Back to Krusty's original post, the C.202 wing mounted mgs were introduced in Series VII, while the pylons for underwing stores were introduced in Series IX (the so called C.202CB, "CacciaBombardiere", for Jabo): each pylon could carry a 50, 100 or 160 Kg GP bomb or, alternatively, a 100 or 150 liter drop tanks.
The problem is that these modifications were often retrofitted, so it's hard to say how many C.202 and from which series were able to carry underwing stores. What's certain is that C.202 (and, consequently, C.205, that shares most, if not all, of its airframe with the Folgore) could carry external loads, so I'd like to see them added to the game.
C.205N, Macchi's final configuration for the last fighter competion held by the Regia Aeronautica before the armstice (the one that gave birth to the so called "Serie 5" fighters), never saw production, in any variant. Air Ministry decided to produce a certain number of C.205V, because of the strong similarity with C.202, that allowed a ready production, while Fiat and Reggiane were preparing their production lines for the G.55 and Re.2005, but this latter two were to go in big production, not the Veltro, that was seen as an temporary solution. Gatt sent to HT the G.55 manual, I hope to see it in game, sooner or later, maybe with a CT Italian scenario!
As for engines, it's not true that we didn't care about high powered engines. The matter is that Regia Aeronautica decided (with one of the many unforeseeing choices they made) that radial engines were better suited for combat and more reliable than inline engines, ignoring the progresses made in the inline engine production during the 30s; only in 1938, about, they undestood the error.
And the research on inline engines was never dropped, it did go ahead: there are prototypes of many italian planes equipped with Isotta Fraschini Delta engine, but it was never tuned before the armstice and, given the needs of production, it was eventually decided to use the Daimler Benz as power unit, without waiting for the national industry to perfection its own designs.
The true problem was lack of foreseeing and proper leadership in the Air Ministry and Air Force top brass and the status of national industry that Widewing so well framed.
