sicily easily control the surrounding areas of the Western Mediterranean and its access to the Strait of Sicily, which is the bottleneck which divides the Mediterranean, the same argument can be made with regard to the eastern part Basin to the airports of Puglia and even in Sicily. If one considers the presence of the Italian colony in the Dodecanese, which contributed heavily to the control and the domination of the Aegean Sea, one can see that this statement was anything that span air, at least from the geographical point of view.
The speech of course, done so, it is a speech he made only half is to be able to practice this statement was necessary that she met a number of prerequisites that, as we shall see, was far from that at the outbreak of the conflict. First it was necessary to have technical characteristics necessary for aircraft operations on the sea: it is long reconnaissance missions, patrolling, anti-submarine hunt, in addition to "conventional" air and naval attack. That meant essentially the execution of bombers, torpedo bombers, long range reconnaissance aircraft, seaplanes with adequate autonomy and weapons (especially defensively, but not only), fighter aircraft able to carry out long missions Stock of the sea. Basically it was to achieve a number of airplanes which are a key feature stands out on the other: the radius of action that should be as wide as possible, to broaden the area to control. None of this was done, and we confined ourselves to adapt to the use of the sea the best aircraft available at the time (which does not mean that these adjustments were not satisfactory, see MS-79 used as a torpedo bomber, but still of adjustments it was).
Another prerequisite was the establishment of a joint command between the Navy and Air Force that would allow, through the definition of operational procedures and common communications systems, a rapid flow of information and orders, such that it does not pass, for example, too much time (and a few hours may already be too long in certain situations) between a request sent by the commander of air support at sea and arrive at the place of air units sent help. This would allow the air to some extent data on the distance the fleet from air bases and the speed of the aircraft themselves, to act promptly and effectively whenever there was a request from the fleet. Although this issue was completely overlooked anything that could fly became the de facto exclusive jurisdiction of the Royal Air Force, with the exception of idroricognitori IMAM Ro-43 aboard battleships and cruisers (the whose crew was still mixed, as it was by the Air Force pilot and observer of the Navy): Of course these small aircraft, single-engine two-seater seaplane, slow, almost helpless and inadequate battery life with a reconnaissance-type "strategic" could not completely replaced by well-trained and coordinated naval aviation with the fleet, much less the same fleet in the presence of one or more carriers. The consequences would be seen as early as the Battle of Calabria where the hundreds of bombers sent to the scene of the battle came in very late and some of them even attacked Italian ships (error, however, justified by the intense barrage anti-aircraft developed by the ships, which however did not have any effect).
Finally none of this was to consist of some air squadron located here and it was to be a strong team consists of air, presumably with a few hundred units of various types, so that they can be distributed for use on the various theaters of war with forces however, appropriate to a mass use.
Ultimately, none of this was done: the Navy had to make do without aircraft carriers and air without a team trained at his disposal. We saw it during the entire war, the occasions in which coordination between naval and air forces worked decently well could be counted on the fingers of one hand. But back to the carrier.
Despite the clear opposition of the regime to build aircraft carriers, the Navy was generous of studies and projects for the entire period before the conflict, in particular, were produced three that deserve a nod for the completeness of the study: these projects were prepared in 1925 (Rota project) in 1928 and 1932, it reiterated, with minor variations, in 1936.
In fact already in 1921 Lieutenant G. Fioravanzo had submitted the draft of a hybrid drive, which he called "anti-aircraft cruiser" and that was born from the idea of \u200b\u200bbringing together on one platform a powerful naval anti-aircraft gun battery and a squadron of fighter planes. The ship, of roughly similar size Hermes to those of English, was to displace 11,000 tons, spinning at 30 knots and be armed with 18 guns, 102 (or 16 to 120), the air group on board was to consist of sixteen fighters.
The first project of 1925, provides for a "hybrid" of about 12,500 tons, halfway between a cruiser and an aircraft carrier: in fact the flight deck, while full-width did not extend the entire length the ship, but was interrupted before the ends, to allow the installation to the fore and aft ends of two towers quadruple 203 mm. that would have equipped the vessel with an effective anti-ship weapons, complete with six guns, 100, arranged on shelves lateral to the flight deck, and two six-fold from 40 plants, located in the bow and stern. The stern had complied with a chute to allow the launching and recovery of the reconnaissance seaplanes of the vessel was equipped. In the middle of the flight deck of the tower were the direction of the shot, three funnels, and the tree, but these were retractable within the flight deck to completely vacate the space of takeoff and landing aircraft on board. A funnel retracted exhaust fumes would come through a duct side. In 1928 the project was updated by providing a unit of about 15,000 tons (which would allow him to make the most of the 60,000 ton aircraft carrier awarded to Italy under the Treaty of Washington), with speed and range roughly equivalent to those of larger units (battleships and cruisers) of the time, armament consists of 152 twin towers six and eight, still coupled, 100 for air defense. For protection, the horizontal should have been equal to that of Trento class cruisers , while for the vertical plates provided reinforced at vital points of the vessel (engines, ammunition depots and petrol). It was anticipated boarding aircraft about 40: 18 fighters, 12 reconnaissance and 6 / 12 attack planes. But as a document of the recalls, "... the need for this type (of ship, note) has not yet been recognized by HE the Minister ... ".
The project of 1932 provided for a drive instead of a more conventional, tons of 15/16.000, with continuous flight deck" island "moved to the starboard bow, rigging best suited to a aircraft carriers, and consists of four guns and 7 152 from 102, and a group of 40/45 on board aircraft. The project of 1936 represented a further refinement of the previous year. totaled around 15,000 tons displacement, the equipment consisted of two Trinity from 152 towers placed in front of and behind the island, and a large number of anti-aircraft guns of 90, all arranged in single turrets along the flight deck. The planes were in number 42: 24 fighters and 18 attack / reconnaissance served by two or three catapults launch. Was expected in light of 60 mm vertical protection at vital parts of the mid-ship and, if possible, even on the bow and did not include any horizontal protection, impossible to achieve with so narrow limits of displacement. He was instead provided a vast system of underwater protection, consisting of a set of bulkheads spaced three meters apart and enclosing in them a sort of second boat which was to remain free from damage. The machinery developed the high power of 160,000 horses for a top speed of 38 (!) Knots, which was considered necessary to give the ship to operate efficiently; However, it was noted by many that if you were "satisfied" only 32 knots maximum speed, it could have almost halved the power of the engine, with significant advantages over its term, for autonomy, and space available for aeronautical structures: sheds, garages, stores of ammunition and fuel, with positive influences operational autonomy of the ship. Moreover, in this case could have been from using a diesel engine system with the well-known advantages in terms of consumption, reliability and durability. However, despite the flourishing of projects and favorable opinions of leading personalities, and not the Navy, none of these projects could materialize and the Navy came to 10 June 1940 no aircraft carriers, and (almost) without naval aviation.
In this situation, all nodes were immediately laid on the table and already during the battle of Punta Stilo you could see what it meant having to request air support of ground-based units that had been defined without a shred of common command and control procedure. If this was not enough, the battle of Cape Matapan Gaudi and finally took it upon himself to clear the field from any possible doubt on the usefulness of an aircraft carrier at sea with the team battle.
The destruction of three heavy cruisers and their escorts from the Mediterranean Fleet was made possible by the presence British units on the radar (and on this much could be said) and thanks to the timely and widespread recognition that British Admiral Cunningham always kept informed about the position and situation of the Italian fleet. The presence of the aircraft carrier Formidable, also made it possible to launch the attack of torpedo planes (on the evening of March 28) that froze the Pula and that many adverse consequences would result. After that day
unfortunate there was not any hesitation, the Navy had to have the doors! In July, he was then ordered to arrange for conversion to aircraft carrier (a carrier's team) of the liner Roma, chosen among the possible candidates by virtue of a series of considerations that make it more suitable to conversion to other vessels. First it was a very old ship (he was about fifteen years) but still need work in order to remain competitive in the industry and therefore the shipping company would not have had a hard time selling it for processing. Moreover, many of its internal structures were to be renovated, so I might as well do it in order to transform, and finally his motor apparatus was no longer adequate to also needing major work. On the other hand, the craft was large and robust and would enable them to obtain all necessary local operativity of a modern aircraft carrier.
The conversion work began immediately. The hull was modified in the submerged part, by the application of controcarene, to minimize the bow wave and allow for better water flow around the hull, was also expanded by about 5 meters (including controcarene). The internal arrangements were fully revised in order to obtain the first hangar, which holds about 30/40 aircraft, factories and all places of service necessary for the operation of aircraft on board.
The engine (originally with four Parsons turbines, which allowed for a maximum speed of 21.5 knots) was completely replaced: in its place were four groups turboriduttori board originally designed for the light cruisers of the class "Capitani Romani," which were made available after the cancellation of four of the twelve cruisers originally planned. Each of these groups had a maximum output of over 50,000 horses for use on 'Eagle were limited to 37,500 and were fitted with new propellers suitable for a larger ship but slower.
The superstructure of the ship consisted of a dashboard to more bridges post about amidships on the starboard side, followed by a large funnel in which were conveyed to the discharge of the boilers. The flight deck was continuous from bow to stern and was not obviously part of the hull, but was supported by special structures. On the sides of the bridge were several shelves claimed is the equipment of the ship that some other equipment.
The armament was essentially aimed at air defense and consisted of eight guns and twelve from 135/45 to 65/64, in individual plants placed on shelves on either side of the flight deck, fore and aft. There were also 132 20/65 machine gun barrels in twenty-two to six plants, distributed on the sides of the flight deck and in front of and behind the island. As you can see a respectable armament and certainly adequate.
the squadron was to consist of 51 aircraft, and the type chosen (it was decided not to develop aircraft suitable for use on board for problems related to development time) was the hunt Reggiane Re-2001. It was a single-engined fighter cars entered service in 1941, powered by a Daimler Benz engine from HP 1175 (manufactured under license from Alfa Romeo) and capable of a maximum speed of 540 km / h. Armament consisted of four machine guns, two 12.7 and two from 7.7, in addition there was a ventral hook for attaching a bomb (with a view to use as fighter). The boat had been essentially modified version in the cart, strengthened in view of the landing, and in anticipation of a shutdown hook later. The arrangement of 51 planes was a classic example of Italian ingenuity: as the capacity of the ship, including aircraft hangar and parked on the flight deck was only 36 aircraft (26 and 10), had "invented" a mechanism by which fifteen other aircraft were literally hanging from the ceiling dell'aviorimessa, bringing the total to 51. It was also provided for the creation of a version with folding wings of the Re-2001, with this model, the ability of the ship would rise to 66 aircraft.
The protection was, of course, the origin of the very limited ' Aquila, and was essentially limited to the vital parts: no flight deck armor, no armored belt, but only light armor at the helm of the local and local of the engine. In addition, some spaces at the controcarene were filled with concrete to increase somewhat protection.
was fate, however, that Italy would end the second world war without doors. In September 1943 'Aquila was almost completely set up and ready to start sea trials, when the armistice was surprised and captured by the Germans at Genoa, was further damaged by Allied bombing June 16, 1944, and then sunk port in a raid by Italian media assault on April 19, 1945. The wreck was later salvaged and scrapped after the war. But
'Aquila would not to be alone. In 1942 it was decided to transform into another aircraft carrier ship, almost twin of Rome, namely the ' Augustus. This However, transformation should be much more limited: Hawk (as it was called the new aircraft carriers) would be an escort carrier, with a structure similar to that of the Allied escort carriers: continuous flight deck, no island, unloading gas side, armament consists of 6 pieces of 4 by 152 and 102 on either side of the flight deck, aircraft aboard a score. The engine would have been the original one, made up of diesel engines can propel the ship at about 18 knots. Work began in November 1942, were stopped by the armistice the following year in a state still very backward: in practice, the ship had been only "shaved" to the level of the bridge mate, but nothing had yet been made of the new structures of the aircraft carrier. Although this realization, therefore, fell through the mist of the armistice of 8 September. To finally have an aircraft carrier, the Italian Navy would have to wait another forty years, with the entry into service in 1985, the crossing aircraft carrier (or light aircraft carrier) Giuseppe Garibaldi.
The history of the Italian aircraft carrier in the Second World War can not end without some further consideration. It has been said by many that the presence of aircraft carriers in the Navy would allow him to fight on equal terms the Royal Navy, that certain events (see Matapan) would have taken a different turn, you could even win the war (!!).
should consider some things. First, the number of these phantom aircraft carriers, considering the cost of these units, the Italian shipbuilding capacity, the size of the likely opponents of the Italian marine (mainly the French who in 1940 had an aircraft carrier in service, Béarn, and two in program), it is reasonable to think that the Italian aircraft carrier could be more than one or two (at most three of optimism). Similarly, it is plausible to suppose that were not the type superportaerei Saratoga or Akagi, but features smaller vessels, as seen by the various projects presented over the years. Having two carriers in service means that, apart from very exceptional periods, it is normally available only while the other will probably be in maintenance or modification, training, or'll be repairing the damage. All this without considering that these ships have become the primary target and Navy English: it is therefore likely that sooner or later one would also have been sunk. These
few carriers what they should do? Accompany the squadron in its (rare) raids in search of enemy ships? Escort the convoys to North Africa, thus ensuring air cover? Do both? Go to hunt for submarines? As you can see a wide range of tasks that, surely, two carriers could not play. If accompanied the team, maybe we would not have Matapan lost three cruisers and two destroyers, we might have destroyed some British convoy in most, but for our convoys would not change much. If they were accompanied and escorted convoys Rommel would have probably received a greater quantity of supplies, but the fate of the campaign in Africa would not have changed much for this, and our fleet, meanwhile, would always be assured by without eyes' embarked aviation. If they had been chasing the submarines would not have done anything of the above and were exposed to the risk of getting some big catfish in the belly.
Ultimately this discussion leads us to conclude that these two, maximum three, aircraft carriers Mussolini that Italy could reasonably afford, they would have certainly changed the course of events in World War II, certainly would have been useful, this does not c 'is no doubt, for better conduct of operations, would probably have avoided some bad episodes (bad for their final outcome, not the value and heroism demonstrated by Italian sailors). But, again, what would really serve to Italy, and perhaps more like an aircraft carrier, naval aviation was strong and organized, with bases located throughout the country and overseas to ensure good coverage of the Mediterranean, and a good coordination with the operations of the squadron. This would allow also to maximize the carriers, allowing for their optimal use.
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The mirage of the aircraft carrier
The aircraft carrier Aquila
Finally, after recognizing the need to acquire aircraft carriers, and especially after the tragedy of Cape Matapan, the High Command realized that the construction of aircraft carriers could not be further delayed, and Mussolini himself ordered its construction. In July 1941 he was then officially ordered the construction of the much-desired carrier.
The project involved the modification of the usual Rome, to which the engines were replaced with those of two light cruisers Capitani Romani class , as already provided for the project Bozzoni. The speed would be so was about 30 knots per unit that would be fully discharged its duties as a team.
The hull was extensively modified by the application of controcarene is to allow the unit to reach high speeds and improve the pe underwater protection against torpedoes. It was installed armor that ranged from 60 to 80 mm to fuel depots and ammunition and were controcarene filled with 600 mm thick reinforced concrete, this one as in the previous project Bozzoni. The unit was
bridge continues with a massive island with decks on the starboard side, with numerous pitches for anti-aircraft weapons. Similar plots were also present on the sides of the hull to withstand even the equipment antisilurante.
Heavy would be the anti-aircraft armament. In addition to eight charges of 135/45, it is not clear whether in the light-aircraft, were present twelve mouths to 65/64 and 20/65 in well-132 machine gun carriages combined.
As for the air board had decided to opt for the hunting Reggiane Re.2001, formerly in charge of the Royal Air Force. It was a monoplane fighter single-engine low-wing, powered by a 1,175 hp Daimler Benz, armed with two machine guns and two 12.7 mm by 7.7 mm, but this was also the night fighter version with a 20 mm cannon, as well as the possibility of bringing a 640 kg bomb in fighter configuration. Touched the top speed of 540 km / h. The Eagle was able to board 51, with an unexpected version of the folding wings, which would have allowed the transport of 66 aircraft. The unit would also have been fitted with steam catapults to help the fledging aircraft.
L 'Aquila , despite efforts, never came into service. Already damaged during the stand, in November 1942, on 8 September 1943 was almost ready for testing and sea trials, 90% complete. On September 9, was sabotaged and abandoned by the crew, and fell into German hands. On June 16, 1944 in the port was bombed by American planes in Genoa, and finally the night of April 19, 1945 was attacked by the media onslaught of the Italian Navy in the South, to prevent the Germans sank the mouth of the harbor. Was found semi-submerged on 24 April 1945, and recovered, was demolished in 1952. The Hawk aircraft carrier
L 'Aquila was not the only unit of its kind made on site in Italy. From the transformation of 'Augustus , Sister ship of Rome, was to stem a flow of stock through changes much simpler than those carried out on the other ship.
motors were the original ones, can push the unit to no more than 20 knots, while the hull was completely shaved, based on the model designed by Gagnotto in 1936, ie without the island. There were at least two catapults and side shelves for the weapons on board. The unit was equipped with twelve guns, 135/45, 65/64 and many from different guns 20/65. The Hawk
would have been able to embark a dozen aircraft.
September 8, the works were still just the beginning, had just been eliminated superstructures. On October 5, 1944 was sunk at the mouth of the port of Genoa as obstruction. Recovered in 1947, was later demolished.
In this way, the adventure of the Italian aircraft carrier was finally over. You will have to wait until 1985, in line with the entry of Garibaldi , to finally see this type of ship in Italy, and yet until 2007 to see the new large aircraft carrier, the Andrea Doria , currently under construction Riva Trigoso.
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