The slightly less well known

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Vultee P-66 Vanguard

The Vultee P-66 Vanguard was a USAAF fighter aircraft.It was the product of a concept by the Vultee Aircraft Division of the AMC of developing four aircraft designed for different roles from a set of common wings and aft fuselage and tail assemblies.

In 1938,Richard W. Palmer started the detailed design of the V-48 fighter member of the quartet.The aircraft featured a metal-covered, semi-monocoque fuselage and fully retractable landing gear, and was powered by a Pratt & Whitney R-1830 air-cooled radial engine.
It first flew in Sept 1939,and was given the name Vanguard.The second aircraft first flew on February 11, 1940. As a result of flight tests, a number of changes were made to the design including substantially increasing the areas of the horizontal and vertical tail surfaces.

On 6 February 1940, the Swedish government ordered 144 Vanguards as the V-48C.The production prototype flew on 6 September 1940. The model V-48C was similar to the V-48X except for installation of a later version of the R-1830 engine with better higher altitude performance and provision for four .30 in (7.62 mm) machine guns in the wings and two .50 in (12.7 mm) machine guns in the fuselage.
Production deliveries began in September 1941, the U.S. government placed an embargo on exporting the aircraft to Sweden. In the aftermath of Pearl Harbor, all Vanguards were assigned the designation P-66. Production ended in April 1942.Approximately 50 aircraft were retained by the USAAF.
The British took possession of 100 P-66s as the Vanguard I with plans to use the aircraft as an advanced trainer in Canada.After trials however,the British then relinquished the aircraft to China where 104 Vanguards (including USAAC examples) were shipped under the Lend-Lease program.

The Chinese received the assembled fighters via India by late 1942; Chinese Vanguards had USAAF insignia and serials as well as Chinese markings and Vultee serials on factory models.It was no match for the agile Japanese fighters in high-g maneuvers and relied on hit-and-run tactics.The P-66 in Chinese service was largely replaced by Curtiss P-40s in 1943.

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Vultee XP-54

Vultee had submitted a proposal in response to a USAAC request for an unusual configuration prototype fighter.

The Vultee design won the competition,designating it Model 84, a descendant of their earlier Model 78. After completing preliminary engineering and wind tunnel tests, a contract for a prototype was awarded on 8 January 1941. A second prototype was ordered on 17 March 1942.

The XP-54 was designed with a pusher engine in the rear part of the fuselage. The tail was mounted rearward between two mid-wing booms, with the 12-ft propeller between them. The design included a "ducted wing section" developed by the NACA that enabled installation of cooling radiators and intercoolers in the inverted gull wing. The Pratt & Whitney X-1800 engine was initially proposed as the powerplant but after its development was discontinued, the liquid-cooled 2300hp Lycoming XH-2470 was substituted.
In September 1941, the XP-54 mission was changed from low altitude to high altitude interception,therefore a turbo-supercharger and heavier armor had to be added.

Unusual features included the nose section which could pivot through the vertical,up and down.In the nose, two 37 mm T-9 cannon were in rigid mounts while two .50 cal machine guns were in movable mounts. Movement of the nose and machine guns was controlled by a special compensating gun sight. Thus, the cannon trajectory could be elevated without altering the flight attitude of the aircraft.

Flight tests of the first prototype,began on 15 January 1943,with initial trials showing performance to be substantially less than expected.Development of the XH-2470 engine was discontinued and, although it appeared possible to substitute the Allison V-3420 engine without substantial airframe changes, the projected delay and costs resulted in a decision not to put it into production.The prototypes continued to be used in an experimental program until problems with the Lycoming engines and lack of spare parts caused termination.

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Vultee V-11

The Vultee V-11 and V-12 were American attack aircraft of the 1930s,developed from the Vultee V-1 single-engined airliner.
It retained the single-engined, low wing format and all-metal stressed skin structure of the V-1,but combined a new fuselage with accommodation for the two or three crew members under a long greenhouse canopy with the wings and tail surfaces of the Vultee V-1.

The V-11-G Original two-seat light bomber was powered by one 1,000 hp Wright R-1820-G2 Cyclone engine.An initial order for 30 two-seat V-11Gs was placed by China before the end of 1935.This was followed by orders in 1939 for two versions (the V-12-C and V-12D) of the more powerful V-12 variant.The majority of these were planned to be assembled from kits at the Central Aircraft Manufacturing Company factory near the China-Burma border.The V-11s and V-12s were used as light bombers and achieved some success,before the aircraft were withdrawn from bombing missions to training and liaison duties in 1940.

In February 1939 the Brazilian Army Air Corps acquired 10 Vultee V-11–GB2s for long range bombing.26 aircraft were eventually used by the Brazilian Air Force.

In the late 1930s, the USAAC was favoring twin engine light attack aircraft but seven YA-19 aircraft were ordered in the summer of 1938 for comparison purposes.The YA-19s were armed with six .30 in (7.62 mm) machine guns and 1,080 lb (490 kg) bombs in an internal bomb bay, powered by a 1,200 hp Twin Wasp radial engine and was manned by a crew of three – pilot, observer/gunner, and bombardier/photographer.Tests showed that twin engine attack aircraft were faster, could be better armed and carried a larger bomb load so no further YA-19s were ordered.

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Zenith STOL CH 801

The Zenith STOL CH 801 is a four-seat sport STOL aircraft available in kit form from the Zenith Aircraft Company.
The CH 801 is based on the general design and features of the smaller two-seater STOL CH 701 model.It offers a useful load of 1,000 lb (450 kg), which is double the 701's 500 lb (230 kg).While the aircraft look similar they do not share any common parts.

Usual powerplant is 1 × Lycoming O-360 of 180 hp,giving a leisurely cruise speed of 105mph and a stall speed of around 40mph.
The STOL CH 801 is made from sheet aluminium and employs a deep wing chord,with full-length leading edge slots and trailing edge flaperons to develop high lift at low speed, while maintaining a short wing-span for maximum strength and ground maneuverability.By the end of 2011 160 CH 801s had been completed and were flying.


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Zivko Edge 540

The Zivko Edge 540 manufactured by Zivko Aeronautics is a highly aerobatic aircraft.
It is capable of a 420 degree per second roll rate and a 3,700 foot per minute climb rate,it has been flown to victory on the international Unlimited aerobatics circuit several times since the mid-1990s.A tandem-seat version is sold as the Edge 540T.

Powerplant is 1 × Modified 340hp Lycoming AEIO-540 Hartzell composite,3 blade prop,giving a max speed of 230 kts or 265mph if you prefer.
The Zivko Edge 540 is a popular aircraft,often used in the Red Bull Air Race World Series.


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That`s the USA taken care of, now to Europe and first up France. Just to repeat these are military or civil aircraft that may not be so well known to some.

Abraham Iris

The Abraham Iris was a two-seat touring airplane produced in the early 1930s in two slightly different versions,the Iris I with a 100 hp Hispano-Suiza piston engine, and the Iris II with a 95hp Renault engine.The Iris was a conventional parasol wing monoplane with a neatly faired-in engine.

Max speed was around 110mph


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ANF Les Mureaux 120

The ANF Les Mureaux 120 was a 1930s three-seat military night reconnaissance monoplane.

It was designed to meet a 1928 French Aéronautique Militaire requirement for a three-seat night reconnaissance aircraft.The prototype was first flown in 1931,powered by two 300 hp  Lorraine Algol engines.It was followed by a second aircraft, designated ANF Les Mureaux 121, powered by 300 hp Gnome-Rhône 7Kb engines, which flew later the same year.

Max speed was around 140mph with a range of 920 miles.It was armed with one twin machine-gun in nose cockpit and one in midship cockpit.
The aircraft failed to gain any interest from the French military and did not enter production.

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ANF Les Mureaux 180

The ANF Les Mureaux 180 was a prototype French fighter aircraft of the 1930s.It was designed and built by Les Ateliers de Construction du Nord de la France et des Mureaux.
It was a single-engined, two-seat, gull wing monoplane.
It first flew on 10 February 1935 with a 690 hp Hispano-Suiza 12X brs engine and a single fin and rudder.It had a max speed of 235 MPH and a range of around 460 miles.

In April 1935 the 180 was modified with a Hispano-Suiza 12X crs motor-canon engine, it had 20mm cannon that fired through the propeller hub. The aircraft was also fitted with two wing-mounted 7.5mm machine guns.The observer also had a machine gun mounted on a flexible mount and the tail unit was changed to two vertical surfaces.Testing continued until April 1936, but the project was abandoned when the design was considered to be obsolete.

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Arsenal VB 10

The Arsenal VB 10 was a French fighter aircraft developed during and shortly after WW II. It was a low-wing monoplane with retractable tailwheel undercarriage and of largely orthodox configuration. It was an evolution of a design that began with the Arsenal VG 10 before WW II, the VB 10 added a second engine behind the cockpit which drove a second propeller, coaxial with and contra-rotating to the propeller driven by the engine in the nose.

In January 1937 Arsenal were given a contract to develop a twin-engined heavy interceptor built from wood, powered by two 590 hp Hispano-Suiza 12X engines mounted in tandem inside the fuselage.Work on the VG 10 was abandoned in June 1937 in favour of the VG 20, which was essentially similar but powered by two 900 hp Hispano-Suiza 12Y engines. The VG 20 was abandoned in turn in January 1938, but the design work and studies were used for the design of the all-metal VB 10.

Due to WW II little progress was made during France's occupation, the prototype did not fly until after VE day. By then, it was clear that the future of the fighter lay with jet power, but development of the VB 10 continued as a safety net for France's jet fighter programmes.
In December 1945, a contract for 200 machines was placed by the French government, the first of which flew on 3 November 1947. By the time the fourth had been delivered in September 1948, the entire order was cancelled,only 6 examples were completed.

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Arsenal VG 90

The Arsenal VG 90 was a carrier-based fighter aircraft built in 1949, but which was not developed past the prototype stage.
It us up against the SNCAC NC 1080 and Nord N.2200 for an Aéronavale contract, tragically both VG 90 prototypes were destroyed in fatal crashes early in the development stages.
It was powered by 1 × Hispano-Suiza-built Rolls-Royce Nene,5,000 lbf thrust, giving a max speed of 570mph,it was armed with 3 × 30 mm cannons,
and could also carry a pair of 500kg bombs.
The VG 90 had a similar configuration to Arsenal's VG 70 and VG 80 research aircraft, with a high wing and all-swept flying surfaces, air intakes were mounted on the fuselage sides.

The first accident occurred on 25th May 1950,when an undercarriage door sheared off in flight and struck the aircraft's tail. Test Pilot Pierre Decroo was killed in the crash. The second claimed the life of pilot Claude Dellys, and took place on 21 st February 1952 when the tail was torn off due to aerodynamic flutter.The ejection seat system malfunctioned and did not fire. A third prototype, then under construction, was abandoned.

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Amiot 143

The Amiot 143M was a late 1930s French medium bomber designed to meet a requirement for a bomber capable of day/night bombing, long-range reconnaissance and bomber escort.
In 1928, the French Air Ministry issued a specification for a multi-seat combat aircraft to act as a light bomber, reconnaissance aircraft and long-range escort fighter.
Amiot received an order for two prototype Amiot 140s, to be evaluated against the competing Bleriot 137, Breguet 410 and SPCA 30.

The Amiot 140 was a high-winged cantilever monoplane of all-metal construction, with corrugated wing skinning and a fixed tail wheel undercarriage. The pilot sat in an open cockpit, with cockpits for gunners in the nose and dorsal positions. A glazed gondola under the forward fuselage carried a bombardier/gunner, ensuring that the gunners had a clear field of fire.

The first prototype was fitted with Hispano-Suiza 12Nbr engines to allow flight testing, making its maiden flight on 12th April 1931 with the second prototype completed in Feb 1932 but the continued non-availability of its intended engines, the Lorraine-Dietrichs or turbocharged Hispano-Suizas, meant that it never flew. Despite this, on 23 November 1933 an order was placed for 40 Amiot 140s, to be powered by 880 hp Lorraine 12Q Eider engines.

The FAM had revised its requirements,concentrating on the bombing role and for better performance. Amiot redesigned the aircraft and incorporate lessons learned during testing of the Amiot 140. The gondola under the fuselage was enlarged, allowing easier operation of the aircraft's guns and a radio-operator to be carried. Manually operated gun turrets were provided in the nose and dorsal positions.Orders were placed for two prototypes, differing only in the engines fitted, with the Amiot 142 having Hispano-Suiza 12Y engines and the Amiot 143 having Gnome-Rhone 14K radial engines. The 143 flew first, on 1 August 1934, with the 142 not flying until January 1935.As it was decided to allocate the Hispano-Suiza engines to fighters, the Amiot 143 was selected,the existing order for 40 Amiot 140s being converted to 143s.

The Amiot 143 had the same high-wing and fixed undercarriage as the Amiot 140, with the wing thick enough to allow crew access to the engines by a tunnel between the wing spars. The pilot sat in an enclosed cockpit, level with the leading edge of the wing and the navigator-bombardier, who was also provided with flying controls,sat in the glazed gondola beneath the pilot. After 40 aircraft had been completed, the design was further revised, with the aircraft being fitted with a longer nose and changes to the defensive gun placements.

At the outbreak of the Second World War, Amiot 143s equipped 5 metropolitan groupes together with a single African based groupe.Following the start of the Battle of France, the Amiot 143M was mainly used in night attacks against German airfields and lines of communications, with losses relatively low.Some planes of II/38 served as transports for the French in Syria. This groupe later went over to the Allies after their landings in Africa.The last Amiot 143M was retired from service in February 1944.

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Amiot 354

The Amiot 350 series originated in the same 1934 requirement as a rival to the Lioré et Olivier LeO 451.

The Amiot 340 prototype was involved in a propaganda misinformation flight to Berlin in August 1938 to convince the Germans that the French employed modern bombers.Over 120 were ordered by the French government that year,but production delays and order modifications ensured that September 1939 saw no delivered aircraft.The order of this very modern aircraft reached 830,though ultimately only 80 machines were received by the Air Ministry.The main variant was the twin-tailed 351; however, due to various delays, the single-tailed 354 was accepted into service as an interim type.

The Amiot 351 was planned to mount one 7.5 mm MAC 1934 machine gun in nose and ventral positions and one 20 mm Hispano-Suiza HS.404 cannon in the dorsal position. However technical problems with the armament installation,meant many aircraft went to operational units with only a light machine gun in the dorsal position.

In May 1940, the Amiot 351/354 was in the process of equipping just two bomber groupes based at Avignon.Though 200 were in the final stages of construction, only 35 were ready for flight.Powerplant was a pair of Gnome-Rhône 14N-48 14-cylinder two-row air-cooled radial piston engines of 1,061 hp each.By June, the Amiot 351/354 was also delivered for GB I/34 and GB II/34, neither flying them in combat.At that time, all Amiot 351/354s were based on the northern front.Three had been lost in combat, ten in training accidents.All aircraft were ordered to evacuate to Africa on 17 June, 37 surviving the journey.Five Amiot 351/354s continued to be used as mail planes after the Battle of France and four Amiot were commandeered by the Luftwaffe as transports.

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Avions Mauboussin M.120

The Mauboussin M.120 was a trainer and touring aircraft built in France in the 1930s and again in the years following World War II.

The aircraft was based on a 1931 Peyret-Mauboussin collaboration between Louis Peyret and Pierre Mauboussin, the Peyret-Mauboussin PM.XII, and like it, was a low-wing cantilever monoplane of wooden construction.Pilot and instructor sat in tandem, open cockpits.
Mauboussin built a number of prototypes himself, followed by a small series manufactured for him by Breguet in 1934. At one stage Mauboussins were produced by the Société Zodiac.The aircraft first flew in 1932 and was popular in international touring aircraft contests.

In 1936,Fouga, then a builder of railway rolling stock, purchased all rights to the design as part of an effort to enter the aircraft industry, and was able to secure a contract from the Armée de l'Air to supply the type as the M.123.
Powerplant for the M.123 was a Salmson 9Adr,60 hp,enough for a modest top speed of 100mph. Production was restarted by Fouga after the war for the French flying clubs.116 were built in total.

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Avions Max Holste MH.52

The Avions Max Holste MH.52 was a 1940s French-built two-seat touring or training monoplane.
Developed in the mid-1940s,the MH.52 was a low-wing cantilever monoplane with twin fins and rudders and a fixed tricycle landing gear.It had a raised cockpit with side-by-side seating for the pilot and trainee or passenger.The canopy was framed with forward-opening transparent sliding doors.
The prototype first flew on 21 August 1945 and was powered by a variety of inline engines developing between 95 and 150 hp.
The 150 hp version had a top speed of 143 mph and a useful range of 370 miles.

A development of the MH.52 was the sole MH.53 Cadet which had a fixed tailwheel landing gear and a lower powered 135 hp De Havilland Gipsy Major 10 engine.
A total of 13 production aircraft were built by the end of the 1940s.Most were flown by aero clubs and private pilots in France, but three examples were delivered to Egypt.
Two MH.52s survived in the 2000s. No.4 is awaiting restoration to fly at an airfield near Paris. No.11 is privately stored by a group located at an airfield near Bergerac.

It`s design is very similar to the ERCO Ercoupe, and it`s various incarnations.

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Avions Max Holste MH.260 Super Broussard

Built in prototype form as the Avions Max Holste MH.260 Super Broussard, ("Super Bushranger"), was a turboprop-powered, uprated version of the piston-engined Avions Max Holste MH.250 Super Broussard, that was further developed into the Aérospatiale N 262.

It was designed in partnership with Nord Aviation to carry 23 passengers or 3,445 kg (7,595 lb) of cargo on short fields, as a modern equivalent of the DC-3.The MH.260 was a high-wing, twin-engine turboprop aircraft powered by 980 hp Turbomeca Bastan engines.The fuselage was of all -aluminum construction with fabric covered control surfaces.The landing gear retracted into fuselage-mounted fairings.

The design was taken over by Nord and production started to fill a French government order for ten aircraft under the designation Nord 260. No orders were received from outside the government as the nascent Nord 262 offered better performance. Eight Nord 260s were completed and delivered to a few airlines on lease for short periods before final delivery to the French Air Force.

Cruise speed was 235 mph,with a range of 930 miles.Just nine aircraft were completed.

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Blériot XXI

The Blériot XXI was an early French aircraft built by Blériot Aéronautique.
The aircraft was a shoulder-wing monoplane powered by a 70 hp Gnome Gamma 7-cylinder rotary engine driving a two bladed propeller.Pilot and passenger were seated in side-by-side configuration: the control column was centrally mounted and there were two sets of rudder pedals, so that it could be flown from either seat.

It had a rectangular fuselage tapered to a horizontal knife-edge at the tail. Lateral control was effected by wing-warping, the wires leading to a single inverted V-strut cabane above the fuselage and a similar V strut beneath. Petrol was stored in three tanks: a pair of gravity tanks were located under the top decking in front of the cockpit, pressure-fed from a larger tank under the seats.
The undercarriage was a variant of the well-proved pattern used on the Blériot XI, with the wheels mounted on a trailing arm free to slide up and down and sprung by bungee cords.A Type XXI was one of the two Blériot designs entered for the 1912 British Military Aeroplane Competition.

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Blériot 115

The Blériot Bl-115 was a French biplane 4 engine airliner of the 1920s,it was a large aircraft, mounting one pair of engines on the upper wing and one pair on the lower.
It first flew on 9 May 1923, the prototype crashed on 23 June, killing its pilot.

It was powered by 4x 180 hp Hispano-Suiza 8Ac engines,giving it a leisurely top speed of 112mph, cruising speed was around 90 mph.
The third and fourth machines built (Roland Garros and Jean Casale) were used in Colonel de Goÿs' attempts to trial air routes to Africa.
They departed France on 18 January 1925,arriving in Colomb-Béchar, Algeria, on 28 January.The expedition ended in disaster on 7 February in Niamey, Niger when the Jean Casale crashed on take-off, killing its radio operator and seriously injuring its two pilots, including Dagnaux.

Only six aircraft were completed.

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Blériot 127

The Blériot 127 (or Bl-127) was a French bomber aircraft of the 1920s and early 1930s,developed from the Blériot 117.

It was a large monoplane of conventional configuration that featured open gunner's positions in its nose and at the rear of its two underwing engine nacelles.
Powerplant was  2 × Hispano-Suiza 12Hb V-12 water-cooled piston engines of 550 hp each driving 2-bladed fixed pitch wooden propellers. Max Speed was approx 135 Mph,armament consisted of 2 × forward trainable 7.7 mm (0.30 in) Lewis guns in nose and 2 × rearward trainable 7.7 mm (0.30 in) Lewis guns in each of two engine nacelles plus up 1000 kg of bombs.

Forty-two aircraft were operated by the Armée de l'Air from 1929 until 1934, by which time they were thoroughly obsolete.

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Blériot 5190

The Blériot 5190 was a French transatlantic mail plane of the 1930s.It was a large parasol-wing monoplane flying boat with an unusual design, featuring a low-profile hull and a crew compartment housed in the thick pylon that supported the wing.
It was powered by four engines,Hispano-Suiza 12Nbr`s, of650 hp each arranged with three along the leading edge of the wing, and the fourth on the centreline of the trailing edge.

The first flight was on the 3rd Aug 1933, by the end of 1934,the aircraft named Santos-Dumont had completed two proving flights across the South Atlantic.In February 1935 the Santos-Dumont entered service. From then until April, she carried all of France's transatlantic mail at the rate of one crossing per week until rejoined by la Croix du Sud and a new Farman F.220 named Le Centaure.As part of this small fleet, the Santos-Dumont continued in this role until June 1937. Altogether, by that time, she had made 38 crossings of the Atlantic.

The French government had ordered a further three 5190s from Blériot, and the company had borrowed heavily in order to build the aircraft. Without warning, the contract was cancelled without explanation or compensation,forcing the firm into bankruptcy. Louis Blériot died of a heart attack soon afterwards, on 1 August 1936.

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Blériot-SPAD S.33

The Bleriot-SPAD S.33 was a small airliner developed soon after World War I.
It was a conventional configuration biplane but its design owed much to the Blériot company's contemporary fighter`s such as the S.20.Four passengers could be carried in an enclosed cabin within the fuselage, and a fifth in the open cockpit beside the pilot,(the cheap seat!).
It proved to be a great success, the S.33 dominated in it`s class throughout the 1920s,initially on CMA's Paris-London route,and later on continental routes.

It`s powerplant was a Salmson CM.9 9-cylinder air-cooled radial piston engine offering 260 hp, which gave a cruise speed of around 105mph and range of 650 miles.
In total 41 S.33`s were built,an improved version known as the S.46 followed later with a 370 hp Lorraine-Dietrich 12Da engine.


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Blériot-SPAD S.61

The Blériot-SPAD S.61 was a French biplane fighter aircraft developed in 1923.
The prototype S.61 was evaluated by the French Air Force alongside the S.51 as a potential new fighter,but like its stablemate, was rejected.It first flew 6th Nov 1923.
The Polish Air Force (also purchased the S.51) was impressed and ordered 250, plus purchase licences for local production.The Romanian Air Force also ordered 100 aircraft,of which 30 were built in Poland,by the CWL.

The production version for Poland and Romania,was powered by a 450 hp Lorraine-Dietrich 12E W-12 engine with supplementary supercharger. French versions had a similar 430 hp engines and the racers had up to 500hp in different versions.
Despite building them under licence, they had a poor reputation in Poland due to numerous crashes, many attributed to a weak wing mounting,From 1926 to 1931, 26 pilots were killed while flying the S.61.
 
They were used in France for racing and record-setting attempts, for example,on 25 June 1925, Pelletier d'Oisy won the cross-country Coupe Michelin in an S.61,and another of the type won the 1927 competition and was placed second in 1929.

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Blériot-SPAD S.510

Designed in 1930,this open-cockpit biplane first flew in 1933 and entered service in 1936.Performance was similar to the Gloster Gladiator.The S.510's armament consisted of 4 machine guns as either a combination of 2 fuselage-mounted guns, plus 2 in under-wing gondolas or with all 4 in under-wing gondolas.
This gave it a heavy punch attack capability than most earlier biplane fighters,and equalled that of the final biplanes used by the British and Italians, the Gladiator and Fiat CR.42 Falco.

When it was designed many pilots and experts strongly believed that biplanes would prove better fighters than monoplanes because of their tighter turning circles,but some  thought the S.510 was doomed to obsolescence before it even flew.
It was overshadowed by the faster Dewoitine D.510 monoplane, an order of 60 aircraft was placed in August 1935 when French ace pilot Louis Massot demonstrated the S.510 to excellent effect, showing its superior maneuverability and rate of climb.
Powerplant was a Hispano-Suiza 12Xbrs V-12 liquid-cooled piston engine of 692hp, which gave a max speed of around 235mph and a range of 540 miles.

The S.510 entered service in early 1936,they were intended as transition aircraft between the Morane-Saulnier MS-225 and the Morane-Saulnier MS-406.
At the outbreak of WW II, the S.510 served in reserve squadrons only,metropolitan reserves were mobilized into the II/561 based in Havre-Oteville. From January 18, 1940 over a period of weeks, the S.510s were replaced with Bloch MB.151 aircraft, the groupe changing designation to GC III/10. The S.510s returned to their training role. Approximately ten S.510s had been sent to French North Africa where, by the Battle of France, they were mobilized into a fighter group, the GC III/5, but their age allowed them to be used for training flights only.

The Blériot SPAD S.510 was the last French biplane fighter to be produced.


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Bloch MB.131

The Bloch MB.130 and its derivatives were a series of French monoplane reconn-bombers developed during the 1930s.
It was developed in response to the August 1933 French Aviation Ministry request for a reconnaissance and tactical bomber.It was an all-metal, twin-engine, low-wing monoplane with retractable landing gear, and armed with three 7.5mm MAC1934 flexible machine guns, one each in the nose, dorsal turret, and ventral gondola.

It first flew on 29 June 1934, and despite it`s moderate performance, soon entered production, 40 machines being ordered in October 1935. An improved version, the MB.131 was first flown on 16 August 1936, but still needed more work to overcome its deficiencies. The radically revised second prototype which flew on 5 May 1937 eventually formed the basis for series production, with aircraft being manufactured by SNCASO, the nationalised company that had absorbed Bloch and Blériot. Total production (including prototypes) was 143.

Powerplant was a pair of Gnome-Rhône 14N-10/11 14-cylinder air-cooled radial engines,producing 950 hp each.Max speed was a leisurely 217 mph,range was around 800 miles
It entered service in June 1938, the MB.131 went on to equip seven reconnaissance Groupes, six in metropolitan France and one in North Africa. Upon the outbreak of the war, the metropolitan Groupes suffered heavy losses in attempts at daylight reconnaissance of Germany's western borders.
They were subsequently restricted to flying night missions, though they still suffered heavy losses even then.
After the Battle of France, the aircraft left in Vichy possession were relegated to target towing duty. 21 planes were reported captured by the Luftwaffe in inoperable condition, but photographic evidence suggests at least a few flew for the Nazis.

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Bloch MB.170

The Bloch MB.170 and its family of derivatives were French reconnaissance bombers designed and built shortly before World War II.
They were the best aircraft of this type available to the Armée de l'Air at the outbreak of the war, with speed, altitude, and maneuverability that allowed them to evade interception by most German fighters of the time. They were too few in number to make any measurable impact on the Battle of France,but they continued in service with the Vichy forces after the armistice.

The first prototype, the MB 170 AB2-A3 No.01,was equipped as a two-seat attack bomber or a three-seat reconnaissance aircraft, made its maiden flight on 15 February 1938.
It was powered by two 970 hp Gnome-Rhône 14N radial engines and was armed with a 20 mm Hispano-Suiza cannon in the nose, two 7.5 mm MAC 1934 machine guns in the wing, with another machine gun flexibly mounted in the rear cockpit, with a ventral cupola housing either a rearward firing machine gun or a camera.The second prototype, the MB 170 B3 No.2 was a dedicated three seat bomber, with the ventral cupola housing the camera removed, a revised canopy and larger tail fins.

The MB.175 succeeded the MB.174 on the assembly lines in full flow.This version, a dedicated bomber,it had a redesigned bomb bay capable of carrying bombs of 100–200 kg (220-440 lb), where the MB.174 was limited to 50 kg (110 lb) bombs. The MB.175's fuselage was lengthened and widened to accommodate this greater capacity, but only 25 were delivered before France's defeat.

Like the majority of the modern equipment of the Armée de l'Air during the campaign, they arrived too late and in insufficient numbers. At the time of the armistice, most surviving MB.174s and 175s had been evacuated to North Africa. A few were recovered by the Germans and then used for pilot training. During the Vichy government rule on the French empire, MB.174s frequently flew over Gibraltar to monitor the British fleet.
After Operation Torch, as French forces split from Vichy to side with the Allies, remaining examples of the MB.170 line flew their final combat missions during the Battle of Tunisia.

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[Angry Turnip]

Bloch MB.220

The Bloch MB.220 was a French twin-engine passenger transport airplane built by Société des Avions Marcel Bloch during the 1930s.It some respects it`s design was similar to the DC-3.
The MB.220 was an all-metal low-wing cantilever monoplane powered by two 915 HP Gnome-Rhône 14N radial engines and had a retractable landing gear.Usualcrew was four, with seating for 16 passengers, with eight seats each side of a central aisle. The prototype first flew in December 1935, and was followed by 16 production aircraft.

By mid 1938, the type was being utilised by Air France on European routes. The first service was between Le Bourget and Croydon was flown on 27 March 1938 with a scheduled time of 1 hour 15 minutes. During World War II, most MB.220s were taken over as military transports, including service with German, Free French and Vichy French air forces. Air France continued to fly the aircraft (as MB.221s) after the war on short-range European routes. It sold four aircraft in 1949 but within a year all had been withdrawn from service.

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