WOW103 Macchi Italian (Calvello Variant)

Description

The Macchi M.5 was an Italian single-seat fighter flying boat designed and built by Nieuport-Macchi at Varese. It was extremely manoeuvrable and agile and matched the land-based aircraft it was sent into combat against. The first prototype of a single-seat sesquiplane fighter was the Type M which first flew in 1917. Developed by engineers Buzio and Calzavera it had a single-step hull and an open cockpit forward of the wings and was similar to the earlier Macchi M.3. It was followed by another prototype with a revised tail unit designated the Ma and further developed as the M bis and Ma bis. The production aircraft was designated the M.5 and like the prototypes was powered by a single Isotta Fraschini V.4B engine in the pusher configuration. Deliveries commenced in the summer of 1917 to the Aviazione per la Regia Marina (Italian Navy Aviation). Late production aircraft had a more powerful Isotta Fraschini V.6 engine and redesigned wingtip floats, they were designated M.5 mod. Macchi produced 200 aircraft and another 44 were built by Società Aeronautica Italiana. The M.5 was operated by five Italian maritime patrol squadrons as a fighter and convoy escort, and some were embarked on the Giuseppe Miraglia. Towards the end of World War I, the aircraft were flown by both United States Navy and United States Marine Corps airmen. Ensign Charles Hammann won the first Medal of Honor awarded to a United States naval aviator in an M.5. Our 1/30 scale model is one of 5 available and was the plane of Sub-Tenente di Vascello Umberto Calvello, an ace with 5 credited victories. He was born May 28, 1897, joining the Italian Navy in July, 1916, serving as an observer on seaplanes. Officially graduating as a pilot on October 3 1917, his victories all occurred in 1918 while with 260 Squadriglia, all over Austrian flying boats. His aircraft carried a personal marking of “Fortunello”, (Happy Hooligan), with 2 slogans. The slogan on the suitcase translates as ‘March, don’t rot’, while the slogan coming from the character’s mouth translates as ‘Watch Out, son of a dog’. Calvello died August 10, 1919, when a plane he was test flying crashed. The $ price shown includes an additional $100 charge for postage and therefore no further charges will apply at checkout.