G.56

Description

The Stato Maggiore dell'Aeronautica requested Fiat to develop an aircraft based on the G.55 airframe, which would later become the FIAT G.56, practically an upgraded version of the G.55 with a reduction in armament from three 20 mm cannons and two 12.7 mm machine guns to just three 20 mm cannons so as to reduce the weight of the aircraft. In addition to this a new engine was mounted, the DB 603 with 1,750 HP, 275 more than the G.55. This project had already been thought of in 1942, but with the Allied invasion and continuous bombing of the aeronautical and logistics infrastructure the construction of the G.56 was slowed down considerably. A prototype of the G.56 was built before the armistice of 1943, but immediately after it was painted with the insignia of Germany to simplify the recognition. The only two G.56 built would remain prototypes.

Introduced along with the initial Italian air tech tree in Update 1.69 "Regia Aeronautica", the G.56 proves to be very balanced for engine power, armament, and manoeuvrability, able to engage in both turn fights and energy fights. Thanks to the fuselage it can sustain several hits without breaking or being destroyed.

General info

Flight performance

Loved by its pilots and despised by the enemies that get in its crosshairs, the G.56 is an excellent plane at its tier. It takes the already very solid G.55 airframe, extends the fuselage and places a powerful DB 603 engine in place of the already good DB 605, and drops the two Breda 12.7 mm HMG's, which were fairly useless, to begin with. The improved power of the 603 combined with overall weight deductions allows the aircraft to both literally and figuratively propel itself to new heights and gives it more than a fighting chance when facing other aircraft in the 5.0-6.3 range. Generally speaking, it is a very responsive aircraft with good overall flight characteristics that can dominate the airspace if given the chance. These traits have gained the aircraft the affectionate nickname of Super Centauro by the community.

Details

Survivability and armour

• 8 mm Steel plate behind the pilot
• 50 mm Bulletproof glass

Modifications and economy

Focus on performance upgrades to remedy a few of the G.56's weaknesses that are more pronounced when stock, such as manoeuvrability. Do not worry about researching the bomb options, as they are next to useless and only hampers the aircraft's performance.

Upgrades should follow a similar path as this:

• Fuselage repair
• Radiator
• Compressor
• Airframe
• Offensive 20 mm
• Engine
• Wings repair
• Engine injection
• Cover
• New 20 mm cannons

Armaments

Offensive armament

The G.56 is armed with:

• 1 x 20 mm MG 151 cannon, nose-mounted (300 rpg)
• 2 x 20 mm MG 151 cannons, wing-mounted (250 rpg = 500 total)

Two of the cannons are mounted one each in the wings with the remaining cannon being nose-mounted through the propeller spinner. Each wing-mounted cannon is armed with the same amount of ammunition, which means that all wing-mounted guns will fire together until empty. The nose cannon contains 50 more rounds of ammo than the wing-mounted cannons and will continue to fire after the wing-mounted cannons have run out of ammunition.

Suspended armament

The G.56 can be outfitted with the following ordnance:

• Without load
• 2 x 50 kg GP 50 bombs (100 kg total)
• 2 x 100 kg GP 100 bombs (200 kg total)

Unless the situation is extremely dire, it is never a wise move to use bombs on the G.56, as it wastes the aircraft's potential and puts it in its most vulnerable altitude where it can't use its excellent dive speed and top-end speed to get away from opponents.

Usage in battles

Thanks to the powerful DB 603 and general aerodynamic improvements from the previous G.55, the G.56 will be a competitive aircraft in almost any role you put it in. Low-altitude, medium-altitude, high-altitude, energy fighting, Boom-&-Zoom, or (in some cases) turn-fighting, the Super Centauro can do it all! However, your ideal flying style should be as a more reserved medium to high altitude energy fighter, as this is the area the aircraft excels. One should always keep their speed up, a minimum of 370 km/h (230 mph), as this allows you to whip your nose around with alarming speed and bug out of unfavorable scenarios. The G.56 can very quickly bleed velocity in high-speed horizontal turns, and you may find yourself struggling to regain it.

One does not have to worry about the aircraft's ammunition, as you are given an absurd 800 rounds total (300 in the nose-mounted gun plus 500 rounds, 250 in each of the two wing-mounted cannons) and have access to the universally feared Minengeschoß round that will destroy anything in a few well-placed hits

Playstyles

Beneath the sleek and eye-pleasing design of the Super Centauro lies a monster of a plane if piloted well. The aircraft's main strength is not its armament, speed, manoeuvrability, or climb rate (which are excellent in their rights), but how easily it can set up an attack on an enemy. Your primary method of battle should be energy fighting at a middle or high altitude so you can keep up your potential energy while also making the most out of the aircraft's engine. You can dictate the flow of the battle by staying around 5,000 - 6,000 m due to the ability to choose your fights easily; you can dive in and shred your targets, then be gone before anyone knows what happened. If an enemy tries to intercept you, pay attention to the aircraft they're flying, adjust accordingly, and then engage on your terms. If they are approaching from below, pull up into a stall climb or vertical spiral to make them waste their energy and then pounce while they're recovering. If they are approaching from above, attempt to get them to overshoot and follow through.

The weakest flying style the G.56 can be put into is in a low-altitude combat scenario, where it can't abuse its excellent supercharged engine and doesn't have the altitude to dive so it can escape. It is a generally safe idea to avoid these scenarios and climb to get your advantages back, and you won't be torn to shreds by the hordes of enemies that will flock to your location due to seeing you as easy prey.

The G.56 is adept at dealing with bombers thanks to its excellent performance and powerful armament layout that can easily tear through the large bodies of strategic bombers. When engaging a bomber, it is best to either approach the front to get a pilot snipe or approach from below and aim for the wings or engines, as it can't get very far without them. "Oh, it has weak guns, I can tail it." If these words enter your mind, throw them out immediately. No matter how "weak" its defensive armament may be, never tail any bomber, as this mindset can lead to some embarrassing deaths regardless of the skill of the pilot in question.

Specific enemies worth noting

While the G.56 can out-perform a good portion of enemies it will face, there are a few enemies that one should pay attention to.

• Late Griffon Spitfires (MkXIV, MkXVIII, Mk22 and Mk24): These are the kind of plane a G.56 pilot would want to deal with immediately. Griffon spitfires are faster than the G.56, turn slightly better without flaps, roll just as good, and have similar compression. There are two things factors for the G.56: for one, the G.56 has slightly better Manoeuvring Energy Retention. On the other hand, the G.56 has adjustable flaps, whereas Spitfires do not. If the G.56 should find the Spitfire during a head-on, exploit the nose-mounted 20 mm cannon for an easier hit on the Spitfire, then break off and use the combat flaps to get behind the Spitfire. Do not get caught doing flat horizontal turns near sea level, as the G.56 will be inevitably trapped by the Spitfire's shorter turn time and higher top speed. Though, if the G.56 gets behind one, the plane's slightly higher Thrust-to-Weigh ratio and flaps will help the G.56 stay behind it. (Still, the G.56 should not attempt to stall a Spitfire with equal energy states if the pilot does not have enough experience, as the G.56's elevator authority below 300 km/h is worse that that of the Spitfire's, and the G.56 will be shot down while stalling right in front of the Spitfire).
• N1K2 and Ki-84: The best of the Japanese air tree in terms of fighters. The N1K2 and the Ki-84 are both highly manoeuvrable, and in the case of the Ki-84, are faster that the G.56. A G.56 pilot should either use the nose-mounted cannon in a head-on, or dive and exploit their worse high speed compression to get behind them, and then deploy the combat flaps when necessary to stay behind them and shoot them down. It is important to take this technique into account. One issue is that in Air Realistic Battles, the Japanese and the Americans can be found on the same side in matches, while the Italian G.56 will be in the other with everyone else. This means that while the diving portion of the technique may work against the Japanese fighters, if any accompanying American fighters with similar or better dive characteristics show up, the G.56 should prepare to play flexibly against the different enemy fighter's traits.
• Bf 109 K-4: The Kurfürst is the penultimate modification of the legendary Bf 109 and plays surprisingly similar to the G.56, even sharing the same armament layout (2 x 13.2 mm HMGs and 3 x 20 mm cannons, as this is the setup most pilots use). However, it does outclimb and out speed the G.56 by a relatively large margin, but the G.56 beats it at higher altitudes and have more responsive controls at lower speeds. The result of the dogfight comes down to pilot skill, as the planes are extremely similar, but the G.56 should try to Boom & Zoom against it to avoid the danger the aircraft presents. It is worthwhile to note that the G.56 can outturn every 109 except the earlier ones such as the F-4, and can turn around them even more so when the 109's pilot uses the gun pod attachments, which is more than common.
• F8F-1B: The Bearcat is also a very dangerous opponent that the G.56 can encounter. Its roll rate is comparable to the Fw 190 series, its speed and acceleration are almost unparalleled, and its armament is very effective in all forms of combat. The G.56 under no circumstances should try to engage a Bearcat that is aware of the G.56's presence, as it will easily beat the G.56 in almost every scenario. If Bearcat forces an engagement onto the G.56, seek assistance from teammates or attempt to bleed his speed with safe manoeuvres.
• I-225: The I-225 is the king of Russian props and excels in a high altitude, energy-based flying style. While the G.56 itself is very solid at higher altitudes thanks to its DB 603 combined with a supercharger, it is nothing compared to the I-225, which loses almost no performance flying anywhere above 6 km. Combined with its amazing speed and relatively powerful armament, the Russian menace is a fear to any aircraft it comes into contact with. However, if the G.56 can engage it with an energy advantage via Boom & Zoom, it is an easy target thanks to its very vulnerable airframe and almost total lack of armour. The aircraft is also inferior in low-speed engagements, an area the G.56 does well in and can take advantage of.
• Re.2005: While Realistic Battles will never have the G.56 go against the Saggitario, Arcade and Mixed Battles poses this challenge. The Re.2005 is an amazing prop fighter with a turning circle that embarrasses a Spitfire and makes a A6M Zero blush, plus it has the armaments to back up said manoeuvrability. These traits make 2005 one of the most universally feared threats to anyone in its airspace. However, it lacks the speed to compete with its contemporaries and has a very weak airframe that cannot afford to take many central hits. The G.56's amazing dive speed is its friend in these scenarios, always engage 2005 with a speed advantage and never turn after a run.

When Engaging the Aircraft

The G.56 is an enemy that you need to dispatch as soon as you possibly can, as even a singular one can be the most painful thorn in your side for the rest of the game. It would be best if you never let them gain an altitude advantage, as this allows them to single-handedly dictate the flow of the battle with its high diving speed and excellent top-end speed. If one is diving on you, you should take advantage of the aircraft's reduced roll rate due to high-speed compression, force an overshoot, and light them up during their zoom climb.

Unless you're in a Re.2005, Ki-84, Zero, Ki-61, Reppu, or Spitfire, you should never engage a G.56 in a turn-fight. Despite the aircraft's stat card saying otherwise, the G.56 turns better than almost every aircraft it faces and turns especially well with energy. Your go-to tactic for engaging the aircraft should be Boom-&-Zoom, as it allows you to blitz them and take advantage of their relatively weak airframe.

Manual Engine Control

Pros and cons

Pros:

• Powerful engine gives it great acceleration and great top speed
• Can easily set and rack up kills in the hands of a skilled pilot
• Fast firing, an accurate triad of MG 151 cannons with access to the dreaded Minengeschoß explosive round
• Large ammo reserve (800 rounds total)
• Above average climb rate
• Superb manoeuvrability at all speeds
• Competitive flight performance at most altitudes
• Arguably the best 6.0 Axis aircraft that can deal with most Allied props with relative ease
• Excellent top speed, although slightly slower than its competitors
• Lenient stock grind
• Great manoeuvring energy retention

Cons:

• Mediocre roll rate
• Control surfaces function poorly at high speeds
• Stays in take-off settings while using Automatic Engine Controls, overheating the plane quickly
• Open radiator affects plane's top speed more than typical fighters
• Can face early jets

History

The concept of the G.56 traces back to 1942, when the Stato Maggiore dell Aeronautica requested Fiat to develop an aircraft based on the G.55 airframe, which would allow it to mount recently available DB 603 engine that produced 1,750 horsepower, 275 more horsepower than the DB 605. Giuseppe Gabrielli designed it in 1944. The design was proven to be an all-around improvement from the already excellent G.55, with Commander Valentino Cus reaching nearly 710 km/h (450 mph) and official records stating a maximum speed of roughly 685 km/h (426 mph). The two Breda-SAFAT Machine guns that were mounted in the nose were removed to make room for the massive engine, reducing the weight slightly and allowing more 20 mm ammunition to be carried.

Leader of the Luftwaffe Hermann Goering saw the potential in the prototype and immediately proposed it to Hitler and Galland as an alternative to the Me 309, a similarly designed Bf 109 with a DB 603 engine. He described that due to the state of the war, Germany could not afford to make such radical changes to the Bf 109, as it was already difficult enough to go from the E series to the F series, let alone the G series. Thus, he proposed that Germany would take over the aircraft production, giving them a fighting chance versus the myriad of enemy fighters that started to outclass the 109. However, engine production of the DB 603 was put on the back burner to focus on the DB 605 that powered most of German aircraft, so there was only a handful of DB 603's to go around. Despite showing excellent flight characteristics and was able to compete with every allied fighter at the time, it was never put into production due to the lack of DB 603 engines and Italy's horrible economic status, with only two prototypes being made before the war's end.

Media

Skins

• Skins and camouflages for the G.56 from live.warthunder.com.

Videos

See also

• G.55 (Family): the family the G.56 comes from
• Fw 190 D-9, D-12/D-13 and Ta 152 H-1: equivalent fighter aircraft using the same engine

External links

• Official data sheet - more details about the performance