What speed record did Macchi start with?

Short answer

With the M.39: its MM.76, flown by Mario de Bernardi, took first place in the Schneider Trophy at an average of 396.698 km/h (246.497 mph) and set a new world seaplane speed record. On 17 November 1926 the same aircraft raised it to 416.618 km/h at Hampton Roads.

Published: November 5, 2026 · Updated: November 5, 2026 · Edited by Above Ten Thousand · Editorial policy

What speed record did Macchi start with?

Racing seaplane Macchi M 39Tulumnes (CC BY SA), vía commons

The M.39, built for the Schneider Trophy

Designed by Mario Castoldi and built in Varese, in northwestern Lombardy, the M.39 departed significantly from the company's earlier racing flying boat. The type is remembered above all for the several world speed records it set in the mid-1920s and for winning the Schneider Trophy, for which it had been specifically developed.

Two records with the same aircraft

The MM.76, flown by Mario de Bernardi, took first place with an average speed of 396.698 km/h (246.497 mph) and set a new world speed record for seaplanes. On 17 November 1926, de Bernardi used that same MM.76 to set another world speed record, of 416.618 km/h (258.874 mph), over a 3 km (1.9 mi) course at Hampton Roads.

Before and after the M.39

Years later, the M.C.72 set a new world speed record over water on 10 April 1933, at 682 km/h (424 mph) with Warrant Officer Francesco Agello at the controls. On 23 October 1934, Agello flew the M.C.72 to an average of 709.207 km/h (440.681 mph) over three passes, a record that still stands as the fastest ever for a propeller-driven seaplane.