The Last of the Centauros: Fiat G.59

After WW2, Fiat sought ways to restart their production lines. And their star fighter, the G.55, provided a useful product to do just that.

But as stocks of engines ran short, Fiat had to find an alternative powerplant. They found one in the famous Rolls Royce Merlin.

Sources for this video can be found at the relevant article on:

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[wlpaul]

"It did rather well in Finland against the Soviets" always gives me a chuckle. The Finn's ability to take anything with wings and find a way to use it effectively in combat was unparalleled.

[Obsdarkside]

That's a beautiful looking plane, Italian styling at its best

[snarkymatt]

Italian Mustangs... they look more like late model Spitfires to me. Great video Ed!

[WArbirdFanFlyingMillionaires]

My family is in possession of the last flying Fiat G-59 4B. Can’t wait to go on a spin with her^^. Thanks for the cool video. Nice to know some of the historical background of the planes ur flying.

[bulukacarlos]

My father was a mechanic in the Argentine Air Force. They had to specialize in an airplane when they graduated from school. He did it on the G-55 and had to learn about the Merlin to repair the one and only G59. Good planes according to him, but they were not assigned a sufficient maintenance budget because 100 Gloster Meteor arrived in our country and obviously that was the future of aviation (end of the 40s). The same thing happened to the Ñancu project.

[mxdl]

I live in Parma and remember Pino Valenti flying his G.59 at the Spring meeting of the small airport, a lot of years ago.
Unusually, he took off from the opposite of the runway, remaining at about 2 meters height for the whole length of it, gaining speed, then, just before he passed beside the small crowd assembled on the lawn of the club house, he suddendly pulled up at 60 degrees, showing us the belly of the plane.
I still remember my guts literally vibrating in sync with the motor\propeller and the adrenaline shot...

[nicowals]

The FIAT G.55 on display at the Italian Airforce Museum in Vinga di Valle (a small town near Rome) is a converted G.59.
It’s displayed in the colours of the Montofusco-Bonet Sq. An independent Sq. of the ANR.
This Sq. Was based on the airfield of Veneria Reale. Close to the city of Turin.
The airfield is still there. Now an airfield for AMI helicopters.

[lorenzodelfino]

Your video brought me back to 1976 when I graduated in Aeronautical Engineering at the University of Palermo - at the time, one of only five in Italy offering Aeronautical Engineering courses. In the hangar attached to the classroom there was a G59-4B, used during Aeronautical Structures and Aeronautical Instruments subjects. Unfortunately the year that I graduated the Dean decided to cut the wings to make room for some test equipment. My very vocal protestations "costed" me 3 points in my final score. Two years later I went to work for FiatAviazione, the original manufactured of the G55, and 4 years later I was seconded to Pratt & Whitney. .... but that was a long long time ago (gone with the wind). Thanks for bringing some memories of my younger (and happier) years.

[Damorann]

Nice to see a forgotten aircraft that was a good airplane and actually saw some service. There are some hidden gems out there for sure.

Great video !

[chrisreynolds]

Most Australian enthusiasts are aware of the last flying example, it was owned by Guido Zuccolli, who also owned and flew a Centaurus powered Sea Fury (now resident in Germany).

[ThatsGuitarist]

Never has the old maxim if "if it looks right, it'll fly right" been any truer than with the Fiat G-55 and its later developments. The Centauro was a real thoroughbred, possessing very high performance, heavy armament and excellent agility, although that last bit shouldn't surprise anyone familiar with the history of Italian military aviation.

Italy's pilots were widely considered the world's foremost aerobatic pilots in the late 1930's/early 1940's. From what I've read on the subject, Italian pilots who flew the Centauro were delighted with its agility, which meant it either met or even exceeded the expectations of the finest aerobatic pilots in the world.

What I wouldn't give to see and hear a DB 605-powered G-55 being put through its paces by a skilled pilot!😉

[McRocket]

You've done it again Jane's Mark II - er - Ed.
I knew of the G.55 and the G.56 (with a DB603 with a top speed of 430+ mph).
But nothing of these G.59's.
Thank you.

BTW - great looking aircraft. Though, the chin air intake of the Merlin is a large blemish on the otherwise GORGEOUS G.55/56.
☮

[goatflieg]

Another "I had no idea" moment for me. As a lifelong warbird fan (60+ years), I'm continually amazed at the revelations you share.

[aaronlopez]

Quite a handsome looking design by Fiat. Thank you Ed.

[rjd]

Great video as usual Ed! Here in Australia the late Guido Zucholli had a two seat bubble canopy G-59 in which he was a regular on the air display circuit. MM53278, I remember it well growing up, although at the time, the commentators called it an Italian Spitfire rather than a Mustang.

[michaelgautreaux]

Knew of the G.55 but wasn't aware of further variants. GR8 content 👍 Many thanx Ed, much appreciated.

[cartoonfan]

how about a video of the Romanian IAR 80

[NoirChat]

The G in G59 stand for Gabrielli (aka Giuseppe Gabrielli) the engineer behind G 50 and later the G91

[blackwolf]

Thank you for the video. My father got his "wings" with the G.59-4. About the top speed, all my sources talk of speeds above the 600 km/h.

[mattbaur]

How the crap do you only have 68k subscribers I watch your vids as much as any of the others. Keep up the good work