The first fighter

In response to the question “what was the first true fighter aircraft,” most would answer either the Fokker Eindecker, with its synchronized machine gun, or one of the British pushers, with their rear mounted engines and birds nest of wires supporting the tail so the forward area was free for the machine gun to fire.

But in fact a strong case can be made that the first true single seat fighter was the Italian Caproni Ca. 20 monoplane, developed in 1914, a year ahead of the other contenders.

The Ca. 20 was developed by Giovanni Battista “Gianni” Caproni from the Ca. 18, an observation monoplane and the first Italian-made airplane to be used by the Italian military. The Ca. 18 was powered by an 80 horsepower Gnome rotary engine and used a warped wing arrangement for aileron control similar to the Fokker Eindecker. The Ca. 20 used the same arrangement.

However, the Ca. 20 fighter had shorter wings and mounted a powerful 110 horsepower Le Rhone radial that had a smooth cover over the cowling that reduced drag and provided a very sleek appearance. The cover had large slits cut into it to allow cool air to reach the engine.

But the most important aspect of the Ca. 20 was its fixed, forward-firing machine gun. It was a drum-fed .303-caliber Lewis mounted on a pillar above the propeller arc and an eye level sight for the pilot to aim it. When the drum was empty, the pilot could reach up, pull it down and put in a new drum.

Test flights showed the Ca. 20 was probably the fastest aircraft in the world and had good (for the time) handling. Had it been introduced, it would have given the Italian air arm the strongest fighter force in the world and Caproni would have become a household name in aviation history.

Unfortunately, only one Ca. 20 was built because Caproni began to concentrate on bomber aircraft, and this decision leads to two interesting stories: one small story and one, in air power terms, very large story.

The small story first: Apparently, Gianni Caproni was quite proud of his little fighter and, though it did not go into production, he was reluctant to destroy it. The sole Ca. 20 was stored by the Caproni family in Italy for more than 85 years, first in their barn and, for the last period, in a monastery. The dry climate preserved the aircraft with the exception of the tires, which were gnawed by rats. It was discovered there by members of the Museum of Flight in Seattle, Wa., and sold to the museum in 1999.

The Ca. 20 was carefully dismantled piece by piece by Museum staff and then lowered through a second story window. Then, the Ca. 20, with virtually all its original parts, was shipped to Seattle and reassembled. Today, it is on display in the museum in almost its entirely original condition, complete with worn and torn fabric. It is one of the most unique pieces of aviation history, if not the most unique piece of aviation history, in existence.

Now to the larger story: From 1912, a gentleman named Giulio Douhet worked as an engineer for Gianni Caproni and the Caproni aircraft company. He then went to command Italy’s first aviation unit, the Aeronautical Battalion, and became a supporter of bomber aircraft, seeming to have been influential in having Caproni drop the Ca. 20 and concentrate on bombers. In 1915, his criticism of Italy’s early World War I aviation efforts (allegedly for not buying more Caproni bombers) resulted in his court martial and imprisonment for two years. When he was released, he became a central director at the Italian General Air Commissariat.

After the war Douhet had his court martial overturned and was promoted to general. Then, in 1921, he wrote “The Command of the Air” where he pushed the ideas of strategic bombing and air forces, independent from navies and ground forces, which would dominate any future conflict. He was in favor of a force composed entirely of strategic bombers (some allege made by Caproni), and his ideas were part of the “all bomber” forces theology adopted by many in the Royal Air Force and those in the U.S. Army air arm, notably Billy Mitchell.

Douhet was an early supporter of Fascist dictator Benito Mussolini, who appointed him commissioner of aviation after Mussolini took power.

Ironically, though Caproni had produced excellent strategic bombers during World War I, under Douhet the company — indeed, the entire Italian Air Force — focused on light tactical aircraft for patrolling the Italian empire (such as it was) in Africa.
In World War II, there was no Italian strategic bomber force. In fact, the Italian air force was, as a whole, ineffectual, as it seems. In the end, Douhet’s vision was limited to words, rather than actions.

(For questions or comments, contact Dr. Michel at marshall.michel@ramstein.af.mil.)