Caproni Ca.60 Noviplano flying boat (static display)

Count Gianni Caproni, builder of some fine aircraft, chose for some reason to build a giant flying boat with no fewer than nine wings and eight engines. With this, or an even bigger version, he hoped to fly over 100 passengers across the Atlantic. Amidst all the struts and wings, the absence of any tail surfaces could easily be overlooked. Reportedly making a short hop without incident, the official first flight was less successful. Rising to about 18m above Lake Maggiore, the Ca.60 suddenly nosed down and dived into the water. Some said that testing had shown the need for a lot of lead ballast and that this had shifted in flight. Test pilot Semprini crawled out of the wreck unscathed. Later a mysterious fire destroyed the remains and ended the Count's transatlantic dream.

Specification CREW 8
ENGINE 8 x 400hp Liberty piston engines
WEIGHTS Take-off weight 24993 kg 55100 lb
DIMENSIONS Wingspan 30.00 m 98 ft 5 in Length 23.47 m 77 ft 0 in Height 9.24 m 30 ft 4 in
PERFORMANCE Max. speed 112 km/h 70 mph

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  Entertainment

[smurfswacker]

What a magnificent monster! I read somewhere that people said the Caproni had a built-in headwind. Is there footage somewhere of its test flight?

[Bomberguy]

Not that I know of

[mackat4ck]

This would be cool for fsx.

[NVanWendy]

It's said that Fokker would design his aircraft by eye, rather than with a slide rule and mathematics. What looked good to his eye tended to fly well, as the allies found out in WW 1. How is it that something so preposterous as this made past the first sketch at the Caproni works? No instincts for design, I guess.

[RatPfink66]

Hey, when we Italians are around, things burn sometimes. 8-)

[5spdstang]

And having been towed back to shore...with a vow to rebuild it.....mysteriously burned to the ground the same night.

[sovietweapons]

Fuck this music

[colj001]

im amazed it went 18 meters into the air

[MC205zipper]

You still have General Balbo Avenue in Chicago, ask your grandad abut the craze about italian aviation when a formation of Savoia Marchetti SM.55 moored in Lake Michigan in summer 1933 (Italo Balbo had his pic on TIME cover of 26 June 1933).

Then learn about MACCHI MC.72 and the Schneider Cup and wonder why the italians won it so many times, note how the british Supermarine plane was strongly inspired from MC72, also note that MC72 still is today record winner.

That's italian aviation :-)

[trickdodge]

This was a great marvelous of aircraft history! Everything started with the dream about a Sopwith Triplane research. However, Gianni Caproni saw his dream in real life, but spended a lot of hard work, money, and hope. But was high weight and low power for a happy end. One day we're gonna fly in a new passenger triplane, with power and safety! Believe it!

[Arnold Alderite]

sadly in its first flight. it crash suddenly

[PortCharmers]

I've recently seen the remains of it in the museum, and there was footage of the thing blasting along Lago Maggiore, in which it did not actually take off. I'm not sure whether this was the test flight or taxiing tests. Very impressive though, even in the grainy black & white quality of the day. It feels a bit like seeing an Elizabethan Galleon planing.

[adwino raeshad]

kocak lagu nya