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French Bombers

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Lioré et Olivier LeO 451
OTL specs, aircraft

General characteristics

Crew: 4
Length: 17.17 m (56 ft 4 in)
Wingspan: 22.52 m (73 ft 11 in)
Height: 5.24 m (17 ft 2 in)
Wing area: 66 m² (710 ft²)
Empty weight: 7,530 kg (16,600 lb)
Max takeoff weight: 11,398 kg (25,130 lb)
Powerplant: 2× Gnome-Rhône 14N 48/49 or 38/39 14-cylinder air-cooled two-row radial engine, 790 kW (1,060 hp) each
Fuel capacity: 3,235 l (855 US gal)

Performance
Maximum speed: 495 km/h, up to 502 km/h on trials (260 knots, 300 mph) at 4,000 m (13,125 ft)
Cruise speed: 420 km/h (225 knots, 260 mph)
Range: 2900 km (1,565 nm, 1,800 mi)
Service ceiling: 9,000 m (29,530 ft)

Armament
- 1 x 20 mm Hispano-Suiza HS.404 cannon in dorsal turret, 120 rounds
- 1 x 7.5 mm (0.295 in) MAC 1934 fixed forward-firing machine gun, 300 rounds
- 1x 7.5 mm MAC 1934 in "dustbin" retractable ventral turret, 500 rounds
- Up to 1568 kg (3,457 lb) of bombs in fuselage and wing root bomb bays (7x 200 kg bombs (actual bomb weight: 224 kg or 494 lb))

Development Timeline
- First Flight: January 15, 1934
- In Production: 1935
- In Service: 1935

[SIZE=4]Bloch MB.174[/SIZE]
[SIZE=1]OTL specs[/SIZE]

[SIZE=3]General characteristics[/SIZE]
Crew: Four
Length: 12.25 m (40 ft 2 in)
Wingspan: 17.90 m (58 ft 9 in)
Height: 3.55 m (11 ft 8 in)
Wing area: 38 m² (409 ft²)
Empty weight: 5,600 kg (12,346 lb)
Max takeoff weight: 7,160 kg (15,784 lb)
Powerplant: 2× Gnome-Rhône 14N-20/21 14-cylinder radial engines, 768 kW (1,030 hp) each

[SIZE=3]Performance[/SIZE]
Maximum speed: 530 km/h (286 kn, 331 mph)
Range: 1,650 km (890 nmi, 1,025 mi)
Service ceiling: 11,000 m (36,090 ft)
Rate of climb: 12.1 m/s (2,385 ft/min)

[SIZE=3]Armament[/SIZE]
- 2 × fixed, forward-firing 7.5 mm (.295 in) MAC 1934 machine guns in the wings
- 2 × 7.5 mm (.295 in) MAC 1934s in the dorsal position
- 3 × 7.5 mm (.295 in) MAC 1934s on aft-firing mounts
- 400 kg (880 lb) of bombs - usually 8 × 40 kg (88 lb) bombs

[SIZE=3]Development Timeline[/SIZE]
- First Flight: July 1936
- In Production: February 1937
- In Service: March 1937

[SIZE=3]Variants[/SIZE]
- MB.170: first prototype
- MB.174: production version
- MB.175: follow-on introduced 1939
- MB.175T: torpedo-carrying MB.175.
- MB.178: planned follow-on with 1,500hp GR14N engines

[SIZE=4]Farman F.380 Foudre[/SIZE]
[SIZE=1]OTL SNCAC NC.150[/SIZE]

[SIZE=3]General characteristics[/SIZE]
Crew: Four
Length: 17.60 m (57 ft 9 in)
Wingspan: 21.882 m (71 ft 9.5 in)
Height: 4.19 m (13 ft 9 in) [10]
Wing area: 61.10 m2 (657.7 sq ft)
Empty weight: 7,733 kg (17,048 lb)
Gross weight: 10,077 kg (22,216 lb)
Powerplant: 2 × Hispano-Suiza 12Y-32/33 liquid-cooled V12 engines, 720 kW (960 hp) each, + 1 × Hispano-Suiza 12Xirs liquid-cooled V12 engine driving NC-C2 supercharger, 510 kW (690 hp)

[SIZE=3]Performance[/SIZE]
Maximum speed: 600 km/h; 324 kn (373 mph) at 8,000 m (26,250 ft)
Cruise speed: 510 km/h; 275 kn (317 mph) at 8,000 m (26,250 ft) (long-range cruise)
Range: 2,200 km; 1,188 nmi (1,367 mi)
Service ceiling: 11,384 m (37,350 ft)
Time to altitude: 19 min 7 s to 8,000 m (26,250 ft)

[SIZE=3]Armament[/SIZE]
- 1× 20-mm Hispano-Suiza HS.404 cannon in power operated dorsal mounting,
- 1× 7.5 mm MAC 1934 machine gun in nose,
- 1× machine gun in ventral mounting
- 1,200 kg (2,650 lb) bombs



[SIZE=4]Hanriot H.250 Foudre[/SIZE]
[SIZE=1]Variant of the Farman F.380, built by Hanriot.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=3]General characteristics[/SIZE]
Crew: Four
Length: 17.60 m (57 ft 9 in)
Wingspan: 21.882 m (71 ft 9.5 in)
Height: 4.19 m (13 ft 9 in) [10]
Wing area: 61.10 m2 (657.7 sq ft)
Empty weight: 7,733 kg (17,048 lb)
Gross weight: 10,077 kg (22,216 lb)
Powerplant: 2 × supercharged Hispano-Suiza 12Z liquid-cooled V12 engines, 1500 hp each

[SIZE=3]Performance[/SIZE]
Maximum speed: 630 km/h; 340 kn (391 mph) at 8,000 m (26,250 ft)
Cruise speed: 510 km/h; 275 kn (317 mph) at 8,000 m (26,250 ft) (long-range cruise)
Range: 2,200 km; 1,188 nmi (1,367 mi)
Service ceiling: 10,250 m (36,909 ft)
Time to altitude: 19 min 7 s to 8,000 m (26,250 ft)

[SIZE=3]Armament[/SIZE]
- 1 × 20-mm Hispano-Suiza HS.404 cannon in power operated dorsal mounting,
- 1 × 7.5 mm MAC 1934 machine gun in nose,
- 1 × machine gun in ventral mounting
- 1,200 kg (2,650 lb) bombs

[SIZE=3]Notes[/SIZE]
The Hanriot H.250 is a variant of the Farman F.380 Foudre. The H.250 removes the third engine driving the supercharger, removes the pressurized cabin, and adds two 1,500hp HS-12Z engines.

[SIZE=4]Breguet-Nord Br.890 Épaulard ("Killer Whale") dive bomber[/SIZE]
Breguet developed the Br.890 jointly with Latécoère, designing a common naval bomber airframe, with each company then using the common base to design a dive bomber (Breguet) or a torpedo bomber (Latécoère). The Breguet Br.890 has a "tail stinger" behind the tail with X-shaped dive brakes (secondary brakes are on the wings). To maintain the aircraft's overall balance, the nose was lengthened slightly. Unusually, the Épaulard is designed with tricycle gear, and the nosewheel strut is strengthened and designed for use with a deck catapult.

[SIZE=3]Specifications[/SIZE]
Wingspan: 14.5 m (47.6 feet)
Length: 13.7 m (44.9 feet)
Height: 4.85 m (15.9 feet)
Wing Area: 38 m² (409 ft²)
Empty weight: 5,000 kg (11,023 lbs)
Max Takeoff Weight: 7,950 kg (17,527 lbs)
Engine: 1 × Gnome et Rhône Mistral Titan 18k (2,240hp takeoff)
Crew: 2-3 (pilot, turret gunner and radioman/bombardier)

[SIZE=3]Performance[/SIZE]
Max speed: 475 kph (295.15 mph)
Cruise speed: 325 kph (201.9 mph)
Range: 2,053.5 km (1,276 miles)
Service ceiling: 8,575 m (28,133 ft)
Rate of climb: 8.75 mps (17.22 fpm)

[SIZE=3]Armament[/SIZE]
- 2 × 0.50 mm MGs in turret
- 2 × 0.50 mm MGs in wings (deleted in later models)
- 1 × 900kg (1,984 lb) bombs

[SIZE=3]Variants[/SIZE]
Breguet Br.890T Épaulard ("Killer Whale") carrier based transport aircraft
The Br.890T was a quick modification of the original Breguet Épaulard redesigned internally to carry one pilot and six passengers or cargo. The "tail stinger" dive brakes and the weapons bay were removed, although the plane's lengthened nose and fuselage was maintained.

Breguet-Nord Br.891 Épaulard ("Killer Whale") carrier based SDAC aircraft
The Br.891 variant was first deployed in late 1941 to carry the SDA-5B radar in an underwing pod. The navigator doubled as a radar operator, and could use the radar to detect low-flying aircraft formations, or surface ships. Many Br.891 versions were simply modified Br.890s,

Breguet-Nord Br.892 Épaulard ("Killer Whale") carrier based patrol aircraft
Fielded in 1942, the Br.892 version of the Épaulard replaced the dive brakes in the "tail stinger" with a magnetic anomaly detector array to be operated by the weapons officer.

Breguet-Nord Br.900 Massette
The Br.900 Massette was based heavily on the preceding Breguet-Latecoere Épaulard attack aircraft, which entered service early in 1941 and provided the French Navy with one of its first modern strike aircraft. The Armee de l'Aire requested, at about the same time, a ground-attack strike aircraft capable of both dive-bombing and rocket attacks, replacing the earlier LN.401, Breguet 693, and Morane-Saulnier MS.440 strike aircraft. Breguet modified the Épaulard design with the updated GR-18k-44 engine, and removed the radio operator-gunner and bombardier-navigator positions to exchange weight for substantial amounts of protective armour for the pilot's position. The aircraft retained the distinctive X-pattern tail stinger dive brakes and three-rudder tail assembly of the Épaulard, and retained the carrier-landing capability. The wings, although of similar dimensions to the Épaulard wings, were of a completely new design, with four 23mm cannon as well as mounting points for rockets and bombs. The completed aircraft, in fact, carried more payload than a LeO-600 bomber, although the weight was distributed between more numerous small bombs carried underbelly and on the wings. In order to disguise its naval heritage from the Armee de l'Aire, the plane received a brand-new designation: the Massette ("Petit Sledgehammer").

Although the prototype, modified from a production Épaulard, flew in October 1941, the Massette was not ordered by the Armee de l'Aire until March 1942, and did not enter production until June. The aircraft's similarity to the Épaulard proved beneficial as the two planes shared a large number of parts, including landing gear, dive brakes, and the SGM engine management system, lowering the final cost of the aircraft.

Specifications
Wingspan: 14.5 m (47.6 feet)
Length: 13.7 m (44.9 feet)
Height: 4.85 m (15.9 feet)
Wing Area: 38 m² (409 ft²)
Empty Weight: 5,052 kg (11,138 lbs)
Loaded Weight: 7,279 kg (16,047 lbs)
Max Takeoff Weight: 8,938 kg (19,705 lbs)
Engine: 1 × Gnome-Rhone Mistral Titan 18k-44 (2,650hp / 1,984 kW takeoff) with Turbomeca two-stage supercharger
Crew: 1 (pilot)

Performance
Max speed: 535 kph (289 knots / 332 mph) at 6,000 meters
Cruise speed: 325 kph (201.9 mph)
Ferry Range: 2,053.5 km (1,276 miles)
Combat Range: 1460 km (907 miles)
Service ceiling: 8,575 m (28,133 ft)
Rate of climb: 14.5 mps (2850 fpm)
Wing Loading: 191.6 kg/m² (44.37 lb/ft²) at loaded weight
Power to Weight Ratio: 0.272 kW/kg (0.165 hp/lb) at loaded weight

Armament
- 4 × Hispano- Suiza HS-406 23 mm guns with 160 rounds per gun
- 2,800 kg external ordnance on three centerline and eight wing hardpoints

Farman F.420 Libérateur
License-built Consolidated B-24

Specifications
Crew: 11 (bombardier, navigator, pilot, co-pilot, chin turret, top turret, radio operator, 2 waist gunners, ball turret, tail gunner)
Length: 22.73 m (74 ft 7 in)
Wingspan: 33.53 m (110 ft 0 in)
Height: 9.17 m (30 ft 1 in)
Wing area: 97.4 m² (1,048 ft²)
Empty weight: 13,000 kg (28,660 lb)
Max. takeoff weight: 30,100 kg (66,359 lb)
Powerplant: 4 × Gnome-Rhone 14R, 1,750hp each, with 4-blade propellers

Performance
Maximum speed: 495 km/h (307.6 mph, 267.3 kn)
Cruise speed: 175 mph (121 kn, 224 km/h)
Range: 4,400 km (2,734 mi)
Service ceiling: 8,500 m (28,000 ft)

Armament
Guns: 12 × 12.7mm Hotchkiss machine guns in six turrets
Bombs: Up to 12,800 lb (5,800 kg) of bombs, mines, or torpedoes

Notes
The F.420 is a Consolidated PB4Y-2 Privateer with supercharged Gnome-Rhone engines, French-manufactured avionics, and Hotchkiss MGs. Compared to the Privateer, the F.420 has less range but more speed and a higher service ceiling.

Lioré et Olivier LeO-600 Tornade

In the early 1940s, the Armee de l'Aire depended on several different types of medium bombers, mainly the Lioré et Olivier LeO-45 series, but including the Amiot 354, the Farman F.380, and its closely-derivative Hanriot H.250. This range of bombers each had different strengths and weaknesses inherent to the type, and resisted attempts to streamline production. The LeO-45, while technologically the least impressive, received the most production due to its greater simplicity, and if it had higher performance, it would have made an excellent medium bomber for standardization. However, the LeO-45's performance, particularly by 1940 standards, was increasingly lackluster, with speed barely passing five hundred kilometers per hour at full power, and only fifteen hundred kilograms of stores. The competing Hanriot H.250 bomber carried even less payload but compensated somewhat with a much higher speed and high-altitude performance.

Changing policy in the late 1930s and early 1940s focused on the principles of standardization and production costs, and by 1941, the Armee de l'Aire demanded a high-performance medium bomber suitable for mass production, but capable of replacing the LeO-45, the Hanriot H.250, the Amiot 354, and the Farman F.380. As Farman struggled with the F.400 Ourse heavy bomber, and Amiot lacked a talented and well-connected chief designer as well as a high-capacity factory, the task largely fell on Hanriot and Lioré et Olivier. Hanriot offered a modestly improved version of their existing H.250 Foudre, while Lioré et Olivier offered an all-new bomber design dubbed the LeO-600, although the aircraft was billed as a 'major redesign' of the LeO-45.

In many ways, the LeO-600 was not a medium bomber design at all, as Lioré et Olivier designed it to undertake secondary roles as a heavy fighter, night fighter, and reconnaissance aircraft. Lioré et Olivier was reportedly inspired in part by the success of the Petlyakov Pe-2 and Pe-3 as well as the de Havilland Mosquito. Unlike either of those aircraft, however, the LeO-600 featured a pressurized cabin for high-altitude operations, with the crew of three seated closely in the same general vicinity.

The Tornade first flew in late 1941 and was tested through 1942 by the Armee de l'Aire in order to refine the design and prepare it for mass production. The aircraft was finally ordered in October 1942 for initial production starting in February 1943.

Specifications
Crew: 3 (pilot, navigator-bombardier, radio operator-gunner)
Length: 16.745 m (54 ft 11 in)
Wingspan: 22.1 m (72 ft 6 in)
Height: 4.3 m (14 ft 1 in)
Wing area: 59.4 m² ( ft²)
Empty weight: 11,000 kg (24,250 lb)
Loaded weight: 15,154 kg (33,409 lb)
Max takeoff weight: 15,775 kg (34,778 lb)
Powerplant: 2 × supercharged Gnome-Rhone 18k air-cooled R18 engines, 2,240hp (1,670.4 kW) each

Performance
Maximum speed: 607 kph (377 mph, 328 knots) at 9,150 m (30,000 ft) with external stores; 640 kph (398 mph, 345 knots) with boost
Cruise speed: 475 kph (295 mph, 256 knots)
Range: 3,280 km (2,038 mi, 1771 nmi)
Service ceiling: 11,825 m (38,800 ft)
Rate of climb: 6.15 m/s (1210.6 ft/min)

Armament
- 2×23 mm HS.406 cannon in nose
- 2×12.7mm Hotchkiss MG in remote-control tail turret
- 2,400 kg (5,291 lb) bombs

Consolidated Dominator

Specifications
Crew: ten
Length: 82 ft 1 in (25.03 m)
Wingspan: 135 ft 0 in (41.16 m)
Height: 32 ft 2 in (9.81 m)
Wing area: 1,422 ft² (132.2 m²)
Empty weight: 60,278 lb (27,400 kg)
Loaded weight: 100,800 lb (45,800 kg)
Max. takeoff weight: 123,250lb (56,023 kg)
Powerplant: 4 × supercharged Gnome-Rhone 18k air-cooled R18 engines, 2,240hp (1,670.4 kW) each

Performance
Maximum speed: 357 mph (310 knots, 575 km/h) at 30,000 ft (9,150 m)
Cruise speed: 290 mph[12] (252 knots, 467 km/h)
Range: 3,800 mi (3,304 nmi, 6,118 km)
Service ceiling: 30,700 ft[12] (9,360 m)
Rate of climb: 1,050 ft/min (5.3 m/s)

Armament
- Guns: 10×12.7mm Hotchkiss machine guns
- Bombs: 20,000 lb (9,100 kg)

Service History
- 264 aircraft ordered from the US in April 1944. These aircraft are all ordered with Gnome-Rhone 18k radial engines