CANSA C.5B

The CANSA C.5B was an Italian two‑seat training and liaison aircraft produced by the small but ambitious firm CANSA (Cantieri Aeronautici e Navali Savoia) during the early 1940s. Developed as an evolution of the earlier C.5, the “B” variant incorporated a more powerful 260 hp Isotta Fraschini Delta engine, a reinforced wooden airframe and an extended canopy that accommodated a trainee pilot and an instructor side‑by‑side. First flown in late 1942, the C.5B entered limited service with the Regia Aeronautica, primarily for basic flight instruction, radio‑operator training, and short‑range courier duties on the Italian mainland and the Balkans.

Key features included a low‑wing monoplane layout, fixed split‑type landing gear, and generous control surfaces that offered gentle stall characteristics, making it ideal for novice pilots. The aircraft’s mixed construction of spruce, plywood and fabric kept weight low while allowing rapid, low‑cost production—a crucial advantage amid wartime material shortages. Though only a few hundred were built before the armistice halted production, the C.5B demonstrated how modest designs could efficiently meet training needs, influencing post‑war Italian light aircraft development and cementing CANSA’s brief but notable contribution to World War II aviation history.

CANSA

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Design & Classification