S.M.79 serie 1
| This page is about the Italian bomber S.M.79 serie 1. For other versions, see S.M.79 (Family). |
Contents
Description
The S.M.79 Sparviero serie 1 (1936) is a rank I Italian bomber with a battle rating of 2.0 (AB/SB) and 1.7 (RB). It was introduced in Update 1.69 "Regia Aeronautica", though a variant existed in the Germany aircraft tech tree prior to the update.
Due to its relatively low Battle Rating, the three-engined SM.79 serie 1 enjoys a relatively high speed for a bomber against most of the lower tiered opposition it faces. This aids its survivability, particularly in a shallow dive. Unfortunately, it is rather lacking in bombload options compared to the He 111s and Ju 88s and also has rather poor defensive fire arcs.
Unlike the German bombers, however, it is armed with 12.7 mm Breda-SAFAT machine guns which can pack quite a punch against the flimsier aircraft it faces. The pilot also controls a fixed forward-firing 12.7 mm Breda, which is otherwise uncovered by any defensive armament. This gun can be useful for strafing light vehicles and trucks that will be encountered frequently in low tier battles and can be used to shoot down other aircraft. It is somewhat more manoeuvrable than the He 111 H-3, but the Sparviero is by no means a fighter and will rapidly lose energy in turns. With the ability to carry 500 kg bombs, the SM.79 can use these to more easily take out pillboxes and heavier tanks, although this reduces the total bombload to only 1000 kg as opposed to 1250 kg with 250 kg bombs.
General info
Flight performance
| Characteristics | Max Speed (km/h at 4,000 m) |
Max altitude (metres) |
Turn time (seconds) |
Rate of climb (metres/second) |
Take-off run (metres) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| AB | RB | AB | RB | AB | RB | |||
| Stock | 416 | 404 | 6800 | 32.6 | 33.6 | 4.5 | 4.4 | 450 |
| Upgraded | 444 | 430 | 30.4 | 31.6 | 7.8 | 5.9 | ||
Details
| Features | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Combat flaps | Take-off flaps | Landing flaps | Air brakes | Arrestor gear |
| ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | X | X |
| Limits | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wings (km/h) | Gear (km/h) | Flaps (km/h) | Max Static G | |||
| Combat | Take-off | Landing | + | - | ||
| 530 | 300 | 325 | 325 | 220 | ~3 | ~2 |
| Optimal velocities (km/h) | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Ailerons | Rudder | Elevators | Radiator |
| < 260 | < 270 | < 270 | > 290 |
| Compressor (RB/SB) | ||
|---|---|---|
| Setting 1 | ||
| Optimal altitude | 100% Engine power | WEP Engine power |
| 3,400 m | 740 hp | N/A |
Survivability and armour
- No armour
- Self-sealing fuel tanks (1 under dorsal gunner, 1 in each wingroot, 1 in each outer part of the wing, 1 in the rear of each engine nacelle)
Modifications and economy
| Flight performance | Survivability | Weaponry | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
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|
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Armaments
Offensive armament
The S.M.79 serie 1 is armed with:
- 1 x 12.7 mm Breda-SAFAT machine gun, dorsal-mounted (350 rpg)
Suspended armament
The S.M.79 serie 1 can be outfitted with the following ordnance:
- 12 x 50 kg GP 50 bombs (600 kg total)
- 12 x 100 kg GP 100 bombs (1,200 kg total)
- 5 x 250 kg GP 250 bombs (1,250 kg total)
- 2 x 500 kg GP 500 bombs (1,000 kg total)
Defensive armament
The S.M.79 serie 1 is defended by:
- 1 x 12.7 mm Breda-SAFAT machine gun, dorsal turret (500 rpg)
- 1 x 12.7 mm Breda-SAFAT machine gun, ventral turret (500 rpg)
- 1 x 7.7 mm Lewis machine gun, 2 x beam turrets (485 rpg)
Usage in battles
S.M.79 serie 1 is a decent bomber at its BR and below, but it faces many threats, for example Spitfires, LaGG-3s, MiG-3s and P-40s.
If the S.M.79 manage to get past the threats, it jas the payload to take out enemy bomb points and ground targets, with its bomber spawn it can descend to get extra speed to quickly get to the bombing point, those this will also expose it to enemy fighters and attackers that have the firepower to destroy the S.M.79 with ease in both Realistic and Arcade battles.
A big drawback with the S.M.79 is that it's big and not fast or agile compared to certain bombers at same BR but if it is able to pass through enemy line it can cause a lot of damage to the points. It has 2 x 12.7 mm Breda MGs aiming backwards in a limited field of view making a lot of the plane uncovered by the MGs, as well as 2 x 7.7 mm Breda MGs on the sides, also with limited views, leaving a lot of the plane unprotected.
S.M.79 also has an offensive 12.7 mm which can do damage to enemy fighters or bombers, if one has a well trained aim, it can be a dangerous weapon to the S.M.79's advantage. The problem with the 12.7 mm is its slow RoF compared to other 12.7 mm and a low count of 350 rounds in the gun.
Manual Engine Control
| MEC elements | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mixer | Pitch | Radiator | Supercharger | Turbocharger | ||
| Oil | Water | Type | ||||
| Not controllable | Controllable Not auto controlled |
Not controllable Not auto controlled |
Not controllable Not auto controlled |
Separate | Not controllable 1 gear |
Not controllable |
Pros and cons
Pros:
- Hard-hitting 12.7 mm Breda-SAFAT defensive machine guns.
- Pilot-controlled fixed forward-firing 12.7 mm Breda, which can be equipped with IAI (explosive) ammunition.
- Good speed.
- Middle engine provides some level of protection for the pilot against head-on attacks.
- Capable of carrying 500 kg bombs, unlike the He 111 H-3 or Do 17 Z-2.
Cons:
- Very limited bomb payload compared to the He 111 H-3 which has 1,250 kg max.
- Poor defensive fire arcs, including a dead-zone in the rear where neither of the rearward facing 12.7 mm machine guns can cover.
- No frontal defensive gun covering the frontal aspect.
- Lacks armour protection for the crew.
- Forced to choose between less total bomb payload, but individually more powerful bombs or higher total bomb payload with less powerful bombs.
History
Describe the history of the creation and combat usage of the aircraft in more detail than in the introduction. If the historical reference turns out to be too long, take it to a separate article, taking a link to the article about the vehicle and adding a block "/History" (example: https://wiki.warthunder.com/(Vehicle-name)/History) and add a link to it here using the main template. Be sure to reference text and sources by using <ref></ref>, as well as adding them at the end of the article with <references />. This section may also include the vehicle's dev blog entry (if applicable) and the in-game encyclopedia description (under === In-game description ===, also if applicable).
Media
Excellent additions to the article would be video guides, screenshots from the game, and photos.
See also
Links to the articles on the War Thunder Wiki that you think will be useful for the reader, for example:
- reference to the series of the aircraft;
- links to approximate analogues of other nations and research trees.
External links
Paste links to sources and external resources, such as:
- topic on the official game forum;
- encyclopedia page on the aircraft;
- other literature.
| Savoia-Marchetti | |
|---|---|
| Bombers | S.M.79 serie 1 · S.M.79 serie 8 · S.M.79 AS · S.M.79 bis/T.M |
| S.81 | |
| Attackers | SM.91 · SM.92 |
| Export | S.M.79 B |
| Captured | ▀S.M.79 serie 1 · ▀S.M.79 serie 4 · ▀S.M.79 serie 8 |
| ▀S.M.79 AS · ▀S.M.79 bis/N · ▀S.M.79 bis/T.M · ▀S.M.79 B | |
| Italy bombers | |
|---|---|
| Fiat | B.R.20DR · B.R.20M M1 |
| Savoia-Marchetti | S.81 · S.M.79 serie 1 · S.M.79 B · S.M.79 serie 8 · S.M.79 AS · S.M.79 bis/T.M |
| CANT | Z.1007 bis serie 3 · Z.1007 bis serie 5 |
| Piaggio | P.108B serie 1 · P.108B serie 2 |
| Foreign: | |
| Germany | ▄Ju 87 R-2 · ▄Ju 87 D-3 |
| Hungary | ◔Tu-2S-59 |
