Caproni Ca . 313 The Caproni Ca . 313 was an Italian twin - engine reconnaissance bomber of the late - 1930s . It was a development of the Ca . 310 . Its variants were exported to several other countries . Design and development . The Ca . 313 was designed by Cesare Pallavicino . The prototype first flew on 22 December 1939 . It was developed as a replacement of the Caproni Ca . 311 . To save development time , the first Ca . 313 was simply a modified Ca . 310 with new engines . The final Ca . 313 design was similar to the Ca . 311 with inline engines . These engines , IF Delta RC 35 inverted V - 12s , had a smaller frontal profile than the Piaggio P . VII C . 35 radial engines they replaced . Due to the resulting lower aerodynamic drag , the Ca . 313 was capable of more speed for the same power . Given the fact that 626 kW ( 840 hp ) Fiat A . 38 radial engines were needed for front - line fighter s , there was no other choice for this aircraft . The Ca . 313 had a glassed - in nose , similar to the Heinkel He 111 . This Caprioni , with its characteristic ' Z ' hubs , engines mounted in the wings and retractable undercarriage , was of mixed construction , i . e . metal in the fuselage and wood in the wings . Bomb load and defensive armament were typical of the time . The aircraft could carry 400 kg ( 880 lb ) of bombs . Three 7 . 7 mm ( 0 . 303 in ) Breda ( or Scotti ) machine gun s were fitted - one in the left wing , one in a dorsal turret and one in the ventral position . The main customer was the " Regia Aeronautica " ( Italian Air Force ) , but many aircraft were ordered by other countries . France ordered 200 machines and Great Britain 300 . Of these 500 , only five Ca . 313F units were delivered to France before Italy ' s entry into World War II . Operational history . The aircraft served mainly with Italy , in the light transport , trainer and maritime reconnaissance roles . Swedish Air Force designations were B 16 , S 16 , T 16 , and Tp 16 . Despite having a similar payload , armament and speed to the British Bristol Blenheim , its performance was substantially inferior . The outbreak of war greatly affected Sweden ' s military buildup , as the USA stopped deliveries of hundreds of new US aircraft to Sweden ( among them 60 P - 35A and 144 P - 66 Vanguard ) . Only 62 other airplanes had been delivered before the embargo took effect . To complete its war preparations , Sweden searched for other sources , eventually ordering 84 of the Caproni Ca . 313S , 72 of the Fiat CR . 42 , and 60 of the Reggiane Re . 2000 , an order totaling some 90 million crowns . The aircraft were delivered between 1940 and 1941 . Between 1940 and 1943 , there were 23 fatal accidents at the three air force bases ( F 3 , F 7 and F 11 ) that operated them . Three more were shot down by German fighters , on 18 and 23 May 1944 . 41 crewmen died in these ' flying coffins ' . The Ca . 313 suffered many engine fires ; this situation was not helped by the special fuel that was required . This fuel often corroded the tanks , causing leaks which would result in the fuel spilling onto the hot engines . Other accidents occurred when the aircraft was used in a role for which it was not suited , such as dive bombing . For example , on 10 June 1942 , one aircraft crashed following a wing failure . Many parts were not made to the correct standard . When it was realized that Sweden did not have the same problem , a modification programme was introduced and the rate of accidents dropped . For many years this machine , with its 10 hour endurance , was the only one capable of patrolling around Sweden . By all standards , it was obsolete by 1940 . It was removed from service soon after the end of the war . The " Luftwaffe " eventually ordered 905 machines called the CA . 313G to be used for training purposes and other secondary employment , but only a few examples were delivered . They had a different nose from the standard model . Two series of Ca . 313 had this nose difference and were called ' Ca . 313 R . P . B . 1 and 2 . In 1942 , Croatia received ten Caproni Ca 311M bombers which had been ordered and paid for by the former Royal Yugoslav government . Survivors . There are no original Ca . 313 survivors . A replica built in Sweden for a TV miniseries using some original parts was put in the Flygvapenmuseum , Linköping , after filming was completed where it can still be seen .