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Old 12th December 2014, 23:12
GuerraCivil GuerraCivil is offline
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Re: True air combat records of Spanish Civil War?

Case study: the combat losses of Aviazione Legionaria

Here is a list of the plane losses and combat casualties of Aviación Legionaria during the 1936-1937. This is kind a part I of the project to make a informative combat loss records of Aviación Legionaria during the SCW and to compare them with available enemy claim records. The list is not complete as it is based on my limited sources on the books of Forsyth, Permuy Lopez and Alcofar Nassaes. Something I have checked from the web sources (not so informative after all).
The principles of list are the following:
- only combat related losses are listed (accidents and other non-enemy caused losses not included, although one "friendly-fire" case is included)
- when it comes to damaged planes, I mention only cases when there has been a fatal combat casualty (KIA)
- if there is some spesific info about the enemy available, it is included
- the locations of combat losses are "more or less"
- although Aviación Legionaria was a Italian project, time-to-time some Spaniard pilots and units were incorporated in AL. Thus there are few Spaniards included in the combat loss record.
- if there is a "OK" after pilot´s or other aircrew member name, it means that he survived without serious wounds and made it back to own lines (in case of being shot down over enemy territory)

Your comments and additions welcome!

Aviación Legionaria (Aviazione Legionaria) combat losses 1936 - 1937

30.8.1936 Talavera de la Reina: Fiat CR 32 shot down by enemy Fury (La Calle), Monico POW, killed.
30.8.1936 Talavera: Fiat CR 32 shot down by enemy Ni-H. 52´s (Santamaría, Peña), Castellani OK
13.9.1936 Talavera: Fiat CR 32 collided with enemy Ni-H. 52 (Colom KIA), Patriarca POW
4.11.1936 Madrid: Fiat CR 32 shot down by enemy (Soviet piloted) I-15, Magistrini KIA
4.11.1936 Madrid: Fiat CR 32 shot down by enemy (Soviet piloted) I-15, Dequal OK
5.11.1936 Madrid: Fiat CR 32 shot down by enemy (Soviet piloted) I-15, Maccacgno WIA, POW
9.11.1936 Madrid: Romeo Ro 37 lost in air combat? crew lost?
1.12.1936 Madrid: Fiat CR 32 shot down by enemy fighters, Chianese POW
1.12.1936 Madrid: Romeo Ro 37 shot down by enemy AA, Di Marcio KIA, Matis OK
2.12.1936 Talavera: Savoia S.M. 81 destroyed on the ground (air attack of R-5´s)
10.12.1936/20.12.1936 (?): Romeo Ro 37 shot down by Legion Condor He 51 (“friendly fire”), Jiménez (Spaniard) and Compagny (Spaniard) KIA
22.12.1936 Mahón: Savoia S.M. 81 damaged by flak, Nerieri KIA
13.2.1937 Jarama: Fiat CR 32 shot down by enemy fighters, Lodi POW
19.3.1937 Mahón: Savoia S.M. 81 damaged in air combat, Dal Pan KIA
29.4.1937 Aviación de Baleares: Savoia S.M. 81 crashed in sea, five men crew KIA (Anfuso, Escofet, Camallo, Mattarollo, Zannoni), caused by combat damage?
5.6.1937 Santander: Fiat CR 32 shot down by I-15 (Magriña), Presel KIA
6.7.1937 Brunete: Fiat CR 32 shot down by enemy fighters, Vercellio KIA
7.7.1937 Ávila: Fiat CR 32 shot down by enemy fighters, Mattei OK
7.7.1937 Ávila: Fiat CR 32 shot down by enemy fighters, Passeri KIA
8.7.1937 Ávila: Fiat CR 32 shot down by enemy fighters, Rubio OK (Spaniard)
12.7.1937 Brunete: Fiat CR 32 shot down by enemy fighters, Bermúdez de Castro KIA (Spaniard)
14.8.-20.8.1937 Northern Front: combat losses of 4 aircraft (?) + 1 pilot seriously WIA (one might match with the 17.8.37 claim of Tarazona)
26.8.1937 Zaragoza: Fiat CR 32 shot down by enemy I-15 (Gonzáles), Caselli KIA
26.8.1937 Zaragoza: Fiat CR 32 shot down by enemy I-15 (Gonzáles), Schievano KIA
27.8.1937 Quinto de Ebro: Fiat CR 32 shot down by enemy I-15, Marietti OK
27.8.1937 Quinto de Ebro: Fiat CR 32 shot down by enemy I-15, Constantini OK
27.8.1937 Quinto de Ebro: Fiat CR 32 shot down by enemy I-15, Capellini POW
24.9.1937 Zuera: Fiat CR 32 shot down by enemy AA, Monte OK
29.9.1937 Baleares: Savoia S.M. 81 damaged by air combat, Bacchini and Appiani KIA
11.10.1937 Fuentes de Ebro y Mediana: Fiat CR 32 shot down by enemy I-16, Boschetto POW
11.10.1937 Fuentes de Ebro y M: Fiat CR 32 shot down by enemy I-16, Corsi POW
11.10.1937 Fuentes de Ebro y M: Fiat CR 32 shot down by enemy I-16, Leoncini POW
11.10.1937 Fuentes de Ebro y M: Fiat CR 32 shot down by enemy I-16, Neri KIA
11.10.1937 Fuentes de Ebro y M: Fiat CR 32 shot down by enemy I-16, Rigolli KIA
28.12.1937 Teruel: Fiat CR 32 shot down by enemy I-15 (Comas) - one Fiat CR 32 was lost in air combat (in which Comas claimed 2 Fiats), but this plane may have belonged to Spanish unit?

When it comes to 5 Fiat CR 32 losses on 11.10.1937 (Nassaes), it might be that the correct date was 12.10.1937, when Republican pilots Aguirre, Lamas and García (Mosca unit 1/21) claimed each a confirmed Fiat and other pilots of 1/21 Bravo, Arias and Gandía each a probable (Permuy Lopez) - in total Republican pilots made 6 claims, of which 3 were confirmed - quite accurate claims being near the actual enemy losses (5). The combat was clearly a big blow to Italians although they made claims of 15 (!) destroyed enemy fighters in return and this was celebrated in Spanish Nationalist newspapers. When analyzing combat reports one should take in account that there is a repeating pattern to put enemy losses higher than the ones suffered by "own side" - propaganda played a part in official published combat records of both sides turning clear defeat often to a glorious victory!
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