In 1936, after the end of Ethiopian Campaign, the Italian Ministero del l'Aeronautica drew up an ambitious expansion plan, "Program R," that called for 3,000 new aircraft for the Regia Aeronautica, including a monoplane fighter to re-equip three Stormi Caccia Terrestre (fighter wings). Six different designs were submitted in response to the specification which called for a fast climbing interceptor armed with two 12.7mm machine guns and an endurance of two hours: Aeronautica Umbra T.18, I.M.A.M. Ro.51, Caproni Vizzola F.5, Reggiane Re.2000, Macchi MC.200 and Fiat G.50. Of these aircraR the T.18 and Ro.51 never advanced beyond prototype stage, the F.5 and Re.2000 were built in limited numbers, and the MC.200 and G.50 entered first line service.

The development of the G.50 (the first combat aircraft designed by Dr. Ing. Giuseppe Gabrelli) actually predated "Program R," and was an attempt to create an aircraft capable of fulfilling three disparate missions: interceptor, bomber escort, and fighter bomber. When the Program R specification was issued, the design was developed as a dedicated interceptor. The G.50 prototype first flew on 26 February, 1937.

It was the first all-metal monoplane with retractable landing gear and an adjustable pitch propeller to be evaluated and to go into service with the Regia Aeronautica whose first-line fighter was then the Fiat C.R.32bis biplane, created by Gabrelli's superior, Ing. C. Rosatelli, Fiat's chief designer. Although a contemporary of the Hawker Hurricane and Messerschmidt Bf 109, the G.50 was not destined to achieve the same success as these two famous fighters.

The G.50 was cursed from the beginning by two glaring faults peculiar to Italian aircraft design: an inferior engine and poor firepower. In addition a pronounced "hump" was built into the design for improved visibility (as in its stable-mate the Macchi MC.200), and the cockpit itself was open (although the first production batch came with a canopy). This archaic feature would not be welcomed by Italian pilots flying missions over Great Britain in November 1940 or by Finnish pilots flying in dead of winter over Northern Russia.

An initial production run of 45 aircraft was built by Fiat's subsidiary Construzioni Meccaniche Aeronautique S.A. (CMASA). Twelve were sent to Spain for service evaluation with inconclusive results. Even though the Macchi design was also in production and had proved to be far superior, the G.50 continued in large scale production both as a backup to the MC.200 program in case of hidden design flaws and because it would be too expensive and too time consuming for Fiat to retool its assembly lines.

Thus, an additional 191 G.50s were ordered from CMASA and produced in four batches. Thirty-five early production aircraft were sold to Finland in 1939. Due to German machinations these planes were delivered too late to see action in "The Winter War," but saw first line service with HLeLv 26 until May 1944 on the Lake Ladoga front during "The Continuation War." Finnish G.50s shot down 88 Soviet aircraft and only 5 were lost in combat.

A slightly-improved version, the G.50bis (first flown on 9 September, 1940), was built by both CMASA and the parent company of Fiat-Aeritalia. Total production of the G.50bis totaled 421 aircraft (including ten delivered to the Germanpuppet Croatia Air Force). Orders were also placed in 1940 with CMASA for 107 G.50bis/Bs, a two-seat training version.

Besides the three production variants a number of experimental prototypes flew: G.50ter with a more powerful radial engine; G.50V with a German liquid-cooled Daimler-Benz DB601 engine; and the G.50bis/A, a twin-seat fighter bomber. This model was fitted with an arrestor hook, two wing-mounted 12.7mm machine guns and racks for two 160kg (3531b) bombs. Intended to operate as a fighter bomber from the Regia Marina's aircraft carriers, Aquila and Sparviero, it was never placed in production as the Armistice put an end to Italy's carrier program.

The G.50 and G.50bis were both powered by an 840hp Fiat A.74 R.C.38 fourteen cylinder air-cooled radial engine, and were armed with two fuselage-mounted 12.7mm Breda-SAFAT machine guns with 300 rounds per gun (350 in the G.50bis). Compared to the American Browning .50 caliber machine gun, the Breda was a much inferior weapon firing relatively ineffective ammunition with a low muzzle velocity and a low rate of fire that was reduced even more by the need for synchronization in order to fire through the propeller. Initial provision for a small internal bay for two anti-personnel or incendiary bombs, a legacy of the fighter-bomber role, was deleted in G.50bis in favor of an extra fuel tank to improve range. Europa shows this in the change in range rating from six hexes for the G.50 to ten hexes for the G.50bis. The G.50bis, as modified with dust filters for operations in Africa, was known as the G.50bis/AS for "Africa Settentrionale." Aircraft were modified in the field to carry two 160kg (3531b) bombs on wing racks for use as fighter bombers.

Deliveries of the G.50 to combat units of the Regia Aeronautica commenced in November 1939, and when Italy went to war on 10 June, 1940, 118 were in service. The G.50 served on all fronts, except for East Africa, including service with the Corpo Aero Italiano during the Battle of Britain and with the Finnish Air Force on the Russian Front. By 1941, its use as a fighter had been mostly relegated to the secondary theaters such as Rhodes and Greece. Nevertheless, it continued in front line service as a ground attack plane, pending delivery of more advanced aircraft like the Re.2000 variants.

Although production ended in the summer of 1942, the last major use of the G.50 came in July 1943 when two newly formed "Gruppi Assalto" (attack groups) were thrown against the Allied forces invading Sicily at the cost of most of their G.50/bis aircraft. As of 9 September, 1943, 48 G.50s types remained on the first line duty with the Regia Aeronautica (of which only 17 were serviceable).

Production figures for all models of the G.50 vary but between 783 and 880 aircraft were built by Fiat-Aeritalia and its subsidiary CMASA. Possessing good maneuverability, robust construction and no vices, it gave faithful service. Despite its virtues, the G.50 was usually outclassed by its Allied opponents in speed, range and fire power.

At the same time, the Italian aircraft industry was supplying the similar but superior Macchi MC.200 (1,343 produced), the Reggiane Re.2000 (160 produced) and even the anachronistic Fiat CR.42 biplane (1,885 produced) which had been ordered as a backup design to the Program R monoplane fighters. The CR.42 first flew a year after the G.50 (and will be the subject of future "Europa Aloft"). Thus the G.50 was probably an unnecessary duplication of effort imposed on an over-burdened industry in a country that was desperately short of raw materials. Ironically, the G.50 airframe served as the basis for the Fiat G.55 Centauro, an extensively redesigned development equipped with the Daimler Benz DB605, which some air historians have called the best Italian single-seat fighter of the war.

Specifications	G.50 2	G.50bs
Engine	840hp hat A.74 R.C.38 14 cylinder double-row radial air-cooled engine	840hp Fiat A.74 R.C.38 14 cylinder double-row radial air-cooled engine
Empty Weight	4,328lb [1,963kg]	4,579lb [2,077kg]
Loaded Weight	5,295lb [2,402kg]	5,966lb [2,706kg]
Speed	292mph at 16,405ft [470km/h at 5,000m	293mph at 16,405ft [472km/h at 5,000m
Time to height	4.63min to 16,405ft [5,000m	8min to 16,405ft [5,000m]
Range	416 miles [670km]	609 miles [980km]
Fuel capacity	57.2 Imperial gal [260 litres]	90.4 Imperial gal [411 litres]
Service ceiling	35, 105ft [10,700m]	32,480ft [9,900m]
Armament	2x 12.7mm Breda-SAFAT mgs with 150rpg	2x 12.7mm Breda-SAFAT mgs with 150rpg. 2x 3531b [160kg] bombs {field modification)

Sources

Angelucci, Enzo. The Rand McNally Encyclopedia of Military Aircraft 1914-1980; The Military Press, 1983.
Cattaneo, Gianni. Aircraft in Profile volumes 3, 6, and 8; Doubleday & Company, Inc., 1968, 1970.
Green, William. Famous Fighters of World War Two -- Volume Two; Doubleday & Company, Inc., 1962.
Green, William. Warplanes of the Second World War Fighters -- Volume Two; Doubleday & Company, Inc., 1964.
"A Second String Arrow...The Fiat G.50," Air International; May 1988 and June 1988.
Sgarlato, Nico. Italian Aircraft of World War II; Squadron/Signal Publications, 1979.
Shores, Christopher. Regia Aeronautica: A Pictorial History of the Italian Air Force 1940-1943; Squadron/Signal Publications, 1976.