CANT Z . 1018 The CRDA CANT Z . 1018 " Leone " ( Lion ) was an Italian medium bomber of the 1940s . Design and development . In 1939 , the " Regia Aeronautica " ( Italian Air Force ) initiated its " R Plan " , or " 3 , 000 airplanes " , a campaign to quickly increase its strength with modern aircraft . By that time , " Regia Aeronautica " had been involved in wars on two continents , and its equipment had been depleted and had not kept up with technological advances . As a part of this plan , a competition for a modern medium bomber was announced in 1939 . CRDA submitted its Z . 1015 for this competition . The Z . 1015 was basically an all - metal version of the Z . 1007 , a three - engine medium bomber with a wooden airframe . The Z . 1007 had first flown in 1937 but had not yet entered military service by 1939 . " Regia Aeronautica " requested Zappata ' s proposal be modified to incorporate greater strength : the design ultimate load factor was to be increased from 7 . 0 to 10 . 0 . Zappata determined that such a change would require significant re - engineering and increased weight , and countered with a proposal for a new two - engine aircraft , the Z . 1018 . The three engines of the Z . 1007 had a combined power output of 2 , 237 kW ( 3 , 000 hp ) , whereas the two engines proposed for the Z . 1018 Alfa Romeo 135 RC . 32 had a combined output of 2 , 088 kW ( 2 , 800 hp ) . Thus its performance would be comparable to the proposed Z . 1015 with simpler construction , possible lower weight , and reduced maintenance . Zappata proposed three variants of the basic aircraft , using different wing planforms : The new design also offered the possibility of carrying an internal torpedo , which would have been impossible with the Z . 1015 fuselage layout . The new design also offered the possibility of a floatplane version ( designated Z . 514 ) , using the floats from the Z . 506 ( the 500 designations were for floatplanes while the 1000 designations were for landplanes ) . On 23 February 1939 , the " Regia " authorized production of 32 Z . 1018 aircraft , but stipulated an ultimate load factor of 9 . 0 , and also demanded construction of a prototype , and further required that production deliveries begin before the end of the year . This would have been an extraordinarily rapid development schedule , so CRDA objected . The proposed engines had not yet been certificated , and its counter - rotating version had not yet been developed . Construction of the first prototype was authorized on 7 April 1939 . In July 1939 , " Regia " requested that the design be altered to use the new Daimler - Benz DB 601 water - cooled inline engine instead of the planned radial engine . The aircraft , in its definitive form ( as the " Leone " I ) was a two - engine medium bomber , with a single tail , retractable undercarriage , and metallic structure . It had duralumin structure , a skin of light alloy , and a crew of four or five . The contours of the slim fuselage were designed for aerodynamic benefit . As with the Z . 1007 , the two pilots were in tandem , not side - by - side . Only the first pilot had a complete set of controls , while the copilot had limited visibility and only few instruments . Its wing was straight - tapered , with rounded wingtips . The low wing incorporated two structural spars . The wing was metal - covered forward and fabric - covered aft . In spite of efforts to reduce the airframe weight , the empty weight of the prototype was comparable to the three - engine Z . 1007 . Engines for the Z . 1018 prototype were Piaggio P . XII - RC . 35 air - cooled radials with 18 cylinders in two rows , rated at 895 kW ( 1 , 200 hp ) for takeoff and 1 , 007 kW ( 1 , 350 hp ) at 3 , 500 m ( 11 , 480 ft ) altitude , at 2 , 050 rpm . Their dry weight was 930 kg / 2 , 050 lb ( 940 kg / 2 , 070 lb with oil ) , and they used 87 octane fuel . Propellers were metal three - blade variable - pitch Alfa Romeo s . Using this powerplant , CANT engineers calculated a top speed for the Z . 1018 of 524 km / h ( 326 mph ) at 4 , 500 m ( 14 , 764 ft ) , with a takeoff run of 354 m ( 1 , 160 ft ) , landing run of 462 m ( 1 , 518 ft ) , and a climb to 4 , 000 m ( 13 , 120 ft ) in 7 minutes 32 seconds ( 14 minutes 4 seconds to 6 , 000 m / 19 , 685 ft ) . Design fuel capacity was 3 , 300 L ( 870 US gal ) in wing - mounted self - sealing fuel tank s . A possible modification was offered - a 500 L ( 130 US gal ) auxiliary fuel tank in the aft fuselage . Calculated endurance with standard tanks was about three hours , for 1 , 335 km ( 830 mi ) range ( using calculated maximum cruise speed ) . Endurance and range using economical cruise speeds are not available , but should have been better . For example , the Savoia - Marchetti SM . 79 " Sparviero " could boost its range from 1 , 750 km ( 1 , 090 mi ) at 350 km / h ( 220 mph ) to 2 , 300 km ( 1 , 430 mi ) at 260 km / h ( 160 mph ) . Proposed armament was twelve 100 kg ( 220 lb ) bombs carried in the internal bomb bay . Wing hardpoint s were provided capable of carrying 1 , 000 kg ( 2 , 200 lb ) each . Two such external weapons could be carried , since the calculated payload ( difference between empty weight and maximum operating weight ) was 2 , 700 kg ( 5 , 950 lb ) . For comparison , the Fiat BR . 20 and Savoia - Marchetti SM . 79 both had a 3 , 600 kg ( 7 , 940 lb ) payload , and the CANT Z . 1007 payload was over 4 , 000 kg ( 8 , 820 lb ) . This calculated Z . 1018 payload was barely enough for takeoff with full fuel and crew ( 2 , 800 kg / 6 , 1703 lb ) , so it would not allow for any weapon load . A possible explanation is that the prototype was never flight - tested at its maximum capacity including weapon load . Defensive armament for the Z . 1018 consisted of four machine - guns : In addition , a fixed Breda - SAFAT ( 7 . 7 mm / . 303 in ) machine gun was mounted in the right wing , to be used for ground attack or straight - ahead defense . Ammunition to be provided was 350 rpg for each 12 . 7 mm ( . 5 in ) gun and 500 rounds for each 7 . 7 mm ( . 303 in ) gun . The upper turret was troublesome to install , and was finally mounted in a partially retracted position , which prevented a full field of fire . The added weight of these guns adversely impacted the aircraft ' s performance . In addition , in retrospect the inclusion of a fixed forward - firing gun on a " fast bomber " appears to have been unnecessary . Other systems on board were oxygen cylinders , radios , fire extinguisher s and a photographic machine . The first prototype flew on 9 October 1939 . By the end of 1939 , this aircraft had logged only 10 hours of flight , due to the unreliable engines . This was not sufficient to adequately evaluate the design , so in March 1940 , the engines were replaced with Piaggio P . XII radial engines with three - blade propellers , with improved engine nacelles and propeller spinners . On 25 May 1940 , the prototype flew to Guidonia Montecelio for flight testing . The program was well behind the original schedule at that point ; " Regia " had planned on placing the first 32 machines of the type in service by the end of 1939 . Instead , Mario Stoppani and then Adriano Mantelli only flew the prototype . Stoppani made the delivery flight ; Mantelli performed the flight tests . He reported an overall good impression , but not outstanding . In December 1940 , " Regia Aeronautica " specified that the Z . 1018 be constructed with a double tail , but in May 1942 the requirement was changed back to the originally envisioned single tail . During this period , " Regia " also required the addition of dive brakes , increased armament , engine type changes and several other changes . In the meantime , the test activity continued . The prototype was tested with the P . XII engines , and thanks to the absolute lack of military systems on board , it reached good speeds : at 4 , 200 m ( 13 , 780 ft ) , the Z . 1018 reached 514 km / h ( 319 mph ) , equalling the Reggiane Re . 2000 that was also undergoing flight evaluation there . This aircraft had replaced the engines , but the Piaggio P . XII also suffered problems ( in fact they were affected for years by many problems ) . The verdict of Mantelli was not encouraging : the ' future bomber ' " Leone " was not enough of an improvement to justify its replacing the CANT Z . 1007 , which was already in production for " Regia Aereonautica " . A measure of the delays which this program suffered is given by the fact that , in spite of pressures caused by the war being waged at that time , it had taken six months to complete the proof - of - concept aircraft , and a true prototype would still have to be constructed in order to verify the adequacy of the basic design . Finally , the configuration of this aircraft was fixed , almost 2 years after its first - projected entry into service . The final Z . 1018 configuration is considered by some to be the most attractive of all the Italian aircraft . , with its line so slim and well shaped . Experimental service . With over a year of delay , 100 units of the CANT Z . 1018 were finally ordered on 31 October 1940 . However , on 26 December an additional order was placed for 10 units of " pre - series " aircraft . Due to problems arising from introduction of the all - metal airframe , the 10 pre - series aircraft were specified to be constructed of wood . It ' s a rare if not unique case that an aircraft was developed both with wooden and metallic structure , because among the other reasons , the necessity to account for the considerable differences between the weight and the strength of wood and metal structures . But Zappata was a specialist in wooden structures , and his Z . 1007 was already in production with wood construction , so this eased the challenge . In addition to this metal - to - wood conversion challenge , the continual government requests for modifications and improvements slowed production . Finally on 5 December 1941 , the first ( MM . 24290 ) wooden pre - series unit made its maiden flight . The two - year program delay meant that the pre - series aircraft were competing with upgraded versions of the CANT Z . 1007 , the " Ter " . With continuous delays and change of priorities , 15 January 1942 saw the decision to produce only three bombers : the CANT Z . 1007 and Z . 1018 , and the Piaggio P . 108 . At that time , General Bruno specified that the first 100 examples of the Z . 1018 must be in service by 1943 . The first wooden example was tested for almost all of 1942 , reaching a level speed 524 km / h ( 326 mph ) despite the much heavier weight , mainly because of its improved aerodynamics . Due to the 2 , 013 kW ( 2 , 700 hp ) installed power , it reached 6 , 000 m ( 19 , 690 ft ) altitude in 14 minutes 4 seconds ( lightly loaded ) . Even so , the flight characteristics were not totally satisfactory . The aircraft was characterized by good ground handling , good takeoff and landing , but the pilot ’ s cockpit was set too low in the fuselage and at an excessive height from the ground , so the visibility was not good . In flight , the aircraft was quite stable , but vibrations occurred at high speed in turbulence , and control response was considered sluggish . Also , the first series example was affected by several problems of tail vibration and even poorer control response . The maximum speed of the series examples was inferior to the prototype . Several of the pre - series aircraft suffered landing accidents , which although not serious further delayed the project ' s development . Other experiments were made with several Z . 1018s . Yet by 10 May 1943 , when Tunis was falling to Allied forces and the African war was almost over ( 13 May ) , only 10 units had been completed , several of which were incomplete or had been damaged during testing ( including testing for torpedo carriage and launch ) . On 7 July 1943 , the Italian 262 squadron , 107th Group , 47th Wing , received the first two pre - series aircraft to be placed in service , and later received another pre - series aircraft that had been damaged by a landing accident during flight testing . By September 1943 , only one pre - series Z . 1018 aircraft was still in service , and no Z . 1018 had seen combat . On 8 August 1943 , a pre - series Z . 1018 crashed near Perugia , killing its pilot , Enzo Bravi . Meanwhile , the first metallic Z . 1018s were completed . The first unit ( MM . 507 ) was completed on 22 September 1942 , but the lack of engines and other equipment hampered the effort to complete the first order of 100 units . The first two metal units completed were interesting : MM . 24824 was the heavy nightfighter version , and MM . 24826 was the torpedo version . MM . 24824 was exceptionally well armed , with four 20 mm MG 151 ( 800 rpg ) and four Breda 12 . 7 mm / . 5 in ( 1 , 400 rpg ) in the nose and the wings . Also radar was specified for this aircraft , the German FuG 202 . Italians , meanwhile , managed to produce the " Argo " , a radar capable of locking onto naval targets , and an aircraft version , the " Vespa " ( or " Arghetto " ) , smaller but still capable of being used to hunt naval targets . The final result of this effort was the " Lepre " , an air interceptor radar , the ultimate radar developed in Italy during the war . None of them was fitted on the Z . 1018 night fighter , which never was completely outfitted for combat . MM . 24824 had a powerful weaponry , both in firepower and number of rounds carried . This was a great improvement compared to the early Italian fighters , but this was a big and heavy aircraft , a medium bomber , so the space and payload was not a problem , just as with the German Dornier Do 217 , one of the similar aircraft developed in the rest of the world , and which had been sent to " Regia Aereonautica " in small numbers . After a brief evaluation in a squadron , MM . 24824 was caught by surprise by the armistice in CRDA and captured by Germans , but was not employed and didn ' t survive the war . MM . 24826 was tested with torpedoes , followed by two other examples , in Gorizia , in the local torpedo aircraft training unit . The aircraft showed itself as fully capable to perform this task but the two examples were not employed ( the other was damaged by an accident on the ground ) . During this time , Zappata noted that CRDA was saturated with production of all his projects , so he moved to Breda , which was idle after the failure of its Ba . 88 . At Brada , Zappata proposed several variants of the Z . 1018 metallic : The Italian Air Ministry authorized only the BZ . 301 and 303 , called " Leone " II and " Leone " III . The wingspan was altered for these variants : 24 m / 79 ft ( BZ . 301 ) ; 20 . 7 m / 68 ft ( BZ . 303 ) . The BZ . 303 project carried the best armament of Italian aircraft programs . It had eight 20 mm MG 151 ( 200 rpg ) , four in the wings and four in the nose ( plus a 12 . 7 mm / . 5 in gun in the dorsal position ) . It had radar and two Piaggio P XV RC60 engines of 1 , 081 kW ( 1 , 450 hp ) . Another version was provided with two DB 603 engines , and was called BZ303bis . In September 1943 , there were contracts for several of these " new generation " Leones " " . At this point , Germany took over control of both Italian industries involved , CRDA and Breda . Germans were involved already in the summer of 1943 in the testing of new Italian aircraft . They liked G . 55s and were interested to have deliveries of them by Fiat . They tested other Italian aircraft , even Z . 1018 . Sadly for CRDA they didn ' t have a good opinion of the " Leone " , claiming that it was not better than the already obsolete Ju 88A - 4 and even inferior to the Z . 1007ter . The Italian plans to produce bombers were severely weakened by this decision . Germans offered their Me 410 or Ju 188 in exchange for Italian G . 55s , in the process giving Italy worthless aircraft in exchange for airplanes which would be valuable in defense of Germany . The removal of Benito Mussolini on 25 July and the Armistice stopped these plans . The Germans took control of all Italian industries in central and north Italy . The Germans allowed both CRDA and Breda to continue the production for 28 examples each , out of 200 ordered in two series . CRDA was destroyed by allied bombings and so , its final result was : 95 examples were committed to the production lines , 28 of them were authorized to be completed , two were completed and taken by Germans , then sent to Germany where they were lost in unknown conditions . Four others were destroyed by bombings and the rest of all the machines were demolished as Germans ordered . Breda was in similar condition , with the assembly lines destroyed on 30 April 1944 by aerial bombing and also in this occasion Germans ordered the demolition of all the hardware . Photos of fuselages were made ; their metallic construction was evidenced by the lack of painting . This was the definite end for Z . 1018 / BZ . 300s . The causes of Leone ' s failure . All in all , the CANT Z . 1018 " Leone " was an unlucky aircraft . It was overall an improvement over Z . 1007 , mainly thanks to the two - engine configuration . This program was hampered , not enhanced , by the continuous requests made by " Regia Aereonautica " . But there were also technical shortcomings : The engines were the most persistent problem . Many of them , made by Alfa , Piaggio , Fiat and others , were proposed for a machine that never reached production ( in all , about 17 units were completed ) . The Z . 1007 was judged better , or at least as satisfactory , than its supposed replacement , the Z . 1018 , not without reasons : The Z . 1007e had three 746 kW ( 1 , 000 hp ) for a total of 2 , 237 kW ( 3 , 000 hp ) , 224 kW ( 300 hp ) more than Z . 1018 . With the Ter version , the power was even higher , with a total maximum of 2 , 573 - 2 , 685 kW ( 3 , 450 - 3 , 600 hp ) , almost 746 kW ( 1 , 000 hp ) more than Z . 1018 . The maximum speed of Z . 1007 ( 490 km / h / 300 mph ) was significantly lower due to greater drag , but its 50 % greater payload and greater probability of returning home with a damaged engine made it the preferred choice . More importantly , the 746 kW ( 1 , 000 hp ) engines were reasonably reliable , more so than the 1 , 044 kW ( 1 , 400 hp ) class used on the Z . 1018 . By 1942 , the improved Z . 1007 ( Ter ) was becoming available , while design revisions and production delays impeded the Z . 1008 . Like Ju 188 , Tu - 2 , Do 217 , Ki - 49 and 67 ( this latter the most similar to Z . 1018 ) these aircraft of new generation , born just at the beginning of the war , failed to show themselves enough better than the previous bombers to easily substitute them , especially if compared with the most advanced versions of the earlier - generation aircraft . One reason was the continuous demand for ' improvements ' that led to delays and errors ( see Heinkel He 177 as example ) . The small Italian industrial base , and the quick decay of the military effort , made the situation even worse . So the Z . 1018 , theoretically ready for production , arguably , not before the end of 1941 , was never a success . The presence of the Z . 1007ter in fact killed the program at least in the last year of war , before armistice . Even so , the manufacturing rate of CRDA was only 15 aircraft per month , and its engines were too unreliable and manufactured too slowly by the industries involved . General data . Production ordered . All the series of Z . 1018 " Leone " were : Total built , around 17 ( 10 wooden - made ) . This modest amount was the only result of the programs made by " Regia Aeronautica " to upgrade her bomber fleet . Performances . Characteristic of Z . 1018 " Leone " , ( version ) BZ . 303 ( heavy fighter ) , ( version ) BZ . 301 ( high altitude bomber )