| MB.210 / MB.211 | |
|---|---|
 An MB.210 | |
| General information | |
| Type | Bomber |
| Manufacturer | Société des Avions Marcel Bloch |
| Built by | Various, including: Les Mureaux Potez-CAMS Breguet Hanriot Renault |
| Status | retired |
| Primary user | French Air Force |
| Number built | < 300 |
| History | |
| Introduction date | November 1936 |
| First flight | 23 November 1934 |
| Retired | around 1945 |
| Developed from | Bloch MB.200 |
TheBloch MB.210 andMB.211 were the successors of the FrenchBloch MB.200bomber developed bySociété des Avions Marcel Bloch in the 1930s and differed primarily in being low wing monoplanes rather than high wing monoplanes.
The MB.210 derived from theMB.200 and differs in particular by having itscantilever wing set at the bottom of the fuselage, and in having a retractableundercarriage. Developed as a private venture, theprototype MB.210 accomplished its first flight on 23 November 1934, powered by two 596 kW (800 hp)Gnome-Rhône 14Kdrs /Gnome-Rhône 14Kgrs air-cooledradial engines and having a fixed undercarriage. This was followed by a second prototype, theMB.211 Verdun, powered by 641 kW (860 hp)Hispano-Suiza 12Y V-12 liquid-cooledinlines and fitted with a retractable undercarriage, this flying on 29 August 1935. Initial flight testing of this version was somewhat disappointing, so no further examples were built. Further progress with the MB.210, however, convinced theArmée de l'Air to order series production, the first example of which flew on 12 December 1936.[1]
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 reliableGnome-Rhône 14N, these engines first being tested in summer 1937 and had to be replaced.[2] Altogether, 257 units were manufactured amongst companies as diverse asLes Mureaux overPotez-CAMS,Breguet,Hanriot, andRenault.
In September 1939, the Bloch MB.210 equipped 12 bomber units of theArmée de l'Air. At the time ofNazi Germany'sattack on France in spring 1940, these squadrons were in the middle of a restructuring aimed at removing outdated aircraft from the front line.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 bombing missions and shifted then toNorth Africa.
Bulgaria
France
Germany
Romania
SpainData fromWar Planes of the Second World War: Volume Seven[6]
General characteristics
Performance
Armament
Related development
Related lists
