Bloch MB.210

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The MB.210 and MB.211 were the successors of the French Bloch MB.200 bomber aircraft built by Societé des Avions Marcel Bloch in the 1930s.

1 Development
2 Operational history
3 Variants
4 Operators
5 Specifications (MB.210Bn.5)
6 Operators
7 References
8 Related content

[edit] Development

The MB.210 derived from the MB.200 and differs in particular by its more deeply set, cantilever wing and the retractable undercarriage from their predecessor.

Developed as a private venture, the airplane accomplished its first flight on 23 November 1934, followed in August 1935 followed by a second version which carried the designation MB.211 equipped with another engine. Initial flight testing of this version was somewhat disappointing, so no further examples were built. Further progress with the MB.210, however, convinced the French Air Force to order series production, the first example of which flew in November 1936.

The satisfaction did not last very long, however, since the engines of production aircraft were inclined to overheating and had to be replaced. Altogether 257 units were manufactured amongst companies as diverse as Les Mureaux over Potez-CAMS, Breguet, Hanriot, and Renault.

[edit] Operational history

In September 1939, the Bloch MB.210 equipped twelve bomber units of the French Air Force. 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Nazi Germany's attack on France in spring 1940, these squadrons were in the middle of a restructuring aimed at removing outdated aircraft from the front line.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 nocturnal bomb employments and shifted then to North Africa.

[edit] Variants

MB.210.01 - first prototype
- MB.210Bn.4 - initial production version
- MB.210Bn.5 - Hanriot-built variant with extra crewmember
MB.211.01 - prototype equipped with Hispano-Suiza 12Y engines