Bloch MB.210

Bloch MB.210
Bloch MB.210 of the Spanish Republican Air Force
Role Bomber
Manufacturer Various, including:
Les Mureaux
Potez-CAMS
Breguet
Hanriot
Renault
First flight 23 November 1934
Introduction November 1936
Retired around 1945
Status retired
Primary user French Air Force
Number built < 300
Developed from Bloch MB.200

The MB.210 and MB.211 were the successors of the French Bloch MB.200 bomber built by Societé des Avions Marcel Bloch in the 1930s and differed primarily in being low wing monoplanes rather than high wing monoplanes.

Development

The MB.210 derived from the MB.200 and differs in particular by having its cantilever wing set at the bottom of the fuselage, and in having a retractable undercarriage.

Developed as a private venture, the prototype MB.210 accomplished its first flight on 23 November 1934, powered by two 596 kW (800 hp) Gnome-Rhône 14Kdrs / Gnome-Rhône 14Kgrs air-cooled radial engines and having a fixed undercarriage.[1] This was followed by a second prototype, the MB.211 Verdun, powered by 641 kW (860 hp) Hispano-Suiza 12Y V-12 liquid-cooled inlines and fitted with a retractable undercarriage, this flying on 29 August 1935.[2] Initial flight testing of this version was somewhat disappointing, so no further examples were built. Further progress with the MB.210, however, convinced the Armée de l'Air to order series production, the first example of which flew on 12 December 1936.[3]

The satisfaction did not last very long, however, since it was underpowered and the engines of production aircraft were inclined to overheating. The type was grounded until its engines could be replaced by the more powerful and reliable Gnome-Rhône 14N, these engines first being tested in summer 1937 and had to be replaced.[4] Altogether, 257 units were manufactured amongst companies as diverse as Les Mureaux over Potez-CAMS, Breguet, Hanriot, and Renault.

Operational history

In September 1939, the Bloch MB.210 equipped 12 bomber units of the Armée de l'Air. At the time of Nazi Germany's attack on France in spring 1940, these squadrons were in the middle of a restructuring aimed at removing outdated aircraft from the front line. Up to the armistice on 25 June of the same year, the MB.210 was used still for nighttime bomb employments and shifted then to North Africa.

Variants

MB.210.01
First prototype, powered by 2x 596 kW (800 hp) Gnome-Rhône 14Kdrs / Gnome-Rhône 14Kgrs air-cooled radial engines.
MB.210Bn.4
Initial production version, powereed by 2x Gnome-Rhône 14N-10 / Gnome-Rhône 14N-11 radial engines.
MB.210Bn.5
Hanriot-built variant with extra crew member.
MB.210H
Floatplane version powered by 2x Gnome-Rhône 14Kirs engines
MB.211.01
Prototype equipped with two 641 kW (860 hp) Hispano-Suiza 12Y inline engines.
MB.212
project[5]
MB.218
project[5]

Operators

 Bulgaria
Bulgarian Air Force - Received six aircraft from Germany.[5]
 France
 Germany
Luftwaffe - (Used briefly for training in 1942 after the German occupation of France)
 Romania
Royal Romanian Air Force - Received 10 from an order of 24.[5]
Spain Spain
Spanish Republican Air Force received at least three[6] aircraft.[7]

Specifications (MB.210Bn.5)

Data from War Planes of the Second World War: Volume Seven [8]

General characteristics

Performance

Armament

See also

Related development

Related lists

References

Notes
  1. ↑ Green 1967, p.124.
  2. ↑ Green 1967, p. 125.
  3. ↑ Green 1967, p.126.
  4. ↑ Green 1967, p.127.
  5. 1 2 3 4 "Bloch MB 210–211." dassault-aviation.com. Retrieved: 2 November 2011.
  6. ↑ BLOCH 200/210 Archived March 19, 2012, at the Wayback Machine.
  7. ↑ MB 210-211. Dassault Aviation. Retrieved 17 August 2008.
  8. ↑ Green 1967, p. 128.
Bibliography
  • Green, William. War Planes of the Second World War: Bombers and Reconnaissance Aircraft, Volume Seven. London: Macdonald, 1967.
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