J.Davilla Italian Aviation in the First World War. Vol.3: Aircraft M-W (A Centennial Perspective on Great War Airplanes 75)

Ricci

  The brothers Ettore and Umberto Ricci with the financial support of Ettore De Antoni and the industrialist Annibaie Cecconi who provided the capital, founded the Fratelli Ricci & Cecconi Company in 1912.
  They began work on a seaplane called Ricci O, which was a large machine with a central hull, with lateral floats. The upper wing was mounted in a central position, and two lower movable wings with a smaller spa, were located one at the end of the bow and the other at the stern. These last two wing surfaces also functioned as rudders and stabilizers. The engine, installed in the fuselage behind the cockpit of the two pilots, was ordered from the German firm Daimler-Mercedes of Stuttgart. It was a 100 hp 6-cylinder in-line DI, driving a 2.45-meter Romanoff pusher two-blade propeller. After the engine was delivered in 1914, the Ricci O was launched in a small private dock on the Adige river where, where test pilot Bartolomeo Pugnante - one of the first Italian seaplane pilots - tested the buoyancy and seaworthiness of the new design. The Regia Marina delayed providing a test pilot to evaluate the machine and this, plus disagreements between Ricci and their financiers, slowed down further testing of the seaplane which was abandoned with Italy’s entry into the war in 1915.


Ricci 1 and 1 bis

  When Italy entered the war the two Ricci brothers dissolved the company and entered service with the 3a armata. After about a year, Ettore and Umberto Ricci were assigned to the DTAM = Direzione Tecnica Aviazione Militate (Military Aviation Technical Directorate) in Turin.
  During this time Ettore Ricci designed a large multi-engine bombing seaplane, the construction of which was approved by the Direzione Superiore Aeronautica (Superior Aeronautical Directorate) which entrusted the work to the Ingano and Lauro company of Naples. This company was later transformed into the I.A.M. = Industrie Aviatorie Meridionali and was planning coproduce the FBA Type H under license. The work was carried out under the direction of its designer, who was transferred to Naples to follow the construction of his seaplane, and the new aeronautical department of the I.A.M.
  In 1916, based on a project by Ettore Ricci and commissioned by the DTAM, the second Ricci seaplane was created. It was an ambitious triple-engine bombardment and torpedo biplane which was given the name of Ricci 1. It was a large twin-hull flying boat, capable of carrying two torpedoes or a corresponding load of bombs and was armed with two machine guns mounted at the end of the bow of each of the two hulls. The engines were 250 hp Fiat A.12 bis with a tractor propeller installed in front of the cockpit, and two 180 hp Isotta Fraschini V.4Bs pushers, located between the two wings above the twin booms.
  To speed up the preparation as much as possible, the various parts of the prototype - based on construction drawings by engineer Ricci - were produced by different companies: the crew nacelle was built by S.I.A. of Turin, the wings by the Schirollo firm of Milan, and the two hulls by Cantieri Navali Gallotti of Naples.
  The final assembly was carried out at I.A.M., under the direct control of the designer. Upon its appearance, the Ricci 1, with its 28 meters wingspan, turned out to be the largest bombing seaplane of its time. Its flight test, in 1917, almost turned into a tragedy. Test pilot Franzoni was not trained to fly multi-engine aircraft, and a careless maneuver caused the Ricci 1 to crash; although he survived the crash, the aircraft was destroyed.
  Despite the accident of the Ricci 1, the DTAM ordered three examples, one example to be tested to destruction, plus two flying prototypes. In 1917 the Ricci brothers developed a newly modified and enhanced version, with one 300-hp Fiat A.12 bis and two 250-hp Isotta Fraschini V.6 of 250 hp engines, generating a total of 800 hp. It was designated Ricci 1 bis.
  There was to have been a crew of five. The armament included 2 torpedoes carried on racks between the two booms; defensive armament was three machine guns, two at the front of the booms and one at the rear of the cockpit. The Isotta Fraschini V.6 engines proved troublesome and had to be replaced by two Fiat A.12 bis.
  On 15 December, 1919, the Ricci 1 bis was successfully flown by pilot Licinio Bornacin. During repeated test flights even in unfavorable weather conditions and sea states, the Ricci 1 bis proved to be a good seaplane. As the test continued the type was ordered into production. The First World War ended when the three tests aircraft had just been completed and before production could start. Not surprisingly, the plan to produce more examples was cancelled.
  The Ricci 1 bis was transformed into a commercial aircraft, with the replacement of the cockpit by a cabin for three crewmen, two pilots and an engineer, and 10 passengers. Cargo, mail, newspapers and goods, could be carried in the two hulls, where the fuel tanks were already located. There was no interest from any potential buyers in this flying boat airlines; no further examples were built.


Ricci 2

  In 1918 the Riccis designed a very elegant and unusual hulled seaplane with seagull-shaped wings, designated the Ricci 2 monoplane. The pusher engine was mounted on four supports immediately behind the cockpit. The tail planes were placed very high above the hull. The Ricci 2, was to have been fitted with a 300-400 hp engine and reach speeds up to 300 kilometers per hour.
  This design also remained a project.


Ricci 3, 4, and 5 Projects

  Although the production of Ricci 1 and Ricci 1 bis had stopped only at prototypes, Ettore and Umberto Ricci were already thinking of large multi-engine engines for the transatlantic passenger service; the result was the Ricci 3, Ricci 4 and Ricci 5 projects.
  The Ricci 3 was a twin-hulled, triplane seaplane with four engines, which was to be powered by a total of 5,000 hp. The cabin, for 50 passengers, was located between the first and second wings. The payload also included freight and mail. The tail planes included three vertical fins and a single rudder. The engines, coupled two by two, were coaxial with traction and propulsive propellers.
  The Ricci 4 seaplane was a huge triplane with two floats, propelled by four engines coaxially coupled in groups of two.
  The Ricci 5 had two hulls, tandem triplane wings and a biplane tailplanes. The two designers attributed a possible carrying capacity of 150 passengers.
  The Ricci brothers considered the possibility of operating a transatlantic airline on the Naples-Gibraltar route, as well as an Azores-St John of Newfoundland-New York route. The longest leg required a non-stop flight of 2,300 kilometers. These dreams failed to attract investors.
  They reworked the Ricci 1 project by enlarging the cabin and also adding an engine. The result was a four-engine seaplane for use on the Naples-Palermo-Tunis-Tripoli route. This plan also failed.


Ricci 5bis

  In 1923 they therefore decided to sell their ownership shares in the boat company and become employees again.They then became designers at the Officine e Cantieri Meridionali in Naples. With this company they built three new aircraft for school and tourism: the Ricci 5 bis seaplane and the Ricci 7 and Ricci 7 bis airplanes.
  In 1924 they completed the Ricci 5 bis, a small and slender biplane flying boat, for training and touring, it carried two crewmen in tandem seats, powered by an 80-hp Combi engine operating a two-blade propeller. The Ricci 5 bis was flown for the first time, in 1924 by pilot Raimondo Di Loreto.

Ricci O Torpedo Seaplane One 100-hp Daimler Engine
  Wingspan 7.50 m, length 10.50 m, wing surface area 44 sq m
  Empty weight 600 kg, payload 300 kg, total weight 900 kg.
  Maximum speed 100 km/h.


Ricci 1 Flying Boat Torpedo Plane with One 250 hp Fiat A.12 bis with a Tractor Propeller and two 180 hp Isotta Fraschini V.4B Pushers
  Wingspan 28 m, length 14 m, height 4.20 m, wing area 140 sq m
  Empty weight 2,500 kg, payload 1,500 kg, loaded weight 4,000 kg,
  Maximum speed of 160 km/h, endurance 4 hours.


Ricci 1 bis Flying Boat Torpedo Plane with Three 250 hp Fiat A.12 bis Engines
  Wingspan 26 m, length 13 m, height 4.20 m, wing area 120 sq m
  Empty weight kg 2,800, payload kg 1,700, total weight 4,500 kg
  Maximum speed 160 km/h, endurance 4 hours.
  Three built


Ricci 5 bis Two Seat Touring Flying Boat with One 80 hp Combi Engine
  Wingspan 7 m, length 8.10 m, wing area 16 m2
  Empty weight 350 kg, payload 200 kg, total weight 550 kg.
  Maximum speed 150 km/h.