Liftable homeomorphisms of cyclic and rank two finite abelian branched covers over the real projective plane (Q2219277)

A finite-sheeted regular branched covering \(p: \tilde X \to X\) between surfaces (with finite covering group \(A\)) has the \textit{lifting property} if every homeomorphism of the base space \(X\) lifts to a homeomorphism of the covering space \(\tilde X\). When \(X\) is the 2-sphere, a classification of such coverings is given by \textit{T. Ghaswala} and \textit{R. R. Winarski} for the case of cyclic groups \(A\) [Mich. Math. J. 66, No. 4, 885--890 (2017; Zbl 1383.57001)], and by the present authors for groups of the form \(A = \mathbb Z_{p^r} \times\mathbb Z_{p^t}\), \(p\) prime [\textit{F. Atalan} et al., Arch. Math. 116, No. 1, 37--48 (2021; Zbl 1470.57044)]. In the present paper, the authors consider the case where \(X\) is the real projective plane; their main results are as follows. If \(A\) is cylic, a covering has the lifting property if and only if the covering is branched over at most one branch point in \(X\), and for \(A =\mathbb Z_p^k\) if and only if \(k\) equals the number of branch points in the basis; moreover, if \(A =\mathbb Z_{p^r} \times \mathbb Z_{p^t}\), \(r < t\), and there are exactly two branch points in the base \(X\) then there is a homeomorphism of \(X\) which does not lift.