The first flight of the Caproni-Campini N.1, thermojet-powered aircraft.
The N.1s first flight was made by test pilot Mario De Bernardi at Caproni's facility in Taliedo, outside Milan. He would conduct the majority of the N.1's test flights. The first flight lasted ten minutes, during which de Bernardi kept the speed below 225 mph (362 km/h), less than half throttle.
Although the first flight of the jet-powered Heinkel He 178 had been made a year before, it had not been made public, so the Fédération Aéronautique Internationale recorded the N.1 as the first successful flight by a jet aircraft.
During 1931, Italian aeronautics engineer Secondo Campini submitted his studies on jet propulsion, including a proposal for a so-called thermo-jet to power an aircraft. Following a high-profile demonstration of a jet-powered boat in Venice, Campini was rewarded with an initial contract issued by the Italian government to develop and manufacture his proposed engine. During 1934, the Regia Aeronautica (the Italian Air Force) granted its approval to proceed with the production of a pair of jet-powered prototype aircraft. To produce this aircraft, which was officially designated as the N.1, Campini formed an arrangement with the larger Caproni aviation manufacturer.
The N.1 is powered by a motorjet, a type of jet engine in which the compressor is driven by a conventional reciprocating engine. On 27 August 1940, the first of the N.1 took place at the Caproni facility in Taliedo, outside of Milan, flown by Mario de Bernardi. On 30 November 1941 the second prototype was flown by De Bernardi and engineer Giovanni Pedace from Milan's Linate Airport to Rome's Guidonia Airport, in a highly publicised event that included a fly-past over Rome and a reception with Italian Prime Minister Benito Mussolini. Testing of the N.1 continued into 1943, when work on the project was disrupted by the Allied invasion of Italy.
-----
This article uses some material and information from Wikipedia.
~~~~~~~~
via Historical Aviation Film Unit
