All the following is OOC information. It will eventually appear in my news, so if you have any IC responses, there will eventually be a time and place for them.
General Trends
In 1942 there were two major mergers on the French aeronautical scene. Nord and Breguet merged into Breguet-Nord (controlling Latécoère as an independent subsidiary). Société des Avions Marcel Bloch purchased Amiot and Loire-Nieuport and merged them together into Société des Avions Dassault. The Atelier Industriel de l'Aéronautique d'Alger (AIAA) and Atelier Industriel de l'Aéronautique d'Indochine (AIAI), owned by the French government and operated under contract by Loire-Nieuport, will continue operating under Dassault until January 1944 while the government conducts an evaluation of their performance.
There have been rumors of a three-way merger of the aero-engine manufacturers Rateau-Anxionnaz, Lorraine, and Clerget, but these rumors are not confirmed.
Fighters
No new single-engine fighters are anticipated in 1943. The Arsenal VG.64 Revenant, Arsenal VB.20 Rafale, and Bloch (now Dassault) MB.1050 and MB.1051 will remain in production for the present time.
A twin-engine fighter designed by Hanriot, the H.312, is being evaluated for service.
Bombers
The LeO-600 Tornade (announced last year) will enter production in February and will begin replacing all other twin-engine bombers currently in French service, with greatest emphasis to be placed on the oldest aircraft. The Farman F.420 (licensed-built B-24 Liberator) will remain in production and will replace the French heavy bombers. Some consideration is being given to the acquisition of American B-32 Dominators as super-heavy bombers, but before that happens, the French need to determine whether or not they actually
need such a heavy strategic bombing force... and there's quite a lot of senior people who think the answer is "no".
Light bombers, including the Breguet Br.900 Massette (Petit Sledgehammer) ground attack aircraft and the Loire-Nieuport LN.190 Épouvantail COIN bomber will remain in production.
Trainers
A large number of Morane-Saulnier MS.730 Alcyone basic trainers have been ordered to replace obsolete biplane trainers. Production will probably exceed five hundred aircraft. In addition, 150x Pilatus P-2 trainers have been ordered from Switzerland. (France wants to continue cultivating a good relationship with those frustratingly efficient Alpine bankers.)
The license-built Stampe SV.4 (produced as the Loire-Nieuport LN180) has gone out of production following Loire-Nieuport's acquisition and incorporation into Société des Avions Dassault.
Transports / Airliners
The Breguet-Nord B.1510 Normandie transport will continue in series production with the intent to procure 168x units over the next two years. Air France has additionally ordered eight aircraft for use as civilian cargo aircraft.
A new version of the Bloch MB.970 Transatlantique airliner is under development for first flight sometime in October or November. The new version, the MB.975, will incorporate minor electrical and electronic changes, a reorganized internal cabin, and HS-24K TRP-Composé engines.
Maritime Aircraft
The maritime patrol version of Breguet-Nord's Br.811 Bretagne airliner (the Br.812) has finished its first production run. It is unknown if further Br.812s will be ordered at the present time. A long-range maritime search version of the F.420 (licensed B-24 Liberator) is on order and will be delivered sometime in 1943.
Latécoère is developing a four-engine flying boat for maritime patrol and strike. Tentative specifications call for an unrefueled range of 6,500km and a payload of 4,000kg. Breguet-Nord is additionally looking into a twin-engine flying boat with 3,500km range, tentatively named the Noroit. It is unknown if either of these designs will advance to prototype stage, particularly given the presence of maritime-patrol F.420s and Br.812s. However, there does seem to be some agreement among members of the Aeronavale that flying boats and seaplanes remain useful (albeit specialized) aircraft.
Breguet-Nord is additionally working on a twin-engine carrier-capable aircraft useful for antisubmarine, patrol, electronic and cargo delivery missions. It will have its first flight later in 1943.
Experimental Aircraft
One Farman F.421 Belphegor and one Payen PA.30 experimental aircraft have been ordered for 1943. Further examples are unlikely.
Jets
The Bloch MB.1000 Triton (posted 1942) jet aircraft will conduct its first flight on January 8th, 1943. It will be France's first aircraft powered solely by a turbojet engine, namely the Rateau-Anxionnaz A.60 turbojet. Three airframes have been ordered at the present time. The A.60 turbojet has undergone twenty-one months of testing both in the shop and mounted on an MB.161 mothership, and Anxionnaz believes the engine's now reliable enough to enter service. This makes France the fourth power to achieve jet flight (after Germany, Britain, and Atlantis...)
although you don't know about Atlantis's jet flight because Wes didn't post the news I wrote for him about it.
No other jet-propelled aircraft are currently anticipated for 1943.
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Not for in-character knowledge:
The Armee de l'Aire has established a request-for-proposal for aviation designers to begin work on turbojet-powered fighter and bomber aircraft to fly sometime in 1944. At the present time, Dassault, Dewoitine, Breguet-Nord and Arsenal have all expressed interest in developing entrants. This RfP will result in the first French jet fighters, whenever that is.
Given my understanding of the development trajectories of the British and German jet programs, I'm expecting to field the first combat-ready French jet sometime in the 1944 to 1946 bracket. I'll probably wait until two (or possibly three) countries unequivocally field frontline jet aircraft before introducing any French jets. I'm therefore unable to speculate on when the French will field working jet aircraft at this point.
I've received Hood's permission to use the IAe.27 Pulqui I, designed by Emile Dewoitine in exile in Argentina, for France. The IAe.27 will likely be France's first jet fighter (as the Dewoitine D.800), and will be just as miserable a failure in French service as it was historically for the Argentines. For lack of anything else, a quantity of D.800s will be ordered, but most will be cancelled before they're built. Two or three squadrons at most will be equipped with the D.800 and most of the planes will be out of service within two years or less.
If combat jets don't show up as fast as I anticipate, I'll probably claim that the various projects have "development delays" (probably due to difficulties with jet engines) so I don't suddenly end up in the lead of development. I'd probably prefer that, really.