Breda-SAFAT machine gun
Encyclopedia
Breda-SAFAT was a series of machine-guns mounted on Italian
aircraft during World War II
. The weapon came in 7.7mm (0.303-inch) and 12.7mm (0.50-inch) variants. The 7.7mm model was similar to the M1919 Browning machine gun
and could use some types of .303 British
ammunition. The 12.7mm version could fire a high-explosive-incendiary-tracer (HEIT) round with 0.8 grams of PETN
. An armor-piercing (AP) round was also available.
(Air Force) selected Breda for the contract. Fiat still did not surrender and launched a lawsuit aimed at Breda. But Fiat lost their case and the court ordered it to pay the trial expenses as well. After this failure, Senator Giovanni Agnelli was so irritated that he decided to exit the small arms industry for the next twenty years, selling SAFAT to Breda itself. Fiat's predominance in machine-guns ended, the rise of Breda began. (It was then an almost minuscule factory in Brescia.)
Scotti tried to improve the Breda's performance, but it could still not match the Japanese weapon's better rate of fire or reliability. Despite the availability of high-explosive ammunition, Italian pilots preferred the armor-piercing and incendiary rounds to the weak destructive capability of a mere 0.8 grams of explosive. It is untrue that other countries did not adopt high explosive 12.7–13.2 mm caliber rounds. Almost all did so, but they rated this ammunition too weak to justify its cost, it also did little damage to metal structures. On top of this, they were not effective against armor. High-explosive rounds were only common with guns in a caliber of 20 mm or larger. British experts called the high explosive smaller caliber rounds "ridiculous". The US only tested a few examples of HE 12.7 mm ammunition.
Thus, Italy lacked machine-guns with the critical qualities of light weight, a high rate of fire, good muzzle velocity, good projectile weight and reliability, while the Russians, Germans, Americans and Japanese had them in the Berezin
, MG 131, M2, and Ho-103. Late-war Italian aircraft began to adopt the German Mauser MG 151 to give their aircraft parity in firepower with Allied fighters. Aircraft such as the Macchi MC.205, Fiat G.55
and Reggiane Re.2005
had as many as three MG 151s in addition to two cowl-mounted Bredas.
The Breda guns, although adequate in 1935 at the time of their design, were unacceptable by the standards of 1940. In 1941 the Fiat C.R.42, Fiat G.50
, Macchi MC.200, Macchi MC.202
and Reggiane Re.2000
still only had two Breda 12.7 mm machine-guns and sometimes two extra wing mounted Breda 7.7mms. This was clearly inferior armament at the time, only equal to that of the Fiat CR.32
in 1935. Nevertheless, thousands of Breda guns were built in the 1930s and 1940s, arming nearly every Italian fighter and bomber of that period. Many of these weapons were also adapted for the anti-aircraft role and remained in service until the 1970s as reserve weapons; even if all the aircraft that they equipped had been phased out by that time. The last heavy machine-gun used on Italian aircraft was the Browning M3, as used on the Fiat G.91R.
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
aircraft during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. The weapon came in 7.7mm (0.303-inch) and 12.7mm (0.50-inch) variants. The 7.7mm model was similar to the M1919 Browning machine gun
M1919 Browning machine gun
The M1919 Browning is a .30 caliber medium machine gun that was widely used during the 20th century. It was used as a light infantry, coaxial, mounted, aircraft, and anti-aircraft machine gun by the U.S. and many other countries, especially during World War II, the Korean War, and the Vietnam War...
and could use some types of .303 British
.303 British
.303 British, or 7.7x56mmR, is a .311 inch calibre rifle and machine gun cartridge first developed in Britain as a blackpowder round put into service in December 1888 for the Lee-Metford rifle, later adapted to use smokeless powders...
ammunition. The 12.7mm version could fire a high-explosive-incendiary-tracer (HEIT) round with 0.8 grams of PETN
PETN
Pentaerythritol tetranitrate , also known as PENT, PENTA, TEN, corpent, penthrite , is the nitrate ester of pentaerythritol. Penta refers to the five carbon atoms of the neopentane skeleton.PETN is most well known as an explosive...
. An armor-piercing (AP) round was also available.
Development
The birth of these weapons came from the desire to have better machine-guns to face a new generation of enemy aircraft, with their higher performance and better armor. Breda based their designs on Browning machine-guns, adapted for Italian exigences, in particular with the change of cartridges from 7.62×63mm to 7.7×56R and from 12.7×99 to 12.7×81mm. The latter especially weakened the weapon and the goal of a lighter machine-gun with a high rate of fire was a failure. In any case, the completed gun saw competition from similar projects produced by the powerful industrial group Fiat, which proposed new weapons designed by its subsidiary factory, SAFAT (Società Anonima-Fabbricazione Armi Torino). But Breda/Browning weapons proved superior, the heaviest Browning machine-gun was five kilograms lighter than the Fiat-SAFAT. Despite attempts by Fiat to sell their design, the Regia AeronauticaRegia Aeronautica
The Italian Royal Air Force was the name of the air force of the Kingdom of Italy. It was established as a service independent of the Royal Italian Army from 1923 until 1946...
(Air Force) selected Breda for the contract. Fiat still did not surrender and launched a lawsuit aimed at Breda. But Fiat lost their case and the court ordered it to pay the trial expenses as well. After this failure, Senator Giovanni Agnelli was so irritated that he decided to exit the small arms industry for the next twenty years, selling SAFAT to Breda itself. Fiat's predominance in machine-guns ended, the rise of Breda began. (It was then an almost minuscule factory in Brescia.)
Comparison
The muzzle velocity of the Breda 12.7 mm was less than other .50 caliber machine-guns because its ammunition was 12.7×81 mm and not 12.7×99 mm or 12.7×108 mm. The Breda's muzzle energy was only 10,000 joules compared to the 16,000–17,000 joules of other cartridges. The Breda guns were reliable, but they had the worst power-weight ratio of all machine-guns mounted on World War II aircraft. In comparison, the Japanese Ho-103 had a similar 12.7×81mm round, but the gun was 6–7 kg lighter and had a rate of fire of 800–900 rounds per minute with a 34.2 gram projectile. The Japanese gun's rate of fire was at least 20% better, but it was still reliable. Isotta-FraschiniIsotta-Fraschini
Isotta Fraschini represents two Italian manufacturing companies which produce, respectively, marine engines and luxury goods. In the early 20th century it was famous worldwide as a luxury car manufacturer.-History:...
Scotti tried to improve the Breda's performance, but it could still not match the Japanese weapon's better rate of fire or reliability. Despite the availability of high-explosive ammunition, Italian pilots preferred the armor-piercing and incendiary rounds to the weak destructive capability of a mere 0.8 grams of explosive. It is untrue that other countries did not adopt high explosive 12.7–13.2 mm caliber rounds. Almost all did so, but they rated this ammunition too weak to justify its cost, it also did little damage to metal structures. On top of this, they were not effective against armor. High-explosive rounds were only common with guns in a caliber of 20 mm or larger. British experts called the high explosive smaller caliber rounds "ridiculous". The US only tested a few examples of HE 12.7 mm ammunition.
Thus, Italy lacked machine-guns with the critical qualities of light weight, a high rate of fire, good muzzle velocity, good projectile weight and reliability, while the Russians, Germans, Americans and Japanese had them in the Berezin
Berezin UB
Berezin UB was a 12.7 mm caliber Soviet aircraft machine gun widely used during World War II.-Development:...
, MG 131, M2, and Ho-103. Late-war Italian aircraft began to adopt the German Mauser MG 151 to give their aircraft parity in firepower with Allied fighters. Aircraft such as the Macchi MC.205, Fiat G.55
Fiat G.55
The Fiat G.55 Centauro was a single-engine single-seat World War II fighter aircraft used by the Regia Aeronautica and the A.N.R. in 1943-1945. It was designed and built in Turin by Fiat. The Fiat G.55 was probably the best type produced in Italy during World War II, but it did not enter...
and Reggiane Re.2005
Reggiane Re.2005
The Reggiane Re.2005 was an Italian monoplane fighter/fighter-bomber produced for the Regia Aeronautica during the later years of World War II. It is considered by many to be "the most beautiful plane of the Second World War". Along with the Macchi C.202/C.205 and Fiat G.55, the Reggiane Re.2005...
had as many as three MG 151s in addition to two cowl-mounted Bredas.
The Breda guns, although adequate in 1935 at the time of their design, were unacceptable by the standards of 1940. In 1941 the Fiat C.R.42, Fiat G.50
Fiat G.50
The Fiat G.50 Freccia was a World War II Italian fighter aircraft. First flown in February 1937, the G.50 was Italy’s first single-seat, all-metal monoplane with an enclosed cockpit and retractable landing gear to go into production...
, Macchi MC.200, Macchi MC.202
Macchi MC.202
The Macchi C.202 Folgore was a World War II fighter aircraft built by Macchi Aeronautica and operated by the Regia Aeronautica . Macchi aircraft designed by Mario Castoldi received the "C" letter in their model designation, hence the Folgore is referred to as the MC.202...
and Reggiane Re.2000
Reggiane Re.2000
The Caproni-Reggiane Re.2000 Falco I was an Italian all metal, low-wing, monoplane with a Curtiss-style retractable undercarriage, used in the first part of World War II. This lightly built and highly manoeuvrable interceptor/fighter, similar to the Seversky P-35, flew for the first time in 1939...
still only had two Breda 12.7 mm machine-guns and sometimes two extra wing mounted Breda 7.7mms. This was clearly inferior armament at the time, only equal to that of the Fiat CR.32
Fiat CR.32
The Fiat CR.32 was an Italian biplane fighter used in the Spanish Civil War and World War II. This nimble little Fiat was compact, robust and highly manoeuvrable and gave impressive displays all over Europe in the hands of the Pattuglie Acrobatiche. The CR.32 fought in North and East Africa, in...
in 1935. Nevertheless, thousands of Breda guns were built in the 1930s and 1940s, arming nearly every Italian fighter and bomber of that period. Many of these weapons were also adapted for the anti-aircraft role and remained in service until the 1970s as reserve weapons; even if all the aircraft that they equipped had been phased out by that time. The last heavy machine-gun used on Italian aircraft was the Browning M3, as used on the Fiat G.91R.