Mario de Bernardi
At a glance
Pilot: Mario de Bernardi, an Italian military pilot and test pilot.
Race: Schneider Trophy at Hampton Roads, Virginia, in 1926.
Aircraft: Macchi M.39, race number 5, serial MM.76, powered by an approximately 800 hp Fiat AS.2 engine.
Result: First place for Italy, at a recorded average of 396.698 km/h (246.496 mph). The win returned the trophy to Italy and set a new seaplane speed record. Italian Air Force history of the Macchi M.39; FAI account of De Bernardi’s 1926 record.
Early life
De Bernardi was born in Venosa, in southern Italy, in 1893, to Cesare de Bernardi and Maria Maselli. Sources differ on his exact birth date: the biographical entry in Treccani’s Dizionario Biografico degli Italiani gives 10 July, while an Italian Ministry of Defence publication gives 1 July. The sources agree on his birthplace and year. He spent his childhood and adolescence in Venosa, Foligno and Volterra. Treccani, “De Bernardi, Mario”; Italian Ministry of Defence history.
In 1912 he volunteered for service in the 3rd Telegraph Engineer Battalion and went to Libya. The aircraft he encountered there made a lasting impression on him. His early interest in aviation developed in a period when military forces were only beginning to use aircraft, and he soon pursued formal pilot training. Treccani, “De Bernardi, Mario”.
Early flying career
De Bernardi trained at the Aviano flying school and earned his first pilot certificate on 15 January 1914. After further training at Malpensa, he served with the Italian military aviation service during the First World War. He received his military pilot certificates in 1916 and flew with fighter squadrons, including the 150th Squadron and a squadron commanded by Francesco Baracca. Treccani records that he received the Silver Medal for Military Valour for his wartime service. Treccani, “De Bernardi, Mario”.
After the war, De Bernardi commanded the experimental airfield at Montecelio and took part in speed and aerobatic competitions. He also worked with Italian aircraft manufacturers as a pilot and tester. His racing experience and military flying background made him a strong choice to lead Italy’s team for the 1926 Schneider Trophy. Treccani, “De Bernardi, Mario”; Italian Ministry of Defence history.
The race
The 1926 Schneider Trophy race was held on 13 November at Hampton Roads, Virginia. The triangular course was about 50 kilometres per lap and had to be flown seven times, making a total of roughly 350 kilometres, or 189 nautical miles. The course’s turns and the need to operate from water made the race a test of aircraft handling and reliability as well as speed. The U.S. Air Service’s later account gives the distance as 188.86 nautical miles. 1929 U.S. Air Service account; Schneider Cup race results.
Italy entered three Macchi M.39s, flown by De Bernardi, Arturo Ferrarin and Adriano Bacula. The United States fielded Curtiss floatplane racers: Christian Schilt in an R3C-2, George Cuddihy in an R3C-4, and William Tomlinson in a Curtiss Hawk. Britain did not compete because its aircraft were not ready. The United States was defending its 1923 and 1925 wins, so a third consecutive victory would have given it permanent possession of the trophy under the competition rules. 1929 U.S. Air Service account; Hydroretro’s 1926 race history.
The M.39 was a low-wing monoplane on twin floats, designed by Mario Castoldi. Its streamlined shape, braced wings and surface radiators built into much of the wing were intended to reduce drag. It used a liquid-cooled Fiat AS.2 V-12 engine. Sources generally list the engine at about 800 horsepower, although some aircraft histories give a higher figure. The winning machine, MM.76, is now preserved at the Italian Air Force museum at Vigna di Valle. Italian Air Force history of the Macchi M.39; Planes of Fame Air Museum, Macchi M.39.
Race accounts describe difficult weather and a contest in which mechanical problems cut down the field. Ferrarin retired with an oil-pipe failure. Cuddihy, who was among the leading American pilots, retired near the end with a fuel-pump failure. De Bernardi kept his M.39 running and completed the course. One later account says he climbed to around 600 feet to help cool an overheating engine; this detail is not in the U.S. Air Service’s summary, so it is best treated as a later account rather than an uncontested race fact. Hydroretro’s 1926 race history; HistoryNet, “Aviation History: Schneider Trophy Race”; 1929 U.S. Air Service account.
Performance and tactics
De Bernardi averaged 396.698 km/h (246.496 mph) over the seven-lap course. The second-place finisher, U.S. Marine Corps pilot Christian Schilt, averaged about 372.34 km/h (231.36 mph). Adriano Bacula placed third at about 350.85 km/h (218 mph). These are whole-course averages, not maximum speeds in straight flight. The race result therefore reflects both the M.39’s speed and its ability to keep flying through the full course. Hydroretro’s 1926 race results; 1929 U.S. Air Service account.
Published results differ slightly in their final digits: the U.S. Air Service lists 246.496 mph, while later compilations report 396.698 km/h, the equivalent of about 246.50 mph. The figures are effectively consistent after rounding. De Bernardi’s race average should also be kept separate from his official FAI record of 399.42 km/h over 100 kilometres, set during the event. Four days later, he established another seaplane speed record over a shorter measured course. Treccani reports that shorter-course record as 437.65 km/h, while other histories give 416.618 km/h; because those sources conflict, the shorter-course figure is not used here as a settled number. FAI record account; Treccani biography; Italian Air Force history.
A later race history describes De Bernardi as gradually building a lead while maintaining laps at roughly 245 mph or faster. Another account says he climbed to cool the engine, if needed. These reports suggest that preserving engine reliability was a central challenge. The surviving summaries do not establish a detailed lap-by-lap tactical plan or De Bernardi’s personal reasoning, so any stronger claims about his intentions would be inference. Model Aviation Library race history; HistoryNet race history.
After the win
The victory made De Bernardi an internationally known pilot. In 1927, he continued racing with Macchi’s M.52 and set a world seaplane speed record at about 479 km/h. He improved the record in 1928, reaching about 513 km/h. These efforts extended his role from trophy winner to leading test pilot for Italian high-speed aircraft development. Treccani, “De Bernardi, Mario”.
De Bernardi later left active military service and continued flying and testing aircraft for industry. In 1940 he piloted the Campini-Caproni experimental motorjet, an important early Italian jet-propulsion project. He remained involved in aviation until his death in Rome on 8 April 1959. Italian Ministry of Defence history; Treccani, “De Bernardi”.
Notable facts and legacy
The win interrupted the United States’ run of two consecutive Schneider victories and prevented it from taking the trophy permanently. It also led to the 1927 race being hosted in Venice. For Macchi and its designer, Castoldi, the M.39’s success demonstrated the promise of a streamlined monoplane seaplane design and helped guide later Schneider racers. Italian Air Force history of the Macchi M.39; 1929 U.S. Air Service account.
De Bernardi’s reputation rested on more than one race. He was a wartime pilot, competition flyer, record setter and test pilot. His Schneider-winning M.39 remains in the Italian Air Force’s historic collection, preserving a direct link to the aircraft and achievement that brought him worldwide attention. Italian Air Force history of the Macchi M.39; Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum archival record.
Sources
- Treccani, Dizionario Biografico degli Italiani, “De Bernardi, Mario” — biography and later career; gives a different birth date from another source.
- Italian Air Force, “Macchi M.39” — aircraft history, race result and preserved winning aircraft.
- Fédération Aéronautique Internationale, “13 November 1926: The FAI World Record of Major Mario de Bernardi” — official 100-kilometre seaplane speed record.
- U.S. Air Service Newsletter, 1929 Schneider Trophy history — race course, distance, entrants and reported speeds.
- Hydroretro, 1926 Schneider Trophy history — course, aircraft, engines, field and placings.
- HistoryNet, “Aviation History: Schneider Trophy Race” — background on the M.39, race challenges and reported tactics.
- Italian Ministry of Defence, Missioni militari italiane all’estero in tempo di pace — service and post-race career summary.
- Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum Archives, De Bernardi photograph record — archival record identifying De Bernardi at the 1926 Hampton Roads contest.