A key early customer was the Italian airline Ala Littoria, which operated its Z.506 fleet as a transport and postal aircraft across its Mediterranean routes.

[6] Seeking to expand outside of the civil sector, the company developed the militarised Z.506B during the late 1930s; operated by numerous military air services during the 1940s, the Z.506B was produced in greater quantity than any other model.

[citation needed] The CANT Z.506 was designed as a 12 to 14-seat transport twin-float floatplane; it was initially powered by three Piaggio Stella P.IX radial engines, each one capable of producing up to 455 kW (610 hp).

The aircraft was produced at the "Cantieri Riuniti dell 'Adriatico" and "Cantiere Navale Triestino" (CRDA CANT) factories in Monfalcone and Finale Ligure respectively.

Demand for the Z.506 was quickly proved to be large enough that another Italian aircraft manufacturer, Piaggio, also established a production line for the type under licence.

[9] The Z.506A entered service with its launch customer, the Italian airline Ala Littoria, which routinely flew the type on its various routes across the Mediterranean.

[11] Unlike the civil-focused Z.506A, the Z.506B was furnished with a large vertically-orientated gondola which accommodated a bomb bay, position for a bombardier, and a rear-facing ventral defensive gun.

[citation needed] At the outbreak of the conflict, four Squadriglie for air-sea rescue missions were formed in Orbetello; these were the 612ª in Stagnoni, with aircraft marked DAMB, GORO, BUIE, CANT (the prototype) and POLA, and the 614ª in Benghazi, with DUCO, ALA, DODO and DAIM.

[3] As the conflict unfolded, the Z.506 was typically used to conduct maritime patrol, convey escort, anti-submarine warfare, and air-sea rescue missions, especially following the Battle of Taranto and other events that had shifted the balance of naval superiority against Italy.

[3] One factor in the reorienting of the Z.506 was the arrival of the Fiat RS.14 floatplane in 1941, which proved to be superior at performing torpedo bomber operations, albeit only even being available in limited quantities.

Sergeant Etchells, in 249 at Malta recalled: I shot down a Cant Z506 near Sicily, painted white, which had red crosses on its wings, and was apparently an air-rescue aircraft.

"[22]Among the Allies, the Z.506 gained considerable fame for it being the only aircraft to have been hijacked by prisoners of war (POWs) on the Western Front (it was then used by the RAF from Malta).

While pilot Maresciallo Ambrogio Serri headed for Sardinia, Armiere Pietro Bonannini with five bursts of shots from the 12.7 mm machine gun, managed to hit a first Blenheim, that ditched in the sea.

[3] The Germans were able to capture numerous Z.506s and put them to use them across various theatres of the war, including Italy, Germany, France, Yugoslavia and even on Greek islands and in Poland.

[26] Numerous aircraft survived the conflict intact and continued to be routinely used during the early postwar years, some of which remained in active service until 1959.

It is exhibited at the Italian Air Force Museum (Museo Storico dell'Aeronautica), in Vigna di Valle, near Bracciano, north of Rome.

[30] Data from The Encyclopedia of Weapons of World War II,[3] Italian Civil and Military Aircraft 1930–1945[31]General characteristics Performance Armament