- Yes
- No
Description: The CANT Z511 was an Italian all-metal floatplane of gigantic proportion. It’s history started back to’ 1937, when the civil company Ala Littoria asked for a new airline capable of reaching very far destinations like South America without any intermediate stage. The Cantieri dell’ Adriatico Riuniti (CANT) accepted the request and started working on a new aircraft to satisfy the requirement. The legendary engineer Filippo Zappata started to project what would be the biggest floatplane ever made. By 1939, the first prototype was almost ready, with only one missing part: the engines. The first choice was the Alfa Romeo 135 with a max of 1600 hp, but it was affected by reliability problems. The second option was the American-made Wright R2600 Twin Cyclone with the same horsepower and more reliable. But due to the lack of good relations between Italy and the USA, the company was not able to secure the contract. The last coiche and the definitive one was the Piaggio P.XII RC.35. With a less powerful 1500 hp, it was more reliable compared to the Alfa Romeo 135, even if not at the level of the Twin Ciclone. Due to these delays in deciding the engine, the aircraft flew for the first time only in October 1940. During the first flight, the aircraft was piloted by Mario Stoppani. The engineer who designed it,Filippo Zappata, was also on board. But unfortunatly , the aircraft had severe problems with the ailerons, so it had very big problems with the strong amount of wind that was present that day. Thanks to the skilled pilot, the aircraft was able to return safely to the lake where it took off. Zappata started immediately to resolve this problem by replacing the elastic bulleys that caused the problem with rigid rods. The operation required three months. The aircraft continued to do flight tests to prove its performance, and one time it was able to land in the sea with waves reaching 1.82 meters high and a wind speed of 40 knots. The aircraft had no problem landing in those adverse conditions, and It was also able to take off again. Zappata was sure that the aircraft would probably collapse and the floats would be destroyed by the stress, but the aircraft proved to be extremely robust and to have a perfect structural build. The various test on aircraft resulted in success, but at the time, in late 1942, the interest in civilian aircraft was no longer present. Various military variants of the aircraft were projected, with the most notable one being the maritime patrol/bomber version. This version was capable of carrying a total of 4000 kg of bombs, 4x 450 mm torpedoes, or 4x 533 mm torpedoes. This is by far the biggest amount torpedo carried by any aircraft in history. With this amount of torps, it could equal the same capability as a 1920 destroyer. It’s defensive armament was composed of a total of 10x 12.7 mm Breda safat machineguns or 10x 20 mm Scotti cannons (the same as the M42 Contraereo in game). Thanks to this defensive armament it could be one of the most well defended aircraft of the entire war. It was also capable of carrying one MAS torpedo boat or a Caproni CB midget submarine and It was able to carry a total of four man-guided torpedoes (the same that sank the two British battleships in Alexandria). This last configuration was accepted to be used against the American fleet in the port of New York. The plan was to land in the sea outside the range of radar on the American coast and then drop 4 maiale. The plan gained a lot of interest, and it was possible, thanks to the enormous range of the aircraft; however, the aircraft were attacked by allied aircraft in the lake (the aircraft, even if receiving a good quantity of damage, stayed afloat, proving again the incredible and very robust structure of the aircraft). The aircraft were transferred to Vigna di Valle for repair; however, the Armistice of September 8 1943, destroyed every Italian plan and project like this one. The fate of the two prototypes is pretty sad since the first one was destroyed at Vigna di Valle by the Italian workers to prevent it from falling into German hands, while the second one, which was never actually finished (82% of the construction), was demolished by the Germans for the steel.
Why it should be in the game: Since it is the same situation of the BV238 alredy in game this one could be both a premium or a tt one. It will be a perceft addition to Italy since it will be extremly well defended and very well armored and it will also allow to carry a lot of bomb.it can be also used to implement new features: for example the aircraft could carry one MAS or one midget submarine they can be used as a “payload” during a naval battle. The Cant Z511 could land in a point of the battlefield and release the new unit. then the player could take the control of the new unit and switch it with the normal aircraft when it want.
Specifications:
Spoiler
Crew: 6 + 10 (defensive armour crew)
Length: 28.5m (93ft 6in)
Wingspan: 39.86 m (130 ft 9 in)
Height: 11 m (36 ft 1 in)
Wing area: 195 m2 (2,100 sq ft)
Curb weight: 20,692 kg (45,618 lb)
Gross weight: 34,200 kg (75,398 lbs)
Powerplant: 4 × Piaggio P.XII RC.35 air-cooled radial piston engines, 1,100 kW (1,500 hp) each
Performance
Maximum speed: 424 km/h (263 mph, 229 kn)
Cruising speed: 330 km/h (210 mph, 180 kn)
Range: 4,352 km (2,704 mi, 2,350 nmi)
Service ceiling: 24,770 ft (7,550 m)
Rate of climb: 4.16 m/s (819 ft/min)
Armament
Spoiler
Guns:
10 × 12.7 mm Breda-SAFAT machine guns.
OR
10x 20 mm Cannone-Mitragliera da 20/77 (Scotti) in beam position, two upper turrets and belly position.
Torpedo:
4 × 450 mm Torpedo
4x 533 mm Torpedo
Bombs:
4,000 kg (8,800 lb) of bomb load in an internal bomb bay and mounted on fixed points on the outer wing
Special lodouts:
1x Caproni CB midget submarine
1x MAS torpedo boat
4x Maiale Human guided torpedo
Sources
Spoiler
CANT Z.511 - Wikipedia
https://www.colettiscombataircraft.com/item/cant-z-511/
Гидросамолет CANT Z.511
Уголок неба ¦ CANT Z.511
CANT Z.511 - Alchetron, The Free Social Encyclopedia
Italian Aircraft of WWII: CANT Z.511
CANT Z.511 History and Specifications - Comando Supremo
Welcome To the Regia Aeronautica Italiana Resource Center - A Warbirds Resource Group Site
CANT Z.511
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