Fiat CR 23 Stilleto

Rocketship Empires 1936

The Fiat CR 23 (Stilleto)

the pilot even became aware that they were in trouble.

The Stilleto is armed with two Breda SOFAT

The Fiat CR 23 is an Italian manufactured ghtlight
guns
in the nose and one in either wing. The very
er built along the bi-plane style evident in most human
short range of these guns and the lack of any sort of
ghter models built between 1922 and 1930.
sophisticated targeting equipment beyond a simple iron
The Stilleto was designed by Celestino Ro- site makes the successful application of the Stilleto in
satelli for the Regia Aeronautica in 1926. The uneven combat restricted to eyes on combat at extreme close
wing design with a longer upper wing and shorter lower range in space and dogghting in atmosphere.
wing was noted as somewhat unconventional. Rosatelli incorporated a Warren style strut that eliminated the
need to place further supports between the wings. This
feature was incorporated into several different Italian designs and greatly aided in eliminating the visual
obstacles presented by multiple supports. In addition
Rosatelli moved the wing mounted engines to the tail
which further improved pilot visibility to the front and
sides of the craft.

One could easily argue that the Stilettos stripped

type B engines are meant only to allow the ship to travel
from one planetary combat zone to another and that the
starghter was never conceived for combat in the black
of space.

This is true of many of the starghters built

between 1922 and 1928, whose designers could not
imagine a ship intercepting and engaging an enemy in
Unfortunately the twin engine placement and the vastness of open space. Combat was thought to be
double n tail design blocked pilot visibility into the something that would largely be restricted to in-atmo
starghters critical six oclock position. A pilot caught engagements or encounters in high orbit. The idea of
unaware could be approached from below and behind unrestricted warfare developing between nations in
by a stealthy and patient foe and pounced upon before space was still somewhat shocking to designers on the

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