TheMacchi M.5 was an Italian single-seatfighterflying boat designed and built byNieuport-Macchi at Varese. It was extremely manoeuvrable and agile and matched the land-based aircraft it had to fight.^[1]

Macchi M.5
Role	Single-seat fighter flying boat
National origin	Italy
Manufacturer	Nieuport-Macchi
First flight	1917
Introduction	1917
Primary user	Italian Navy Aviation
Number built	244

The firstprototype of a single-seatsesquiplane fighter was theType M which first flew in 1917. Developed by engineers Buzio and Calzavera it had a single-step hull and an opencockpit forward of the wings and was similar to the earlierMacchi M.3. It was followed by another prototype with a revised tail unit designated theMa and further developed as theM bis andMa bis. The production aircraft was designated the M.5 and like the prototypes was powered by a singleIsotta Fraschini V.4B engine inpusher configuration. Deliveries soon commenced in the summer of 1917 to theAviazione per la Regia Marina (Italian Navy Aviation). Late production aircraft had a more powerfulIsotta Fraschini V.6 engine and redesigned wingtip floats, they were designatedM.5 mod. Macchi produced 200 aircraft and another 44 were built bySocietà Aeronautica Italiana.

DuringWorld War I, the M.5 was operated by five Italianmaritime patrol squadrons as a fighter andconvoy escort, and some were embarked on theRegia Marinaseaplane carrierGiuseppe Miraglia. Towards the end of World War I, M.5 aircraft were flown by bothUnited States Navy andUnited States Marine Corps airmen. For his actions while flying an M.5 over theAdriatic Sea off the coast ofAustria-Hungary on 21 August 1918, U.S. NavyEnsignCharles Hammann, an enlisted pilot at the time, received the firstMedal of Honor awarded to a United Statesnaval aviator.^[2]

In 1923, when theRegia Aeronautica was formed, 65 M.5s were still in service, although they all had been scrapped within a few years.

  Kingdom of Italy

• Regia Marina
• Corpo Aeronautico Militare

  United States

• United States Navy
• United States Marine Corps

  Brazil

• Brazilian Navy – Twelve Brazilian pilots trained in these aircraft, but the war ended before they could participate it.^{[citation needed]}

Data from^[1]

General characteristics

• Crew: one
• Length: 8.08 m (26 ft 6 in)
• Wingspan: 11.90 m (39 ft 0.5 in)
• Height: 2.85 m (9 ft 4.5 in)
• Wing area: 28 m² (301.4 sq ft)
• Empty weight: 720 kg (1,587 lb)
• Gross weight: 990 kg (2,183 lb)
• Powerplant: 1 ×Isotta Fraschini V.4B inline piston engine , 119 kW (160 hp)

Performance

• Maximum speed: 189 km/h (117 mph, 102 kn)
• Endurance: 3 hours 40 minutes
• Service ceiling: 6,200 m (20,340 ft)

Armament

• 2 × fixed, forward-facing.303 British (7.7 mm)Vickers machine guns

Related lists

• List of flying boats and floatplanes

• Taylor, Michael J. H. (1989).Jane's Encyclopedia of Aviation. London: Studio Editions.
• The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Aircraft (Part Work 1982–1985). Orbis Publishing.