The aircraft was a biplane of conventional layout, with fixed tailskid landing gear and an open cockpit, with the pilot's head aligned with the trailing edge of the upper wing.

It carried two synchronized 7.7 mm (.303 in) Vickers machine guns firing through the propeller arc.

The two prototypes were evaluated against another biplane fighter, the SIAI S.52, and proved superior in manoeuvrability and top speed.

Though both Belgium and Poland evaluated and rejected the aircraft, an export order was received from Latvia.

In the 1930s, some CR.1s were fitted with Isotta Fraschini Asso Caccia engines of 328 kW (440 hp), which improved their performance.