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The Fiat CR.41 was a version of the CR.40 that was given a much more powerful Gnome-Rhone Mistral Major 14Ksf engine. This 14 cylinder double-row radial engine was one of the best engines of the early-mid 1930s, and produced 900hp, a big increase on the 700hp Fiat engine used in the CR.40bis or the 600hp engine of the CR.32.
The Fiat CR.41 retained the basic configuration of the CR.40, so was a sesquiplane, with a larger upper and smaller lower wing, and a gull-wing upper wing to improve the pilot's view. The prototype made its maiden flight in 1936, and was used for a variety of trials in 1936 and 1937, before further development was cancelled in favour of the CR.42.
A variety of different top speeds are recorded for the CR.41, ranging from 237mph up to 265mph. This probably reflects the wide range of different configurations in which this aircraft appears to have flown. It was used to test two and three-bladed propellers, and flew with a number of different arrangements of guns, including one with 20mm cannon and another with four 12.7mm machine guns.