 {| |} the macchi c.202 folgore (italian "thunderbolt") was a world war ii fighter aircraft built by macchi aeronautica and operated mainly by the regia aeronautica (ra; royal (italian) air force). macchi aircraft designed by mario castoldi received the "c" letter in their model designation, hence the folgore is referred to as the c.202 or mc.202. the c.202 was a development of the earlier c.200 saetta, with an italian built version of the daimler-benz db 601aa engine and with a redesigned, more streamlined fuselage.angelucci and matricardi 1978, p. 219. considered to be one of the best wartime fighters to serve in large numbers with the regia aeronautica,mondey 2006, p. 155. the folgore operated on all fronts in which italy was involved.matricardi 2006, pp. 70â71. the folgore went into service with the regia aeronautica in july 1941 and immediately proved to be an effective and deadly dogfighter.sgarlato 1998, pp. 8â20.winchester 2004, p. 172. the australian ace clive caldwell, who fought a wide variety of german, italian and japanese fighters during 1941&ndash;45, later stated that the c.202 was "one of the best and most undervalued of fighters".dunning 2000, p. 209. nonetheless, the c.202 had its defects: like its predecessor, the macchi c.200, it could enter a dangerous spin.duma 2007, pp. 232â233. it was insufficiently armed, with just two machine guns that easily jammed. the radios were unreliable, forcing the pilots to communicate by waggling wings. the oxygen system was inefficient, causing 50 to 60 per cent of the pilots to break off missions, sometimes even causing fatal accidents. ==development== thumb|first folgore prototype. the decision of the italian military authorities to adopt radial engines meant that, during the second half of the 1930s, the italian aeronautical industry failed to develop more powerful engines based on streamlined liquid-cooled designs.mondey 2006, p. 153. this forced macchi aeronautica to rely on the ageing fiat a.74 [[radial engin
Italian_fighter_aircraft_1940a1949 Macchi_aircraft World_War_II_Italian_fighter_aircraft