Supermarine Spitfire. European Users, part five. The Spitfire in French hands, part one.

 

The Supermarine Spitfire had also an ample operational history with France. 
The first Spitfire to serve with the Armée de l'Air (French Air Force) was delivered in June 1939. It was a Spitfire Mk.I and was employed for evaluation at the Centre d'essais des materiels aériens (Aerial materials evaluation centre) at Orleans. Due to the beginning of World War 2, it remained there until the French surrender in June 1940, when it was captured by the Germans.

After the Fall of France, two Free French Spitfire squadrons were created within the Royal Air Force (RAF); Nos.340 & 341 plus No.345 which was formed much later. Both Nos.340 & 341 were initially equipped with the Spitfire. 
It should be pointed that the title of "Free French" (Françaises Libres) was applied only to units formed under British tutelage during the period of existence of Vichy France, which had its own armed forces, with their own air force, so those who were enlisted in the Free French units were considered as traitors by the Vichy authorities and were deposed of their rights as prisoners of war. 
However, since Operation Torch and the invasion of French Morocco and Algeria in November 1942, the application of that term to newly formed units -many French units turned completely to the Allied- lost its meaning due to the occupation of Vichy France by Germany in November 1942. So later French units serving with the RAF no longer bore the nickname of "Free French". 

So, the French Spitfire squadrons that saw service with the RAF were the following:

• No.340 Squadron/Groupe de Chasse IV/2 "Île de France": Formed with Spitfires Mk.IIa in Scotland, on 7th November 1941, this unit was initially assigned to defensive patrols over Scotland. After being equipped with the Spitfire Mk.V and early versions of the Mk.IX, it was rebased to southern England in April 1942 to perform fighter sweeps over northern France. These missions lasted until March 1943 when the squadron was moved back to Scotland to rest. 
  During November 1943 it was sent to south-western England to perform fighter sweeps and anti-shipping operations off the coast of Brittany. In April 1944 it was assigned to No.145 Wing which was part of the 2nd Tactical Air Force and saw action during Normandy landings and subsequent campaign. 
  They were rebased to France in August 1944 and shortly later, in September, to Belgium. However this would not last long, as in that same month they were called back to England to fly bomber escort missions from RAF Biggin Hill for two weeks in November 1944.
  In February 1945 the squadron, this time operating from the Netherlands and reassigned back to the 2nd Tactical Air Force, flew fighter sweeps until the end of the war. It was part of the Allied Occupation Forces in Germany but in November 1945 was transferred to the newly re-founded Armée de l'Air. 
  
• No.341 Squadron/Groupe de Chasse III/2 "Alsace": Formed on 15th January 1943 from Free French personnel from Free French Flight, which had been operating in the Western Desert campaign, this unit was formed in Great Britain and by March, equipped with the Spitfire Mk.V and the Mk.IX, they performed fighter sweeps over Northern France, operating from RAF Biggin Hill. 
  In October 1943 the unit was sent to Cornwall, to take part in more fighter sweeps, this time over Brittany. This took until April 1944 when the formation was assigned to No.145 Wing and, therefore, was transferred to the 2nd Tactical Air Force. The squadron provided aerial support for the Normandy landings and just like the No.340 Squadron, it was rebased to Normandy in August 1944 and then to Belgium in September. The squadron remained in continental Europe acting in the ground support /armed reconnaissance fighter role for most of the rest of the war, although in February 1945 it flew back to RAF Turnhouse, in England to be re-equipped with the Spitfire Mk.XVI. It was transferred back to the Armée de l'Air in November 1945.
• No.345 Squadron/Groupe de Chasse II/2 "Berry": This unit, formed in February 1944 from French veterans who served through the Middle-East and the African North-Western campaigns. It was formed in Scotland, but was soon rebased to the south of England to take part in Operation Overlord, the invasion of Normandy, under the command of No.141 Wing, part of the 2nd Tactical Air Force. 
  In November the squadron was moved to Belgium and, together with other French squadron, formed the No.145 Wing, 2nd Tactical Air Force, performing fighter sweeps, attacking communication hubs, troops concentrations and some occasional bomber escorts until the end of the war. In November 1945 it was transferred to the Armée de l'Air.

to be continued.

Sources:

1st https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Supermarine_Spitfire_operators#France

2nd AJ-Press - Monografie Lotnicze 40 - Supermarine Spitfire Part 3 (translated)

3rd https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/No._340_Squadron_RAF

4th https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/No._341_Squadron_RAF

5th https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/No._345_Squadron_RAF

6th http://www.historyofwar.org/air/units/RAF/340_wwII.html

7th http://www.historyofwar.org/air/units/RAF/341_wwII.html

8th http://www.historyofwar.org/air/units/RAF/345_wwII.html

Blériot-SPAD S.510

 

The Blériot-SPAD S.510 was a French single-seat biplane fighter which entered service with the Armée de l'Air (French Air Force) in 1936.

Designed by André Herbemont to meet a 1930 requirement of the French government for a new fighter capable of achieving a speed of 325 km/h (202 mph) at an altitude of 3.500 m (11.500 ft) (those requirements were later increased to 350 km/h at the same altitude) with an armament of either four machine guns, one 20 mm cannon and two machine guns or two cannons. Herbemont submitted a proposal based on his own previous Blériot-SPAD S.91 design and it was the only biplane contender. 

The S.510 was an all-metal, with fabric-covered wings and tail and a monocoque rear fuselage. It was equipped with a fixed landing gear and was powered by a single Hispano-Suiza 12Xbrs liquid-cooled V12 engine rated at 690 hp of power which drove a two-bladed propeller.

Typical armament configuration consisted on four 7.5 mm MAC 1934 machine guns mounted under the lower wing, with the exception of the prototype which had two guns mounted on the fuselage. Later production examples were powered by an Hispano-Suiza 12Xcrs which allowed a 20 mm cannon to be mounted between the engine's cylinder banks and fire through the propeller hub. 

The first and only prototype flew for the first time on 6th January 1933 and, when tested, some flight problems arose, resulting in the enlengthening of the central fuselage by 40 cm (16 in) and its vertical surfaces being enlarged. When evaluated in 1935 at the Centre d'expériences aériennes militaires (CEAM) at Reims, against the Dewoitine D.500 monoplane (which was already in production) the S.510 showed greater maneuverability and climb rate. Therefore, an order for an initial batch of 60 aircraft was placed on 30th August 1935. 

Performance was comparable to that of the British Gloster Gladiator and, with its armament configuration, it had heavier attack capabilities than other biplane fighters of its era, namely the Italian FIAT Cr.32 or Cr.42, or the German Heinkel He.51, among others. However, the S.510 was despised to obsolescence before being adopted officially, although when it was designed, many pilots believed a biplane fighter would perform better than a monoplane in dogfights, thanks to its tighter turning circles. It enjoyed one year of usefulness, as it was adequate for 1936, but it was quickly outclassed by other monoplane fighters such as the Morane-Saulnier Ms.406 or the Dewoitine D.520, to name a few.

The first S.510 were delivered to the Armée de l'Air in early 1936 as a replacement for the Morane-Saulnier Ms.225 of Groupe de Chasse 1/7 (GC 1/7) from May 1937 and the Nieuport-Delage NiD.62 and NiD.629 of GC II/7 from July 1937. That same year they also equipped the Weiser Circus aerobatic team in a display that was held all across France that year. In 1938, after the Munich Crisis, every S.510 was fitted with radios and some of them were equipped with revised exhaust tubes to be used as night fighters. From January 1939, GC 1/7 began to transition to the Morane-Saulnier Ms.406, discarding their last S.510 in February, while GC II/7 began to replace them later that year and by early September (shortly after the start of the war) they had fully replaced the S.510 by Ms.406s.

In August 1939 obsolete fighters placed in storage were assigned to various Escadrilles Régionales de Chasse (ERC - Regional Fighter Flights) to train reservist pilots. Two flights were formed in mainland France equipped with a mixture of S.510 and NiD.622. These were ERC 3/561 at Saint-Inglevert airfield, at Pas-de-Calais and ERC 4/561 at Villacoublay, in Seine-et-Oise. In October both ERC were merged to form Groupe Aérien Régional de Chasse II/561 (GARC II/561) based at Le-Havre-Oteville airfield, in the Seine-Maritime department. 

On 18th January 1940 GARC II/561 was renamed to GC III/10 and received Bloch Mb. 151 during the following weeks, to allow the unit to transition to the frontlines. The S.510 were returned to their initial trainer roles and were used as such until the armistice in June 1940. 

Around ten S.510 were sent to Algeria and Morocco to serve in ERCs in Oran and Rabat. In May 1940 the ERCs in French North Africa were combined to form a new group, GC III/5 with, among other machines, those ten S.510 previously mentioned. However, in late May they were replaced by Ms.406 machines.

Some reports claim that the S.510 also served with the Republicans in the Spanish Civil War. However those were proven fake.

Sources:

1. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blériot-SPAD_S.510

2. http://equinoxe.dk/SCWaircraft/didnt.html

Morane-Saulnier Ms.450

 

On 27th February 1937 the French Service Technique Aéronautique, (Aeronautical Technical Service) issued a requirement for a new fighter that could complement the Ms.405 and the more promising Ms.406. 

The Ms.450 employed more updated construction techniques than its predecessors as it had dural monocoque fuselage and plymax-skinned metal wings instead of the tubular metal framework, covered with fabric at the rear and plymax (plywood bonded to aluminum) at the front. It was powered by a single Hispano-Suiza 12Y51 which yielded a total power of 1.085 hp and was armed with a total of four 7.5 mm MAC 1934-39 machine guns at the wings, two on each plus a 20 mm Hispano-Suiza Hs.404 cannon placed inside the engine which fired through the propeller hub. 

A total of three prototypes were made, the first of which flew for the first time on 14th April 1939 and the second one in November that same year at Morane-Saulnier's factory in Puteaux. 

When tested it didn't show bad ratings, however, a month earlier, in March, its most direct competitor, the Dewoitine D.520 had been ordered for mass production as it was considered a better aircraft. After the fall of France in June 1940 work on the Ms.450 was continued in Switzerland, where it was further refined into an almost completely new aircraft, the Doflug D.3802, but that's a subject for another post.

Sources:

1. http://www.historyofwar.org/articles/weapons_morane_saulnier_MS450.html

2. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Morane-Saulnier_M.S.406#M.S.450

3. http://www.aviastar.org/air/france/morane_ms-450.php

4. https://www.valka.cz/Morane-Saulnier-MS-450-C-1-t35874

5. https://www.aviafrance.com/aviafrance1.php?ID=1735&ID_CONSTRUCTEUR=931&ANNEE=0&ID_MISSION=0&MOTCLEF= (translated)

Morane-Saulnier Ms.435

 

The Morane-Saulnier Ms.435 was a twin-seater French advanced trainer, based on the Ms.406, which was ordered into production in 1939 but it couldn't be delivered on time before the fall of France.

The Ms.435 began its life as the Ms.430, in 1937 when, after undergoing some testing and development, it was decided to fit a Gnome-Rhône 7Kfs radial engine in the fuselage, as the Ms.433. This variant was, however, cancelled in favor of the Ms.435, as the fuselage of the Ms.406 was better than the Ms.405's one.

The Ms.435's fuselage differed from the Ms.406's one in having a bigger cross section but it was also a low-wing single-engined monoplane with a crew of two, instructor and trainee sitting in a continuous glazed canopy. It was powered by a single Gnome-Rhône 9Kdrs radial engine which yielded 550 hp of power and it was also equipped with an inward retracting landing gear.

The prototype flew for the first time on 6th December 1939, when it was presented to the public in Armée de l'Air's colours. The French Air Ministry placed an initial order of sixty serial produced aircraft as the Ms.435P.2 (the letter P standing for "Professeur" - teacher and the number 2 meant that it had capacity for two crew members). However, as the Armée de l'Air was in need of fighters, the Ms.435 had a very low production priority and only the prototype remained completed before the fall of France in June 1940.

Sources:

1. http://www.historyofwar.org/articles/weapons_morane_saulnier_MS435.html

2. https://www.valka.cz/Morane-Saulnier-MS-435-P-2-t167647

3. https://www.aviafrance.com/morane-saulnier-ms-435-aviation-france-864.htm (translated)

4. https://www.aviastar.org/air/france/morane_ms-435.php

Morane-Saulnier Ms.230, home users and variants

 The Morane-Saulnier Ms.230 was the main elementary trainer aircraft of the French Armée de l'Air (French Air Force) through the whole 1930s. Almost every pilot flying for the Armée de l'Air at the outbreak of World War 2, had flown the Ms.230 at any point in their careers. Its most direct equivalents are the Boeing-Stearman Model 75, the British de Havilland Tiger Moth and the German Bücker Bü.131 Jüngman, to name a few.

The Ms.230 was designed to meet a requirement of the French Air Ministry issued back in 1928 for a machine in the lines of the Morane-Saulnier Ms.53 and the Morane-Saulnier Ms.130 (them both being two-seat parasol trainers of the 1920s). To such end, Morane-Saulnier re-engined a single Ms.133 with an uncovered Salmson 9Ab radial engine and fitted the landing gear from a Morane-Saulnier Ms.181 and, one year later, in 1929, the Ms.230 was presented and adopted by the Armée de l'Air.

The Ms.230 was a parasol wing monoplane of metallic tubular framing with fabric covering the whole fuselage except for the forward area, which was covered in metal. The instructor and the trainee occupied two cockpits in a tandem configuration and had a fixed landing gear, making it very stable for take off and landing. For a time when most of the trainers consisted on biplanes, the Ms.230 was, with its parasol wing, an exception.

During its first trials in February 1929, it revealed to be an excellent and stable machine which was easy to fly and also as robust as its contemporaneous fighters. Its parts were also very accessible, making it easier its maintenance and, thanks to its maneuverability and polivalence, it quickly became very popular. 

The French Air Ministry ordered an initial batch of 500 machines, with production starting in March 1929, with the first production machine rolling out the factory the 15th of that month. It was presented to the public in the 1929 Michelin Cup and the 1930 Salon International de l'Aeronautique on 28th November 1930. It was assigned to every military flying school in France and was also used by the Aeronavale (French Navy's Air Arm) in French colonies like Tunisia.

Apart from the variants already covered in previous posts, namely the Ms.229, Ms.233 and Ms.236, there were also some experimental variants:

• Ms.231: Version built in 1930 which was powered by a single Lorraine 7Mb engine yielding 240 hp of power. A total of six machines were made.
• Ms.232: Single prototype made in 1930. It was fitted with a Clerget 9Ca diesel radial engine rated at 200 hp.
• Ms.234: The Ms.234 was a single machine destined to be used by the American ambassador in Paris. It was powered by a Wright J-6-9 engine (itself a license copy of the Hispano-Suiza 9Qa) which yielded 330 hp of power (though, according to other sources, it was just 250 hp) 
• Ms.234/2: Racer version for the 1931 Michelin Air Race. It was powered by an Hispano-Suiza 9Qb rated at 230 hp covered with a cowl.  It was flown by Michel Détroyat in subsequent editions of the Michelin Coup until 1938.
• Ms.235: Single prototype powered by a Gnome-Rhône 7Kb engine rated at 300 hp. Flew for the first time in March 1935.
• Ms.237: Five machines powered by the Salmson 9Aba engine rated at 280 hp. They were built for private owners in 1934. In 1942 the German Luftwaffe seized one machine belonging to Air France Trasatlantique. 
• Ms.330: Parasol wing trainer, made entirely out of metal, destined to replace the Ms.230. It was made in 1929 but it failed to live to its expectations and wasn't ordered into mass production. It was powered by a covered Salmson 9Ab radial engine and, though externally looking similar to the 230, it had a new wing profile. 
  Tests revealed that it had a tendency to fall into an uncontrollable flat spin after some maneuvers and development was abandoned. However, two sub-variants, Ms.331 and Ms.332, were tested with different engines to try and solve that problem. Neither of those was successful and the project was abandoned. 
• Ms.530: The last in a long series of parasol trainer aircraft built by Morane-Saulnier. It was similar to the Ms.330, as it was the result of almost a decade of development. Powered by a Salmson 9ABd radial engine with a NACA cowling, rated at 280 hp. It flew for the first time on 9th September 1938, but as its performance wasn't better than the regular Ms.230, the project was abandoned.

The Wikipedia in English mentions a floater variant, the Ms.235H, but that's the only reference we have found. It's not even mentioned in the French Wikipedia page nor in the various books we have consulted.

Sources:

1. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Morane-Saulnier_MS.230

2. https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Morane-Saulnier_MS.230 (translated)

3. http://www.historyofwar.org/articles/weapons_morane_saulnier_MS330.html

4. https://www.secretprojects.co.uk/threads/morane-saulnier-designations.911/

5. https://www.valka.cz/Morane-Saulnier-MS-230-t167614 (translated)

6. http://www.historyofwar.org/articles/weapons_morane_saulnier_MS530.html

Caudron C.440 'Goéland'. Home Users Part One.

 

The Caudron Goéland was a six-seat twin-engined French utility aircraft of the 1930s. 

It was designed in 1934 by Marcel Riffard, designer who would design other successful aircraft like the Caudron Simoun. The Goéland (french word for 'seagull') was a cantilever low-wing construction made out of wood and steel. Wood in the wing and fuselage, steel tube for the top and the back of the fuselage. The wing was equipped with flaps all along the trailing edge, under the fuselage too and retractable landing gear. 

The prototype, C.440, of which 3 exemplars were made, flew for the first time on 5th March 1935 and by September it was sent to Istres to be officially tested by Caudron-Renault. The nose section was occupied by a baggage compartment, accesible by a lateral door. The crew was composed of two, pilot and co-pilot and had capacity for six passengers. It was produced for a very long period of time, as it was manufactured from 1935 until 1948, in several versions (C.440 to C.449) with modifications being related to Renault engines and slight variation in the structural design. 

The C.441 was the name given to the second prototype of the C.440 as it was fitted with a pair of Renault 453 engines which delivered a power of 200 hp each. That aircraft, registered as F-ANKX was painted in Air France's colours for a demonstration flight on 31st August 1935.

The next big version was the C.444, retained the same wing style as the C.441, though bulkheads were added to the lower surface and the fin was rounded. It was powered by two Renault 6Q-00/01 contra-rotating engines, which would become the standard for every Goéland produced from that model onwards. A total of 17 machines of this variant were made.

The main version, the C.445 was externally almost identical to the C.444, though the aforementioned wing bulkheads were removed. Around 650 machines of this type were manufactured between 1936 and 1940 when France surrendered. It got the interest of the Armée de l'Air (French Air Force) who asked Caudron to develop a military version with flexible interior fittings for either passengers or cargo. This version could also be employed for pilot and crew training and was called C.445M, was ordered on 18th March 1938 and a total of 90 machines were built.

A sanitary version was also made, the C.447 with capacity for four stretchers and a nurse and only 25 machines were made. The C.448 was a direct derivative of the C.444 with new supercharged Renault engines. 

In civilian service it was employed in limited numbers, as three machines were used in 1936 by Air France, which, one year later, sold them to the Spanish Republic via a front company. Air Bleu used a single C.444 in 1937 and three C.445 in 1939 in the Paris-Pau night mail line. Air Afrique Regale used a total of seven C.444 in their secondary aerial routes between Gao and Bamako in the French Sudan. Aéromaritime, another French airline, operated two Goélands, on the Gao-Niamey route. Together with these airlines, many were sold to private owners and governmental charges, such as the governor-general of Madagascar to which post four Goélands were assigned. 

In mainland France, the Armée de l'Air and the Aéronavale (French Navy's Air Arm) employed the type in the transport and trainer roles. They served in the Armée de l'Air's schools of Istres and Avord and also for liason purposes. In 1939 the French Navy placed an order for 60 machines which were transferred to several training and servitude sections. 

 

Sources:

1. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caudron_C.440_Goéland

2. https://www.passionair1940.fr/Armee%20de%20l%27Air/Appareils/Transport/Caudron-Goeland/EN-Caudron-goeland.htm

3. https://aviatechno.net/vilgenis/46-49/caudron440.php (translated)

4. https://www.valka.cz/Caudron-C-440-Goeland-t168115 (translated)

Curtiss SBC Helldiver. Foreign users.

The Curtiss SBC Helldiver was a two-seat scout and dive bomber built by the Curtiss-Wright Corporation. It saw service with both France and the United Kingdom.

• France: During 1939 the Aeronavale (French Naval Aviation) ordered ninety Curtiss Model 77 (the export variant of the SBC-4) with some minor modifications such as speedometers set in kilometers per hour instead of miles per hour. The .50 in machine guns they were armed with, were replaced with Darne 7.7 mm machine guns and additional space was provided for the French Type B parachute. Manufacturing of these aircraft advanced very slowly as the Curtiss Hawk 75 and Hawk 81 (Curtiss P-36 and P-40 respectively) fighter had priority at the Curtiss Factory. Near the end of May 1940, when the French situation was precarious, the US Government, on French Government request, authorized the release of fifty SBC-4 from the US Naval Reserve, with the condition that the US Navy would replace them with the ones of the original contract, when they were available. 
  Orders were set in June 1940 to remove the fifty SBC-4 from the various Navy Air Reserve Bases (NARB) around the USA and ferry them to Buffalo, New York, with ten additional spare Wright R-1820-34 engines, propellers and other spare parts. 
  Once at Curtiss' plant, they were all prepared to be shipped to France, after having done all the aforementioned changes. All distinguishing marks that would imply the USA were erased, French camouflage schemes were applied and the rudders were painted with the tri-colored French flag. The Curtiss employees worked long and hard to get the job done as quickly as possible.
  Gradually all fifty of them reached Buffalo and pilots were given instructions on how to proceed. For the ferry flight they would be payed $250.00 ($4.687.72 adjusted for inflation) plus rail ticket back from Canada to Buffalo and would be considered as Curtiss employees. Like the SBC-4 they would have to remove anything from their personal effects that could identify them as US Navy's pilots.
  The aircraft were flown in sections of three, from Buffalo to Halifax, in Nova Scotia, Canada, with various stopovers. However, the plan didn't go quite well, as in the border, they were not allowed to fly over Canadian territory and, instead, they were towed by automobiles and tractors, in order to keep American neutrality, to a nearby field, where they had to take off again and flight to Halifax, where the French aircraft carrier Bearn awaited to transport the aircraft to France. The loading operation was completed on 16th June 1940 and the Bearn set to sea on that same date escorted by the Jeanne D'Arc light cruiser. Both ships were on route to France, but, when they were at sea, France surrendered, so both ships turned to the French West Indies island of Martinique, in the Caribbean, where the aircraft were unloaded.
  The Helldivers remained there, in the open rotting away, due to diplomatic wrangling.
• United Kingdom: Five SBC-4 that couldn't be loaded into the Bearn, were left at Royal Canadian Air Force Base of Dartmouth, Nova Scotia, where the Royal Air Force acquired them in August 1940. They were designated as "Cleveland Mk.I" and were shipped to England, on board HMS Furious (47). They were assembled at RAF Burtonwood, Lancashire, and delivered to RAF Little Rissington, Gloucestershire. They were eventually assigned to the No.24 (Communications) Squadron at RAF Hendon, Middlesex, where they evaluated and considered as not fit for operational duty, so they were used ground trainers.

Sources:

1. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Curtiss_SBC_Helldiver

2. Signal Squadron - Aircraft In action 151 - SBC Helldiver in Action

ANF Les Mureaux 117

 

The ANF Les Mureaux 117 was a French two-seater parasol scout aircraft of the 1930s. It was powered by a single Hispano-Suiza 12Ybrs rated at 848 hp of power which drove a two-bladed wooden propeller, the same type which powered the Mureaux 113. 

With a crew of two (pilot and observer/bomber), it was armed with two Vickers 0.303 in machine guns mounted in the engine plus another one mounted at the rear cockpit for the observer in a defensive configuration. This machine gun was replaced in later versions by the 7.5 mm MAC machine gun. Like the Mureaux 115 it was also initially fitted with a single Lewis machine gun which could fire through the bottom hatch of the observer's cockpit but it was quickly removed and never saw real use. It also had provision for a total of 200 kg (440 lb) of bombs placed under the main fuselage and the wing.

As the aircraft could perform both as a pure recon airplane or as a recon-bomber, the Armée de l'Air (French Air Force) gave the suffix of R.2 B.2 (the letter 'R' standing for 'Reconnaissance' and the letter 'B' standing for 'Bombardier' - Bomber) with the number two making reference to the number of crew members the type needed. Though, eventually, only 16 of them were equipped with bombs, so it wasn't very common. 

The Mureaux 117 differed from other types of the 110 family in having a reinforced wing with internal braces. Given that the aircraft comes from the Mureaux 113, work on the prototype started back in 1933 but it wasn't until January 1935 when the prototype took off for the first time. As part of the contract issued by the French Air Ministry, which sought to replace the older and outdated, though venerable, Potez 25 biplane recon airplane, a total of 115 Mureaux 117 were manufactured at Atelier des Mureaux in Les Mureaux, close to Paris from 1935 until 1936 when work on the more promising Potez 630 (which would eventually derive into the Potez 63.11) was already under design. 

However, as deliveries of those more advanced types were very slow, the Mureaux 117 (together with the Mureaux 115) was still in active service in September 1939 when World War 2 started, so it constituted the backbone of the Armée de l'Air's short-range aerial recon force equipping nine Groupes Aériens d'Observation (Aerial Observation Groups) which performed regular scouting missions over the German Siegfried Line during the period known as the "Phoney War". By April 1940, just one month before the main German attack, the airplane was still serving in numbers, many of them in the French African colonies. Anyway, when France fell in late June the type was written off and eventually scrapped by the Armée de l'Air de l'Armistice (Vichy French Air Force).

Oddly enough, back in 1938 a French right-wing newspaper published some news about the French government having sold some Mureaux 117 (and 115) to the Spanish Republican Government to help them in the Spanish Civil War. Those news turned out to be fake, but it's not reason to hold us from drawing an hypothetical Mureaux 117 serving with the Spanish Republican Air Force.

Sources:

1. http://www.airwar.ru/enc/other1/mureaux117.html (translated)

2. https://www.valka.cz/ANF-Les-Mureaux-117-R-2-B-2-t42734

3. http://bioold.science.ku.dk/drnash/model/spain/index.html (accesible only through the wayback machine)

ANF Les Mureaux 115

 

The ANF Les Mureaux 115 was a French two-seater reconnaissance fighter and light bomber. It was powered by a single Hispano-Suiza 12Ycrs which delivered 848 hp of power and drove a three-bladed propeller. 

The prototype flew for the first time on 6th March 1935 and a total of 119 aircraft of the type were manufactured between 1935 and December 1938 by Société Nationale de Constructions Aéronautiques du Nord (National Company of Aeronautical Constructions of the North) at Les Mureaux, close to Paris. The production version was given the suffix of R.2 by the Armée de l'Air (French Air Force) as they were suited to reconnaissance role. 

The Mureaux 115 was armed with a single 7.5 mm MAC 1934 machine gun mounted on the engine, a single 20 mm Hispano-Suiza-9 cannon mounted in the engine and firing through the propeller hub, a single defensive 7.5 mm MAC 1934 placed in the observer's cockpit aimed to the rear and, initially, a single ventral 0.303 in Lewis machine gun which was fired by the observer through a hatch, though this machine gun wasn't mounted in most of the machines. It also had provision for four 50 kg (110 lb) bombs, two under the main fuselage and two under the wing. When equipped with bomb, the suffix B.2 (which stands for Bombardier - Bomber) was given. 

Just like every type in this family of planes, by 1939 it was already obsolete, however, as the Armée de l'Air didn't have any better alternative, they were kept at the frontlines when World War 2 began in September 1939 after undergoing some small modernisations as they were the backbone of the short-range recon aircraft fleet.

During the period known as the "Phoney War", the Mureaux 115 took part in many photo-reconnaissance missions over the Siegfried line and, given their vulnerability to German fighters and anti-aircraft fire, a Mureaux 115 has the dubious honour of being the first French aircraft shot down in the World War 2, during one of those recon missions. 

In spite of having fighter cover, they were still highly vulnerable because of their slowness (their maximum speed was just of 327.5 km/k - 203.5 mph) so, since before the beginning of the conflict, they were being replaced by the much better Potez 637 and Potez 63.11. However, deliveries of this aircraft were slow and by May 1940 some Mureaux 115 were still in active service and were employed all throughout the Franco-German front. 

When France fell in late June 1940 the Armée de l'Air de l'Armistice (Vichy France's Air Force) was created which took care of the remaining Mureaux 115 which, once unarmed, were employed as trainers, before being written off from service in July 1941.

Oddly, in 1938, various French right-wing newspapers published that some Mureaux 115 (together with some 117) were sold to the Spanish Republicans and took part in recon missions in the Spanish Civil War. Those reports weren't based in real facts, so they were simple propaganda, however as with many other profiles, we decided to draw an hypothetical-looking Mureaux 115 serving with the Spanish Republican Air Force.

Sources:

1. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ANF_Les_Mureaux_113

2. http://www.airwar.ru/enc/other1/mureaux115.html (translated)

3. https://www.valka.cz/ANF-Les-Mureaux-115-R-2-B-2-t42733

4. http://bioold.science.ku.dk/drnash/model/spain/index.html (accesible only through the wayback machine)

ANF Les Mureaux 113

 

The ANF Les Mureaux 113 was a French single-engined all-metal parasol two-seater reconnaissance aircraft with fixed landing-gear.

It was designed by André Brunet (who was the chief designer of Ateliers de Construction du Nord - ANF) who had previous experience with other designs of the type like the Mureaux 130A.2 recon plane. All his designs had in common a parasol wing, a metal frame and a fixed broad-gauge landing gear. After some minor modifications and improvements, the Mureaux 110 A.2 and 112.GR aircraft were completed, flying for the first time in 1931.

The French Air Ministry was impressed by the performance of the 110, placed a contract for its serial production under the denomination of Les Mureaux 113R.2. The pilot and the observer were seated in open cockpits, back to back, with the rear cockpit having a large windshield and a single defensive 7.5mm MAC 34 machine gun. It was powered by a Hispano-Suiza 12Ybrs which delivered 650 hp of power and drove a two-bladed propeller and had a radiator protruding in the lower part of the nose.

A total of 51 machines were completed between September 1933 (when the type entered mass production) and January 1935 (when the type was discontinued in favour of more modern types such as the Les Mureaux 115) at Atelier des Mureaux, in the town of Les Mureaux which was later nationalised as part of the SNCAN complex. 

Additionally, a night-fighter version was built (which we already covered it some years ago) named Les Mureaux 114 CN.2, but it never went beyond the prototype stage and some of them were fitted with small underwing searchlights. 

It entered service with the Armée de l'Air's reconnaissance Groupes (a unit existing only in the French Air Force) and, eventually replacing the venerable Potez 25 in the Groupe Aériens Régionaux reserve units. When the World War 2 began in September 1939, the ANF 113 was limited to frontline recon operations but as outdated as they were, they were promptly scrapped or suited to the night-recon role.

Sources:

1. http://www.airwar.ru/enc/other1/mureaux113.html (translated)

2. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ANF_Les_Mureaux_113

3. https://www.valka.cz/ANF-Les-Mureaux-113-R-2-t42736

Morane-Saulnier Ms.410

 

The Morane-Saulnier Ms.410 was an improved version of the famous Ms.406 fighter. The project was started in 1939 when the Ms.406 was starting group service and, at the same time, a program was initiated to improve the design as the Ms.406 was intended to be replaced by the Dewoitine D.520.

The result of this was the Ms.410 which consisted on the adoption of an stronger wing, simpler fixed radiator in lieu of the earlier retractable one, four belt-fed 7.5mm MAC 1934 machine guns in the wings, as opposed of the previous pair of drum-fed weapons and the fitting of exhaust ejector which gave additional thrust, thanks to which the top speed was boosted to 509 km/h (316 mph) which meant 16 km/h (10 mph) faster than the Ms.406.

As it was better armed, the Ms.410 was the next logical step for the Ms.406, as ,instead of having to be replaced, many Ms.406s could be converted into Ms.410 standards. In fact, a total of 621 Ms.406 were to be converted to the Ms.410 but, by the time of the French armistice on 25th June 1940, only ten had been completed (five, according to some other sources), with many others reamining incomplete. 

The programme was resumed under the Vichy regiment and, eventually, 75 machines were completed but many of the converted machines, received only new wings. Some of them received the new fixed radiator, while other didn't. 

Eleven Ms.410 were sold to the Finnish Air Force where they served with Lentolaivue 28 and 14 (Squadrons 28 and 14) through the Continuation War from 1942 until 1944. As the MAC 1934 wasn't reliable enough in the freezing Finnish cold weather, they were replaced with captured 12.7mm Berezin and Colt machine guns. Apparently, some of them were also sold to the Independent State of Croatia, but we only found a single text reference, so we decided not to draw a hypothetical version. 

Sources:

1. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Morane-Saulnier_M.S.406#M.S.410

2. https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Morane-Saulnier_MS.406#MS.410 (translated)

3. https://fi.wikipedia.org/wiki/Morane-Saulnier_M.S.406 (translated)

4. https://www.militaryfactory.com/aircraft/detail.asp?aircraft_id=2060

5. Salamander Books - The Complete Book of Fighters

Morane-Saulnier Ms.406, Franco-Polish users

 

The Morane-Saulnier Ms.406 was the most manufactured French fighter of the World War 2. 

The Ms.406 was very manoeuvrable and could withstand high amounts of damage, potentially giving possible advantage against German fighters. However, overall, the Ms.406 was totally outclassed by the Bf.109E. Efforts to replace the type with a more capable type, like the Dewoitine D.520, the Curtiss H75 or even the improved Ms.410, failed to take place before the end of the Phoney War, on 10th May 1940, when Germany invaded. On the eve of the invasion, a total of 10 Groupés were equipped with the Ms.406, together with another amount of defensive units which were equipped with either the Ms.406 or the Bloch MB.152. 

During the combat that followed that date, the Allied forces suffered a high attrition rate and couldn't keep with the level of damage sustained. Of the Ms.406 that faced the Germans, heavy losses were reported. One hundred and fifty aircraft were lost in action while a further 200-300 fighters were recorded to have been lost to other causes. The quick advance of the German army led to repeated retreats and abandonment of bases, rendering most of the repairing efforts chaotic and, in many times, forcing the crews to destroy their own fighters on the ground to prevent them from being captured. The Armée de l'Air's tactic of employing small group of fighters against larger German formations, proved to be mostly ineffective and, often, very expensive.

In combat against enemy fighters, the Ms.406 showed mixed results. While there are recordings showing some lucky victories against the much superior Bf.109E, it was generally outclassed by it. On this topic, the story of the Groupe de Chasse III/7 (fighter squadron III/7) was very typical. On 15th May 1940 nine Ms.406 encountered 12 Bf.109 over Meziéres. The Germans stayed some few thousands of feet above the French and dived down in pairs to attack, with a single firing pass, before climbing back and repeating the manoeuvre. Three Ms.406 spinned down in flames and only one French pilot could bail out, seriously wounded. A fourth Morane, full of bullets, crash-landed at Soissons and was wrecked. A fifth pilot, was wounded in the head by splinters, forcing him to land. 

On 21st May seventeen Morane of the same unit, intercepted 50 Dornier Do.17 bombers escorted by other 50 Bf.109. Before the Morane could get in range to open fire, the Bf.109 jumped on then and shot down four Moranes almost at once. Two more resulted badly damaged and couldn't be repaired. The French pilots claimed two Bf.109 shot down. 

The Ms.406 holds the distinction of being the most ineffective French fighter to served during the Battle of France, probably because of its low firepower. On 24th June, one day before the armistice, a Ms.406 flown by Sous Lt. Marchelidon, of the G.C. 1/2 scored the Armée de l'Air's last kill in the conflict. 

The type was also used by the Polish Air Force in exile. It was the main fighter of the Groupe de Chasse I/145 'Varsovie', together with the Caudron C.714 (which was used mainly for training purposes) and the Bloch MB.152. This squadron was put into reserve at Mions, after the Lyon-Bron airport was struck twice by enemy air raids, on 10th May. However, two days later, as the Armée de l'Air needed every Ms.406 available, the squadron was re-equipped with the Caudron C.714, almost completely. However, some Polish pilots, achieved the ace status while flying the Ms.406.

Sources:

1. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Morane-Saulnier_M.S.406

2. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polish_Air_Forces_in_France_and_Great_Britain

3. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/I/145_Polish_Fighter_Squadron

4. Salamander Books - The Complete Book of Fighters

Morane-Saulnier Ms.406, French users, part one

 

The Morane-Saulnier Ms.406 was the most numerous French fighter at the start of the World War 2. It was the production variant of the Ms.405 which was developed to a specification issued by the Service Technique de l’Aéronautique (Aeronautical Technical Service) in 1934. 

The Ms.405 passed the test, was approved, flew for the first time on 8th August 1935 and, considering that there was much to improve, the prototypes were improved during the following years. In April 1937, fifty Ms.406 were ordered, which offered serious improvements over the Ms.405 as it was powered by the Hispano-Suiza 12Y-31 which offered 860 hp of power and was to be equipped with a 20 mm Hispano-Suiza cannon placed in the engine and firing through the propeller hub and two MAC 1934 7.5 mm machine guns placed in the wings. The fourth Ms.405 served as the prototype for the Ms.406 and flew with the new engine for the first time on 20th May 1938. By that time, the production rate had increased enormously. Eighty more were ordered in August 1937 and, in April 1938, that number was increased with additional 825 machines more.

Production began at a slow pace. By early 1939, just twelve machines had been delivered to the Armée de l'Air (French Air Force). However, production was quickly increased during 1939 and by April, it was being produced at rate of six fighters per day. That number was increased to 11 in September that year. Before the fall of France in June 1940, a total of 1.074 machine were manufactured. 

On 23rd August 1939, shortly before the outbreak of the World War 2, the Armée de l'Air was mobilised and various fighter units, equipped with the Ms.406 were deployed between the Franco-German border, between Luxembourg and Switzerland. 

During the Phoney War period, the stage of the war ranging between the Fall of Poland in late September 1939 and the beginning of the Battle of France in May 1940, the type was employed mainly in aerial skirmishes against German recon planes, escort and ground attack of small ground units. 

The Ms.406 was roughly equal to the Messerschmitt Bf.109D, however, that machine was being replaced by the much better Bf.109E at the beginning of the war. In comparisson with the Bf.109E, the Ms.406 was 80 km/h (50 mph) slower, too lightly armoured and too lightly armed. If the engine cannon malfunctioned (something quite common) the pilot was left with only the two light machine guns of the wings which had a much slower muzzle speed than the German MG 17, making their effective range much shorter. They were also unheated making them prone to freeze at high altitudes. The only effective advantage of the Ms.406 over the Bf.109E was that it could out-turn it. 

During the Battle of France a total of 300 Ms.406 were lost, 100 in aerial combat, 50 to anti-air fire and 150 to other causes like accidents and deliberate destruction during retreat. The French Ms.406 accounted for a total of 269 of the 696 confirmed kills scored by the French fighters before June 1940. At first glance the numbers may look impressive, but considering that with less than half as many Curtiss H-75 (the P-36 in French service), they were accounted with 230 victories and the small number of Dewoitine D.520 that came into action in May 1940 scored 114. The Ms.406 didn't have the required speed, firepower and armour required to face the Germans in 1940.

Sources:

1. http://www.historyofwar.org/articles/weapons_MS406.html

2. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Morane-Saulnier_M.S.406#In_French_service

3. https://www.valka.cz/Morane-Saulnier-MS-406-C-1-t1069

4. Salamander Books - The Complete Book of Fighters

Loire 130

As this is the last post of the year, we would like to wish all our readers a merry new year's eve and a happy 2020! That's why in this post we bring you not one but three drawings.
The Loire 130 was a French hydroplane that saw service during World War II and also post-war French colonial conflicts.
It's origins can be traced back to mid-1930s when the French Navy made a requirement for a reconnaissance seaplane or flying boat that could serve aboard French battleships and cruisers of the time. It was chosen in 1936 against five competitors (Bréguet 610, Gourdou-Leseurre GL-820 HY, Levasseur PL.200 and Potez CAMS 120).
It was powered by a single 12-cylinder Hispano-Suiza 12Xirs liquid-cooled vee engine, rated at 710 hp. It was armed with two 7,5 mm Darne machine guns, one of them placed just above the propeller, in a defensive position. It also had a payload of 150 kg of bombs, as it could carry a 75 kg bomb under each wing.
After flying for the first time on 19th November 1934, its performance was considered good enough so a production order for 150 machines was placed and in August 1936 it entered mass production. A total of 125 machines were manufactured by Loire Aviation (later named Société nationale des constructions aéronautiques de l'Ouest) in the French city of St. Nazaire from 1937 until 1941 when, under German occupation production ceased. In 1938 it entered officially in service replacing most of shipborne seaplanes and flying boats already in service.
Of those 125, one of them was the prototype, 111 were sent to the French Navy and 12 to the French Air Force which used a modified version called Loire 130CI which had an enlarged radiator. The French Air Force employed it in the colonies, specially in Indochina, where it served through the Franco-Thai War in early 1941.
In the late 1930s the Loire 130 was serving on board of most French battleships and cruisers, as well as aborad the Commandant Teste seaplane carrier, which had assigned a squadron of six machines in 1939. After the fall of France in June 1940, most of them passed on to the Vichy France's Air Force and, as previously mentioned, some of them were used to fly reconnaissance missions during the Franco-Thai War. The German Luftwaffe also performed some testing in 1940-1941 with some captured aircraft but rejected it due to its obsolescence and poor armament, which was deemed as "not sufficient under any circumstance", however it seems that at least one of them could've been used as an improvised transport from the coastal city of St. Nazaire to the town of Mâcon, in central France.
Although looking quite obsolete and having quite a very marginal performance numbers for its time, some of them survived the war and kept on service until 1949-1951, specially in French Indochina.

Sources:
1. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Loire_130
2. https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Loire_130 (translated) 
3. http://forum.12oclockhigh.net/archive/index.php?t-2066.html
4. https://www.valka.cz/Loire-130M-t25885

Morane-Saulnier M.S.405

The Morane-Saulnier M.S.405 was developed to a requirement of a French fighter specification made by the French Air Ministry in July 1934. Even if it was a monoplane, it was in many other ways an outdated design. While Messerschmitt and Supermarine were using all-metal stressed skin constructions, with the metal surface of the fuselage provided structural strength, Morane-Saulnier built their aircraft using technology employed in previous biplanes. Structural strength was provided by a series of bulkheads connected by aluminium tubes, connected by wire-braced struts. The aircraft was skinned with Plymax , which was a composite material made of both plywood and aluminium. Thanks to that skin method the aircraft resembled the Hawker Hurricane, which was built using similar methods.
It was armed with just three guns, one 20mm Hispano-Suiza H.S.404 firing through the propeller's hub and two 7,5mm MAC 1934 machine guns in the wings, quite underarmed for 1939-1940.
The first prototype flew for the first time on 8th August 1935 and was powered by an Hispano-Suiza 12Ygrs engine which yielded 824 hp of power for take-off and 848 hp at 4000 m (13123 ft) high. It had a top speed of 480 km/h (298 mph) at 4000 m (13120 ft) high. It was a nice top speed for the year 1935, however, it would take up to three years of development. The second prototype didn't appear until January 1937 and was powered by an improved Hispano-Suiza 12Ycrs engine. This second prototype showed promising results and on 1st March 1937, the French placed a pre-production order of 16 models.
The first of the pre-production aircraft, flew for the first time on 3rd February 1938 at Centre d'Essais de Materiel Aérien (CEMA). The No.2 was sent to Reims for operational testing, after which, it was decided to change the engine again. This time a Hispano-Suiza 12Y-31 would be fitted and thus the first prototype for the M.S.406 was built, which was the one that entered mass-production. The first production order for the M.S.406 was placed in April 1938 and in May the M.S.405 flew with a new engine.
Three of the pre-production M.S.405 were used for experiments which resulted in new designations, like the No.3 which had fuel tanks placed in the wings to make space to fit a dummy parachutist. This experimental aircraft was called Morane-Saulnier M.S.407L.P.
The No.12 was fitted with a Hispano-Suiza 12Y-45 engine and became the prototype for the Morane-Saulnier M.S.411 (which was also a development of a previous M.S.410 variant). It flew for the first time on 24th January 1939 and it had a fixed-radiator (while the ones equipped with the 12Y-31 had a retractable one.
The No.13 had the same fixed radiator as the No.12 but included compartments in the wings for flares. It was given the designation of Morane-Saulnier M.S.408. This aircraft became the prototype for the Swiss-produced variant D-3800.
Apparently some M.S.405 were used during the Phony War and the German Invasion of France mixed with the more advanced M.S.406. However by that time there were so few of them that most of them were used testbeds for other types of engines as we've shown.

Sources:
1. http://www.historyofwar.org/articles/weapons_MS405.html
2. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Morane-Saulnier_M.S.406#M.S.405
3. https://www.valka.cz/Morane-Saulnier-MS-405-C-1-t71689
4. Signal Squadron - Aircraft In action 180 - French Fighters of World War II in Action
5. Salamander Books - The Complete Book of Fighters
6. AJ Press - Monografie Lotnicze - Morane-Saulnier M.S.406

Bloch MB.700

When the political situation in Europe was degradating during mid-1930s, the French Air-Ministry became aware about a possible shortage of steel or light alloys and therefore they considered the non-hazardous materials as the basis for their aircrafts. Therefore the Service Technique de l'Aeronautique (Technical Aeronautical Service) issued an order for a light-fighter on 12th January 1937 called program A23. The requirements were for a fighter made out of wood and powered by engines less powerful than conventional fighters. For the contract Arsenal, Caudron and Bloch submitted their designs.
André Herbemont, who had studied every SPAD fighter since 1918, knew specially well the way of building fighters out of wood, and he couldn't miss the oportunity of working in such project. Blériot Aeronautique, a subsidiary of SPAD, based in the city of Suresnes, had been regrouped in SNCASO with the Société des Avions Marcel Bloch based at Courbevoie and Marcel Bloch, managing director of the national company, had maintaned the independence of the design offices after grouping them under his name. Therefore it was in Suresnes where André Herbemont studied and built the prototype of the Bloch MB.700.
The prototype, which was heavily inspired by the Bloch MB.152, was made out of plywood cladding, except for the rear fuselage which was made out of metal. Double-spar wings were installed and it was there where the fuel tanks were installed (326L - 86.12 US gal) and a retractable landing gear housing inwards. It was powered by a single radial Gnome et Rhône 14M-6 which delivered 700hp of power which drove a three-bladed propeller, but the prototype never had any weapons installed. It was expected to have the same weaponry of the Bloch MB.152 which was either two 20mm HS-404 guns or two 7.5mm MAC 1934 M-39 machine-guns housed in the wings.
The prototype was moved by road to Buc (where the STA performed their tests) and flew for the first time on 19th April 1940 at the hands of Daniel Rastel. It wasn't until 13th May when it flew again, at the hands of Rastel again. During that flight, which lasted for 50 minutes, it achieved a speed of 550 km/h (341.75mph), which was remarkable, considering the power of the engine. Tests continued after the French capitulation of June 1940 and, when the Germans occupied the town of Buc, the prototype had been flown for a total of 10.25 hours of flight. The prototype was destroyed by the Germans who thought the prototype was booby-trapped.
A second prototype which included some improvements, but it was never completed. A strengthned version, named MB.720 was also projected, but it never left the drawing board.

Sources:
1. https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bloch_MB.700 (translated)
2. https://www.militaryfactory.com/aircraft/detail.asp?aircraft_id=1555
3. Salamander Books - The Complete Book of Fighters

SNCAC NC.600

In October 1934 the French Service Technique de l'Aeronautique (Technical Aeronautical Service) which was dependant of the Air Ministry, issued a requirement for a three-seated fighter. The contenders were Hanriot with its H.220 design, Potez with their 630 design, Breguet with their 690 design and Romano with their R-110 design. The H.220 was a twin-engined monoplane made entirely out of metal. The fuselage was a short, oval-section monocoque which accommodated the crew of three in tandem enclosed cockpits. Shoulder mounted wings were braced by a single short strut on each side and was equipped with full span trailing edge flaps and splits ailerons. It was going to be armed with two fixed forward firing 20mm cannons and two defensive machine-guns in the rear cockpit.
The prototype, which never flew, was fitted at first with two 450hp Renault 12Roi air-cooled V12 engines and was exhibited at the 1936 Paris Air Show.
The prototype was re-engined with two 680hp Gnome-Rhône 14M Radial engines just before flying for the first time in Avord, at the Val-de-Loire region, on 21st September 1937. However, tests showed that it was dangerously unstable and many changes were made therefore to the tail surfaces to try and rectify the problems, but the prototype had to made a forced landing and was badly damaged due to an engine failure on 17th February 1938. That landing wrecked the fuselage of the H.220 and SNCAC, which was a merge of both Hanriot and Farman, following a nationalisation of the aeronautical industry in 1937 took the advantage to carry out a major redesign of the aircraft, rebuilding almost totally the prototype.
The rebuilt and redesigned prototype received the designation of H.220-2, had a new fuselage, built out of two half shells joined by a central keel, with a twin-tail replacing the conventional single-fin tail surfaces of the earlier design. The wings were left unchanged and flew on this new form for the first time on 17th March 1939.
While the redesign process was going on, an order for six aircraft was placed in 1938 for evaluation purposes under the designation of NC.600 as the design was now intended to run for a 1936 specification for a long-range fighter competing against the Potez 670 and the SNCASE SE.100. The modified prototype was exhibited at the 1939 Brussels Air Show, but the real NC.600 was an even further modified aircraft. It featured redesigned wings and tail surfaces and was now a two-seat aircraft. Now it was even more armed with four 20mm forward-firing cannons and the defensive machine guns replaced by a single flexibly mounted cannon.
The prototype of the "definitive" version flew for the first time on 15th May 1940 but it didn't attract the attention of the Armée de l'Air as other types were preferred, like the Potez 671 or the SNCASE SE.100, however, any further work was halted by the French Armistice in June 1940.

Sources:
1. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SNCAC_NC-600
2. Salamander Books - The Complete Book of Fighters