Giuseppe Gabrielli

Who was Giuseppe Gabrielli?

Giuseppe Gabrielli was an Italian aeronautics engineer. He is famous as designer of numerous Italian military aircraft, including the FIAT G.50 and G.55 World War II fighters.

He was born in Caltanissetta, Sicily, and studied in the Politecnico di Torino and in Aachen, Germany under Theodore von Karman. Gabrielli began his work as designer at Piaggio, but was soon called to FIAT by Giovanni Agnelli to lead his aeronautics section.

Gabrielli designed 142 aircraft, all bearing his initial, including the G.50, the G.55, the G.80, the Aeritalia G.91, which won a contest for a NATO standard fighter in the 1950s, and the G.222, a military transport airplane, whose design was later evolved into the C-27J Spartan.

He died in Turin in 1987.