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Italy's Reggiane Re. 2001 Falco II fighter^1,2

The Reggiane Re.2001 was an all wood fighter plane.¹

The Re.2001 was to fix the weaknesses in the Re.2000.¹

The pilot sat in a cramped cockpit with poor visibility.¹

The engine was a copy of the Daimler-Benz DB 601.^1,2

The tail wheel was fixed.¹

The Re.2001 prototype first flew on July 14, 1940.²

Deliveries of the Re.2001 started in mid 1942.²

There was to be a trainer, tank buster, torpedo, and fighter versions.¹

Re.2001:
Re.2001CN: Night fighter.¹ 150 converted.¹ Had two 20 mm cannons under the wings.¹
Re.2001??: Had arrester hooks added for carrier deck trials.¹ Only two built.¹
Re.2001??: One had a Fraschinin Delta IV engine instsalled.¹ It made the performance even worse.¹
Re.2002 Ariete (Ram): Ground attack.² Could carry 2,800 lb / 1,270 kg of ordnance under the fuselage and wings.² Many were used by the Luftwaffe in France after the Italian Armistice.²

Many of the Re.2001s were used as night fighters in central and northern Italy.²

After Italy surrendered the Co-Belligerent Air Force continued to use the Re.2001.¹

	Reggiane Re.2001^1,2
Type	Fighter²
Crew	1^1,2
Engine (Type)	Alfa Romeo RA.1000¹ Alfa Romeo RA.1000 RC 41 (Daimler-Benz 601)²
Cylinders	In-line 12¹, Inverted V 12²
Cooling
HP	1,175^1,2
Propeller blades	3²
Dimensions
Span
Length	27' 5"² 8.36 m²
Height
Wing area
Weight
Empty	5,423 lb² 2,460 kg²
Loaded	7,231 lb² 3,280 kg²
Performance
Speed	336 mph¹ 542 kph¹
Speed @ 17,945' / 5,470 m	339 mph² 545 kph²
Climb to 16,405' / 5,000 m	6.3 minutes²
Service ceiling	36,090'² 11,000 m²
Range	684 miles² 1,100 km²
Armament
Nose	2: 12.7 mm MG²
Wings	2: 7.7 mm MG²
OR	2: 20 mm²
Bomb under fuselage	1: 1,410 lb² 1: 640 kg²

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