The Desert Air War 1940–1943

By Anthony Tucker-Jones

The war in air over North Africa and the Mediterranean during the Second World War has long been overshadowed by the battle on the ground. Between 1940 and 1943 Italy's Regia Aeronautica and then Germany's Luftwaffe waged a concerted aerial campaign against the British, yet apart from the bitter fight for Malta, this aspect of the conflict is rarely given the attention it deserves. Anthony Tucker-Jones, in this vivid photographic history, provides a fascinating introduction to it.The wartime photographs, and the concise text, cover the entire course of the struggle in the air. The Regia Aeronautica at first met weak British opposition when Mussolini launched his ill-advised offensive against British-controlled Egypt, but the obsolete Italian aircraft proved to be no match for the Allied fighters once the strength of the Royal Air Force built up. Then, when Hitler stepped in to help his hapless ally, the aerial struggle intensified, and the air forces of both sides were locked in deadly combat in the skies over Egypt, Libya, the Mediterranean and Tunisia.The wide range of Italian, British, German and American aircraft involved, the air and ground crews from all sides, and the conditions in which they operated and fought are all shown in this varied selection of photographs.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Pen and Sword
• Release date: Nov 30, 2018
• ISBN: 9781526711106

Anthony Tucker-Jones

ANTHONY TUCKER-JONES spent nearly twenty years in the British Intelligence Community before establishing himself as a defence writer and military historian. He has written extensively on aspects of Second World War warfare, including Hitler’s Great Panzer Heist and Stalin’s Revenge: Operation Bagration.

Book preview

Chapter One

Mussolini’s Regia Aeronautica

Many of Mussolini’s aircraft were largely obsolete when Italy entered the Second World War, especially his bombers and ground-attack aircraft. His fighters were not much better. However, Italian pilots had gained valuable combat experience during the campaigns in Abyssinia, Libya and Spain in the 1930s.

The Fiat CR.42 Falco (Falcon) single-seat biplane was the most numerous fighter possessed by the Regia Aeronautica in North Africa. During the early operations against the British it enjoyed a slight edge over the RAF, but as British strength grew in Egypt the aircraft was restricted largely to ground support activities along with the older CR.32. Similarly, the Fiat G.50 monoplane was not a great success. The Macchi Saetta and Folgore monoplanes were an improvement, but were still no match for Allied fighters.

When Mussolini declared war on 10 June 1940 he had 324 CR.32s and 272 CR.42s in front-line service. With a top speed of only 233mph the CR.32 was considered the slowest fighter in North Africa, and although it continued in service until 1942 its deployment was confined to night operations. Italian pilots had flown this aircraft with the Italian Aviazione Legoniaria supporting Franco’s Nationalist in the Spanish Civil War.

In fact the Italians used limited numbers of an even slower biplane in North Africa, the Meridionali Ro.37, capable of only 205mph. Its heyday had been in Abyssinia and Spain. Nonetheless the Regia Aeronautica still had about 275 of the improved variant Ro.37bis available in 1940.

Despite its ancient appearance the CR.42 only entered service in 1939. It was armed with one 7.7mm and one 12.7mm Breda machine gun fitted above the forward fuselage. With a top speed of 267mph it was slightly faster than the British Gladiator, but had a comparable operating ceiling, and was equally manoeuvrable. The fighter-bomber variant of the CR.42, known as the Caccia Bombardiere, arrived in North Africa in the spring of 1941 and was followed in July 1941 by the CR.42 Africa Settentrionale (North Africa) which were fitted with all-important dust filters and bomb racks.

The Fiat G.50 had also seen service in Spain in the mid-1930s, had a maximum speed of 293mph and an operational ceiling of 32,800ft. It was armed with two 12.7mm Breda machine guns housed in the forward fuselage. The G.50bis introduced in 1940 was not comparable to British and German fighters and was used as a fighter-bomber rather than an interceptor.

The most modern fighter in Mussolini’s arsenal was the Macchi MC.200 Saetta (Lightning). Powered by an 860bhp Fiat engine it could outclimb and outmanouvre the Hurricane. However, its 312mph maximum speed was slightly slower and its operational ceiling of 29,000ft was substantially less. By June 1940 around 150 Saettas had been supplied to the Regia Aeronautica. Although only armed with two 12.7mm machine guns fitted above the engine cowling, the Saetta developed a good combat record and its pilots often held their own against the RAF. The Macchi MC.202 Folgore (Thunderbolt) fighter did not appear in Libya until November 1941 and was the best Italian fighter to serve in large numbers. It was faster and had a higher operating ceiling than the Saetta.

The obsolete Breda Ba.65 was also involved in the fighting in North Africa. It saw service in Abyssinia in 1935 and was essentially a ground-attack plane. Although intended as a fighter-bomber, experience in Spain showed it was only suitable for an attack role. While capable of delivering over 1,100lbs of bombs its engine did not like the desert conditions and serviceability was often poor.

The Savoia-Marchetti SM.79 Sparviero (Hawk) was a robust and reliable medium bomber. Capable of 270mph, it carried a 2,200lb bomb load and was protected by three 12.7mm machine guns, with an additional 7.7mm machine gun that could be fired from the beam windows. The SM.79 required five crew and was powered by three Piaggio 1,000hp engines. Like the Luftwaffe’s Do 17 bomber this aircraft had been blooded in the Spanish Civil War and was the standard long-range bomber of the Regia