The Bloch MB.150 (later MB.151 to MB.157) was a French

fighter aircraft Fighter aircraft are fixed-wing military aircraft designed primarily for air-to-air combat. In military conflict, the role of fighter aircraft is to establish air superiority of the battlespace. Domination of the airspace above a battlefield ...

developed and produced by '' Société des Avions Marcel Bloch''. It featured an all-metal construction, complete with a retractable

undercarriage Undercarriage is the part of a moving vehicle that is underneath the main body of the vehicle. The term originally applied to this part of a horse-drawn carriage, and usage has since broadened to include: *The landing gear of an aircraft. *The ch ...

, low cantilever wing and a fully enclosed

cockpit A cockpit or flight deck is the area, usually near the front of an aircraft or spacecraft, from which a Pilot in command, pilot controls the aircraft. The cockpit of an aircraft contains flight instruments on an instrument panel, and the ...

. The MB.150 was originally developed to conform with the requirements of the 1934 French Air Ministry competition seeking a new fighter design. Despite the competition being won by the competing

Morane-Saulnier M.S.406 Aéroplanes Morane-Saulnier was a French aircraft manufacturing company formed in October 1911 by Raymond Saulnier (1881–1964) and the Morane brothers, Léon (1885–1918) and Robert (1886–1968). The company was taken over and diversified ...

, it was decided to proceed with development. Initially proving unable to attain flight, the modified prototype conducted its

maiden flight The maiden flight, also known as first flight, of an aircraft is the first occasion on which it leaves the ground under its own power. The same term is also used for the first launch of rockets. The maiden flight of a new aircraft type is alwa ...

in October 1937. Service trials of the MB.150 determined the aircraft to hold sufficient promise to warrant further work, leading to the adoption of an expanded and strengthened wing and a more refined Gnome-Rhone 14N-7 engine. During spring 1938, following the completion of further proving trials, an order for a pre-production batch of 25 aircraft was placed. Redesigns of the MB.150 design led to the improved MB.151 and MB.152 which entered squadron service with the ''Armée de l'Air''. By the outbreak of the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, around 120 aircraft had been delivered to the ''Armée de l'Air'' but most were not sufficiently equipped to be considered operational. An improved MB.155 had greater range. Ordered into production in 1940, only ten aircraft had been completed by the

Fall of France The Battle of France (french: bataille de France) (10 May – 25 June 1940), also known as the Western Campaign ('), the French Campaign (german: Frankreichfeldzug, ) and the Fall of France, was the German invasion of France during the Second World ...

. The MB.157, a further improved model with a heavier and more powerful engine, was completed during the

Vichy Vichy (, ; ; oc, Vichèi, link=no, ) is a city in the Allier Departments of France, department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region of central France, in the historic province of Bourbonnais. It is a Spa town, spa and resort town and in World ...

era. Though it demonstrated promising performance, it did not enter production.

Development

Origins

On 13 July 1934, the '' Service Technique Aéronautique'' (Aeronautical Technical Service) of the

French Air Force The French Air and Space Force (AAE) (french: Armée de l'air et de l'espace, ) is the air and space force of the French Armed Forces. It was the first military aviation force in history, formed in 1909 as the , a service arm of the French Army; ...

issued the "C1 design" requirement for a new and completely modern single-seat

interceptor Interceptor may refer to: Vehicles * Interceptor aircraft (or simply "interceptor"), a type of point defense fighter aircraft designed specifically to intercept and destroy enemy aircraft * Ford Crown Victoria Police Interceptor, a police car * ...

fighter. Envisioned to make use of a monoplane layout and a retractable

, the prospective fighter aircraft was to serve as a replacement for the French Air Force's existing inventory of

Dewoitine D.371 The Dewoitine 37 was the first of a family of 1930s French-built monoplane fighter aircraft. Design and development The D.37 was a single-seat aircraft of conventional configuration. Its fixed landing gear used a tailskid. The open cockpit was lo ...

Dewoitine D.500 The Dewoitine D.500 was an all-metal, open- cockpit, fixed- undercarriage monoplane fighter aircraft designed and produced by French aircraft manufacturer Dewoitine. Developed from a specification issued by the French Air Ministry during 1930 ...

, and

Loire 46 The Loire 46 was a French single-seater fighter aircraft of the 1930s. A high-winged monoplane designed and built by Loire Aviation, it was purchased by the French Air Force. It was also supplied to the Spanish Republican forces during the Spanis ...

aircraft. Amongst the various aviation companies who took interest in the specification, to which the potential for a large production order was attached, was French aircraft manufacturer Société des Avions Marcel Bloch.Botquin 1967, p. 3. The design team, headed by Maurice Roussel, was assembled at Bloch's

Courbevoie Courbevoie () is a commune located in the Hauts-de-Seine Department of the Île-de-France region of France. It is in the suburbs of the city of Paris, from the center of Paris. The centre of Courbevoie is situated from the city limits of Par ...

facility in

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...

. They designed an all-metal stressed skin monoplane, powered by a single 930 hp Gnome-Rhône 14Kfs

radial engine The radial engine is a reciprocating type internal combustion engine configuration in which the cylinders "radiate" outward from a central crankcase like the spokes of a wheel. It resembles a stylized star when viewed from the front, and is ca ...

and armed with a pair of wing-mounted

Hispano-Suiza Hispano-Suiza () is a Spanish automotive–engineering company. It was founded in 1904 by Marc Birkigt and Damian Mateu as an automobile manufacturer and eventually had several factories in Spain and France that produced luxury cars, aircraft en ...

-built HS.404 cannon. During September 1935, construction of the type's first prototype, designated as the ''Bloch 150-01'', commenced.Cristesco 1967, p. 3. Although the C.1 competition was ultimately won by a rival design, the

, it was decided to independently continue with the design's development. During 1936, these efforts culminated in the first attempted flight of the ''MB.150.01'' prototype; unfortunately, the aircraft proved unable to leave the ground during the attempt. In the ensuing disappointment work on the design was temporarily halted, but development was resumed during early 1937. Following the implementation of various modifications, consisting of a strengthened wing of greater area, revised

arrangement and the installation of a Gnome-Rhone 14N-0

with a three-blade constant speed propeller, on 29 September 1937, the MB.150 finally conducted its

. Months later, the MB.150.01 was handed over to the ''Centre d'Essais du Materiel Aerien'' (CEMA) for service trials; during one such official test flight in December 1937, a maximum recorded speed of 434 km/h (269 mph) was attained.Cristesco 1967, pp. 3–4. As a result of the CEMA flights, the prototype's performance proved to be sufficiently interesting as to warrant further development. This brought, at the beginning of 1938, a small increase in the aircraft's wing span, the replacement of the twin wing-mounted

radiator Radiators are heat exchangers used to transfer thermal energy from one medium to another for the purpose of cooling and heating. The majority of radiators are constructed to function in cars, buildings, and electronics. A radiator is always a ...

s by a single unit installed between the wheel wells, and the installation of an improved 14N-7 engine, which led to the prototype being re-designated as the ''MB.150.01M'' (''M'' standing for ''modified''). During spring 1938, further trials of the modified aircraft were performed by CEMA. By this point, wider circumstances within France, such as the declining diplomatic situation between the European powers and the enactment of several urgent re-equipment programmes for the French Air Force, proved favourable for the MB.150. Specifically, on 15 March 1938, one such programme, referred to as ''Plan V'', was adopted, calling for the near-unrealistic delivery of 940 modern fighter aircraft to the Air Force within the space of a year. Even the most optimistic projections saw 285 M.S.406 fighters delivered; while the MB.150 was deemed to have not yet completed development, it was decided to include the type within the production. Accordingly, on 7 April 1938, upon the completion of trials in late spring 1938, the newly formed manufacturing consortium SNCASO received an initial order for a pre-production batch of 25 aircraft which, upon successful completion of the MB.150's development programme, was followed by the confirmation of a sizable order for 450 aircraft. Initially, 300 aircraft were to be delivered to the French Air Force by 1 April 1939; this was later cut down to 206 aircraft. In reality, only a single aircraft had been delivered by the prescribed deadline; other aircraft types also proved similarly unable to attain the tight delivery dates.Cristesco 1967, p. 4.

Further development

However, there was no direct production of the ''MB-150.01'' as the aircraft having been deemed to be unsuitable for mass production.Leyvastre and Courteville 1978, p. 181. Amongst other changes needed, the structure of the airframe had to be redesigned in order to suit mass production.Cristesco 1967, pp. 4–5. During early April 1938, an order was received for a three further prototypes; these were to explore the possibilities for installing more powerful engines of both French and American origins, such as the

Hispano-Suiza 14AA The Hispano-Suiza 14AA, also known as Type 79, was a fourteen-cylinder aircraft radial engine used in France during the late 1930s. As Hispano-Suiza lacked recent experience in developing radial engines, it was derived from the licensed Wright ...

, Pratt & Whitney R-1830 Twin Wasp, and further derivatives of the Gnome-Rhône 14N engine. Accordingly, this design effort led to the production of the ''MB.151.01'' and ''MB.152.01'' prototypes, which were developed and produced in parallel. The first pre-production prototype, the MB.151.01, was quickly assembled at Courbevoie using the new simplified construction methods developed. This aircraft, which was fully armed, performed its first flight at Villacoublay Airfield,

Île-de-France , timezone1 = CET , utc_offset1 = +01:00 , timezone1_DST = CEST , utc_offset1_DST = +02:00 , blank_name_sec1 = Gross regional product , blank_info_sec1 = Ranked 1st , bla ...

, on 18 August 1938. According to Christesco, the performance of the MB.151.01 was initially disappointing, leading to efforts to rectify performance issues. Development, and thus mass production, was delayed by the overheating of the engine (resulting in oil cooler types being tested and the most efficient of these adopted) and the aircraft being poorly balanced on its pitch axis at high speeds; neither the prototype nor the production MB.151 were able to attain 480 km/h, the design's estimated maximum speed.Cristesco 1967, p. 5. According to Christesco, the MB.152.01 was "the first true aircraft" of the series. This model was equipped with a more powerful 1,030 hp Gnome-Rhône 14N-21 engine, capable of a speed of 520 km/h and equipped with a revised armament arrangement. On 15 December 1938, the MB.152.01 prototype performed its maiden flight. During January 1939, it was refitted with a more production-representative 1,000 hp Gnome-Rhône 14N-25 engine; various alternative engine cowlings and propellers were also tested to address engine overheating. To prevent further delays to the production aircraft, a large cowling was adopted, which increased drag and reduced the MB.152's flight performance.Cristesco 1967, pp. 5–6. The manufacturing of the fighter was divided amongst the various branches comprising SNCASO. Aside from a handful that were assembled at Courbevoie early on, roughly half of all aircraft produced were manufactured at Châteauroux,

Berry A berry is a small, pulpy, and often edible fruit. Typically, berries are juicy, rounded, brightly colored, sweet, sour or tart, and do not have a stone or pit, although many pips or seeds may be present. Common examples are strawberries, raspb ...

while the other half were built at Bordeaux–Merignac,

Nouvelle-Aquitaine Nouvelle-Aquitaine (; oc, Nòva Aquitània or ; eu, Akitania Berria; Poitevin-Saintongeais: ''Novéle-Aguiéne'') is the largest administrative region in France, spanning the west and southwest of the mainland. The region was created by t ...

. From January 1940 onwards, production was centered at Châteauroux alone. During December 1938, the first of the pre-production aircraft were completed; on 7 March 1939, the first production fighter was delivered to the French Air Force. By mid-May 1939, only 22 aircraft, a combination of MB.151s and MB.152s, had been dispatched; of these, only 10 had been accepted by the Air Force. The ''MB.153'' and ''MB.154'' were intended as testbeds for American engines but only the MB.153 flew and when it crashed a few days later as damaged beyond repair, pursuit of these alternatives also ceased. Attention shifted to extending the range of the MB.152 by moving the cockpit aft to make room for a new fuel tank; other modifications included a slightly broader wing and revised aerodynamics around the

cowling A cowling is the removable covering of a vehicle's engine, most often found on automobiles, motorcycles, airplanes, and on outboard boat motors. On airplanes, cowlings are used to reduce drag and to cool the engine. On boats, cowlings are a cove ...

. The resulting ''MB.155'', performed favourably in flight tests and was ordered into production in 1940 but only 10 aircraft had been completed by the

.Cristesco 1967, p. 8. Under the terms of the armistice, the remaining 25 on the production line were completed and delivered into

service. From there, some eventually made their way into the ''

Luftwaffe The ''Luftwaffe'' () was the aerial-warfare branch of the German ''Wehrmacht'' before and during World War II. Germany's military air arms during World War I, the ''Luftstreitkräfte'' of the Imperial Army and the '' Marine-Fliegerabtei ...

'' after 1942. The final member of the family, the ''MB.157'' had a far more powerful engine and eventually became a very different aircraft as the design evolved from the MB.152 to accommodate the larger and heavier 1,590 hp Gnome-Rhône 14R-4 motor. Unfinished at the time of the armistice, it was ordered to be completed and flown under German supervision. Demonstrating superb performance, it was taken to

Orly Orly () is a commune in the southern suburbs of Paris, Île-de-France. It is located from the center of Paris. The name of Orly came from Latin ''Aureliacum'', "the villa of Aurelius". Orly Airport partially lies on the territory of the comm ...

where the power plant was removed for testing within a

wind tunnel Wind tunnels are large tubes with air blowing through them which are used to replicate the interaction between air and an object flying through the air or moving along the ground. Researchers use wind tunnels to learn more about how an aircraft ...

. The excellence in the design was confirmed by Germans when they completed and tested it in 1942, reaching up to flat speed. It was later destroyed in an

Allied An alliance is a relationship among people, groups, or states that have joined together for mutual benefit or to achieve some common purpose, whether or not explicit agreement has been worked out among them. Members of an alliance are called ...

air raid.

Operational history

Upon evaluation, early deliveries were deemed unsuitable for combat operations, principally due to issues with the tailplane; thus, plans were laid for the first 157 production fighters to be stored awaiting modification, while additional production examples were built with the correction made. Furthermore, the type was initially confined to performing training duties alone; prior to the outbreak of the

, only a single squadron, allocated to the 1st Escadre de Chasse, received the type. Upon the eve of the conflict, around 249 aircraft had been manufactured; of these, roughly 123 aircraft had been accepted by the ''Armée de l'Air''. However, few of these were considered to be flyable, the majority missing their

gunsights A sight is an aiming device used to assist in visually aligning ranged weapons, surveying instruments or optical illumination equipments with the intended target. Sights can be a simple set or system of physical markers that have to be alig ...

and

propellers A propeller (colloquially often called a screw if on a ship or an airscrew if on an aircraft) is a device with a rotating hub and radiating blades that are set at a pitch to form a helical spiral which, when rotated, exerts linear thrust upon ...

.Cristesco 1967, p. 6. On 26 September 1939, the first modified MB.152s were delivered to the French Air Force; the first of these fighters were allocated to active squadrons by early October and, by mid-November 1939, two separate '' Groupes de Chasse (fighter groups)'' had been equipped with 26 MB.152s each.Cristesco 1967, pp. 6–7. At this point, the type still demonstrated some unfavourable flight characteristics, such as during steep dives. Meanwhile, increasing numbers of MB.151 aircraft were being delivered to be squadrons for training purposes in advance of their anticipated conversion to the MB.152.Cristesco 1967, p. 7. During the initial stage of the conflict, known as the Phoney War, very few engagements between the MB.152 and the aircraft of the Luftwaffe occurred; in this period, only a single kill of a Junkers Ju 88 was recorded.Cristesco 1967, p. 9. During the

Battle of France The Battle of France (french: bataille de France) (10 May – 25 June 1940), also known as the Western Campaign ('), the French Campaign (german: Frankreichfeldzug, ) and the Fall of France, was the Nazi Germany, German invasion of French Third Rep ...

, a mixture of MB.151s and MB.152s equipped nine Groupes de Chasse; the MB.152 was the most numerous aircraft remaining in service during the final weeks prior to the signing of the Armistice of 22 June 1940.Cristesco 1967, pp. 3, 8. They proved to be tough aircraft, able to withstand considerable battle damage, rapidly reach high speeds during a dive, and functioned well as a gunnery platform. In air combat they were outmatched by the

Messerschmitt Bf 109 The Messerschmitt Bf 109 is a German World War II fighter aircraft that was, along with the Focke-Wulf Fw 190, the backbone of the Luftwaffe's fighter force. The Bf 109 first saw operational service in 1937 during the Spanish Civil War an ...

E on almost every count and proved slower than the twin-engined

Bf 110 The Messerschmitt Bf 110, often known unofficially as the Me 110,Because it was built before ''Bayerische Flugzeugwerke'' became Messerschmitt AG in July 1938, the Bf 110 was never officially given the designation Me 110. is a twin-engine (Des ...

. All Bloch units suffered heavy losses. In the week of heavy air fighting between 10 and 17 May, it was almost commonplace for a Bloch squadron to take off with eight or nine aircraft and come back with only two or three. On their side, the pilots of Bloch MB.152s claimed at least 188 enemy aircraft, for the loss of about 86 Blochs. In the third week in May the Bloch units had suffered severe losses and were pulled back to the Paris area to reform.Jackson 1979, p. 44. In comparison with its French contemporaries, according to aviation author Michel Cristesco: "the MB.152 was the least successful in combat and the one that suffered the heaviest losses". The type had numerous shortcomings; these problems included lack of manoeuvrability, unreliable guns, a relatively low range ( compared to 660 km for the Bf 109E) and being considerably underpowered. Writing of its faults, Cristesco attributed two major points for its performance shortcomings; its inadequate manoeuvrability and its range. Following the Armistice, six groups continued to fly in the

Vichy French Air Force The Air Force (french: Armée de l'air), usually referred to as the Air Force of Vichy (''Armée de l'air de Vichy'') or Armistice Air Force (''Armée de l'Air de l'armistice'') for clarity, was the aerial branch of the Armistice Army of Vichy Fra ...

until this was disbanded on 1 December 1942, the aircraft being passed over to the Royal Romanian Air Force by the Germans.Green 1960, p. 30. By April 1941, the

German Armistice Commission The German Armistice Commission (german: Waffenstillstandskommission, WAKO) was a military body charged with supervising the implementation of the Franco-German Armistice, signed on 22 June 1940, in German-occupied France during World War II.Uni ...

had agreed with a proposal to standardise the Vichy Air Force onto the

Dewoitine D.520 The Dewoitine D.520 was a French fighter aircraft that entered service in early 1940, shortly after the beginning of the Second World War. The D.520 was designed in response to a 1936 requirement from the French Air Force for a fast, modern fi ...

, resulting in all other single-engine fighters being phased out. The Germans seized around 173 fighters, 83 of which being reportedly serviceable, which were pressed into service with the Luftwaffe. Chrisesco alleged that around 95 MB.152s were secretly modified during late 1941 – early 1942 with a rear-fuselage fuel tank, giving them the range to cross the

Mediterranean Sea The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean Basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Western and Southern Europe and Anatolia, on the south by North Africa, and on the ea ...

to freedom. Though the Greek government had ordered 25 MB.151s, actually only nine of these were actually exported to

Greece Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, and is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Greece shares land borders with ...

by the time of the Armistice being signed.Cristesco 1967, pp. 7, 12. Those that were delivered were still in the process of working up when the

Greco-Italian War The Greco-Italian War (Greek language, Greek: Ελληνοϊταλικός Πόλεμος, ''Ellinoïtalikós Pólemos''), also called the Italo-Greek War, Italian Campaign in Greece, and the War of '40 in Greece, took place between the kingdom ...

broke out, leading to the wider Balkan Campaign between the major European fighters. The MB.151 fighters flew with the 24th Moira Dioxis (Fighter Squadron) of the Hellenic Royal Air Force, stationed at Elefsina against the Italians and Germans, scoring several air-to-air victories until 19 April 1941, when the last of Greece's MB.151s was shot down. At one stage, the Bulgarian government was in the process of negotiating the acquisition of MB.152 fighters with the Vichy government. During February 1943, a contract for delivery of 20 aircraft was signed, but this was vetoed by the German authorities, which by now had a controlling say within Vichy French politics. Instead, Bulgaria later received a series of

s to meet their needs.

Variants

;MB.150 :Single MB.150.01 prototype powered by a single Gnome-Rhône 14N-07 ;MB.151 :MB.151.01 prototype and MB.151.C1 initial production versions powered by 920hp Gnome-Rhône 14N-35 engines (144 built) ;MB.152 :MB.152.01 prototype and MB.152.C1 up-rated production versions produced in parallel with 151.C1, powered by 1,050hp Gnome-Rhône 14N-25 engines. (482 built) ;MB.153 :Single MB.153.01 prototype with

Pratt & Whitney R-1830 The Pratt & Whitney R-1830 Twin Wasp is an American air-cooled radial aircraft engine. It displaces and its bore and stroke are both . The design traces its history to 1929 experiments at Pratt & Whitney on twin-row designs. Production began ...

Twin Wasp engine ;MB.154 :Proposed version with

Wright R-1820 The Wright R-1820 Cyclone 9 is an American radial engine developed by Curtiss-Wright, widely used on aircraft in the 1930s through 1950s. It was produced under license in France as the Hispano-Suiza 9V or Hispano-Wright 9V, and in the Soviet Uni ...

Cyclone engine. Not built. ;MB.155 :MB.155.01 prototype converted from a MB.152 and MB.155.C1 production versions powered by Gnome-Rhône 14N-49 engines (35 built) ;MB.156 :Proposed version with

Gnome-Rhône 14R The SNECMA 14R was a 14-cylinder two-row air-cooled radial engine developed in France just prior to the start of World War II from the Gnome-Rhône 14N. The 14N radial engine was itself an improved version of the popular pre-war Gnome-Rhône 14K ...

engine. Not built. ;MB.157 :Single prototype of advanced version, converted from the MB.152 and equipped with a 1,590hp Gnome-Rhône 14R-4 engine.

Operators

; :''

Armée de l'Air The French Air and Space Force (AAE) (french: Armée de l'air et de l'espace, ) is the air and space force of the French Armed Forces. It was the first military aviation force in history, formed in 1909 as the , a service arm of the French Army; ...

'' * Groupe de Chasse I/1 * Groupe de Chasse II/1 * Groupe de Chasse II/6 * Groupe de Chasse I/8 * Groupe de Chasse II/8 * Groupe de Chasse II/9 * Groupe de Chasse III/9 * Groupe de Chasse II/10 * Groupe de Chasse III/10 * Escadrille de Chasse I/55 :'' Aéronavale'' * Escadrille AC2 * Escadrille AC3 ; :''

'' * EJG 26 (at Cognac) * JG 103 (at Bad Aibling) * Jagdlehrer Staffel (at

Guyancourt Guyancourt () is a commune in the Yvelines department in the Île-de-France region in north-central France. It is located in the south-western suburbs of Paris, from the center of Paris, in the "new town" of Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines. Geography ...

- Orange) ; : Royal Hellenic Air Force *

24th Pursuit Squadron The 24th Fighter Squadron is a United States Air Combat Command unit, assigned to the 495th Fighter Group at Naval Air Station Joint Reserve Base Fort Worth, Texas. The squadron was activated in 2019 and flies the General Dynamics F-16 Fightin ...

; : Polish Air Forces in exile in France * Groupe de Chasse 1/145 ''Varsovie'' ; : Royal Romanian Air Force ;

Vichy France Vichy France (french: Régime de Vichy; 10 July 1940 – 9 August 1944), officially the French State ('), was the fascist French state headed by Marshal Philippe Pétain during World War II. Officially independent, but with half of its ter ...

:'' Armée de l'Air de l'Armistice''Cristesco 1967, p. 12.Ehrengardt 1968, p. 19. * Groupe de Chasse I/1 (at Lyon-Bron, reserve unit) * Groupe de Chasse II/1 (at Luc) * Groupe de Chasse I/8 (at Montpellier-Fréjorgues) * Groupe de Chasse II/8 (at Marignane) * Groupe de Chasse II/9 (at Aulnat, reserve unit) * Groupe de Chasse III/9 (at Salon-de-Provence) * Groupe de Chasse I/13 (at Nîmes-Garons) * Groupe de Chasse III/13 (at Nîmes-Garons) ;

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

:''

Royal Air Force The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the United Kingdom's air and space force. It was formed towards the end of the First World War on 1 April 1918, becoming the first independent air force in the world, by regrouping the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) and ...

'' * Following the

Polish ace pilot Zdzislaw Henneberg and his two wingmen flew their MB.152C.1s to England, the aircraft were repainted in RAF roundels and used briefly for local air defence and technical evaluation before being grounded due to a lack of spares.

Specifications (MB.152C.1)

References

Citations

Bibliography

* Belcarz, Bartłomiej. ''Morane MS 406C1, Caudron Cyclone CR 714C1, Bloch MB 151/152 (Polskie Skrzydła 2)'' (in Polish), Sandomierz, Poland: Stratus, 2004. . About the use of the MB.151/152 by Polish Pilots of the Armée de l'Air. * Botquin, Gaston. ''The Morane Saulnier 406''. Leatherhead, Surrey, UK: Profile Publications, 1967. No ISBN. * Breffort, Dominique and André Jouineau. ''French Aircraft from 1939 to 1942, Volume 1: from Amiot to Curtiss''. Paris, France: Histoire & Collections, 2004. . * Brindley, John F. ''French Fighters of World War Two, Volume One''. Windsor, UK; Hylton Lacy Publishers Ltd., 1971. . * * * * * Cristesco, Michel. ''The M.Bloch 151 & 152 (Aircraft in Profile number 201)''. Leatherhead, Surrey, UK: Profile Publications Ltd., 1967. No ISBN. * Ehrengardt, Christian-Jacques with Michel Cristesco and Raymond Danel. ''Bloch 152 Spécial''. Paris, France: IPMS France, 1968. * Green, William. ''War Planes of the Second World War, Volume One: Fighters''. London: Macdonald & Co.(Publishers) Ltd., 1960 (10th impression 1972). . * Jackson, Robert. ''Fighter! The Story of Air Combat 1936-1945''. London, Artur Barker Limited. 1979. . * Joanne, Serge. ''Le Bloch MB-152 (Histoire de l'aviation 13)'' (in French). Outreau, France: LELA Presse, 2003. . (In French) * Joanne, Serge. ''Marcel Bloch 151/152''. Sandomierz, Poland/Redbourn, UK: Mushroom Model Publications, 2007. . * Leyvastre, Pierre and Pierre Courteville. "Bloch's Fighters: the Contentious Combatants". ''

Air International ''AIR International'' is a British aviation magazine covering current defence aerospace and civil aviation topics. It has been in publication since 1971 and is currently published by Key Publishing Ltd. History and profile The magazine was fir ...

'', April 1978, pp. 179–189, 204–205. * Marchand, Patrick. ''Bloch 150, 151, 152, 155, 157, 700 C1''. Le Muy, France: Les éditions d'Along, 2000. . (In French) * * * Pelletier, Alain. ''French Fighters of World War II in Action (Aircraft Number 180)''. Carrollton, TX: Squadron/Signal Publications, Inc., 2002. .

External links

* {{Bloch aircraft Single-engined tractor aircraft World War II French fighter aircraft Low-wing aircraft 1930s French fighter aircraft MB.150 Aircraft first flown in 1937