Dewoitine D.520 in Italian Service
Roughly 60 Dewoitine D.520 fighters entered service with the Regia Aeronautica (RA). Italian pilots generally respected the type for its handling qualities and its Hispano-Suiza HS.404 20 mm cannon, which was competitive by 1940–41 standards. The first three airframes were allocated to 2° Stormo at Turin-Caselle for point-defence of the industrial zone. Additional examples were captured at various airfields in southern France, including Montélimar, Orange, Istres, and Aix-en-Provence.
By early 1943, Italian personnel ferried Dewoitines taken as war prizes to Italy. Italian pilots praised its armament, cockpit ergonomics, effective radio set, and benign spin behaviour, yet criticised its fragile landing gear and limited cannon ammunition capacity. Ammunition supply also proved a constraint, since HS.404 ammunition was incompatible with Italian Breda and Scotti 20 mm systems and had to be drawn from French stocks.
Operational allocation began in late February 1943 when 359a Squadriglia (22° Gruppo), led by Maggiore Vittorio Minguzzi, received eight Dewoitines for air-defence duties at a moment when American B-24 formations were regularly striking Naples. Pilots achieved modest success, and on 1 March 1943 Minguzzi claimed a B-24—initially assessed as probable, later confirmed—the first known Italian victory in the type. Further integration followed an Italo-German exchange agreement of 21 May 1943 involving LeO 451 bombers and 30 D.520s. Through spring and summer 1943 the aircraft equipped 161° Gruppo Autonomo at Grottaglie, Crotone, and Reggio Calabria. On 31 July 1943 the RA retained 47 D.520s on strength. Following the 8 September armistice, three surviving examples transferred to the Aeronautica Nazionale Repubblicana for training duties.
