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Hanriot H.312 Roussette Strike Fighter
In the late 1930s, the French Aeronavale believed the future of carrier strike aircraft lay in large carriers with air wings of larger planes, including twin-engine fighter and strike aircraft. This resulted in the construction of the large Bucentaure and Vengeur class aircraft carriers, designed to easily accommodate twin-engine aircraft. Most of the twin engine designs proposed to the Aeronavale through 1941, however, failed to impress either the pilots or the technical investigators. Only the Breguet Br.695, developed as the navalized variant of a ground-attack aircraft, saw active service aboard the French carriers prior to 1943, although a proposal to modify the twin-engine Arsenal VB.10 into a carrier fighter came close to fruition (despite the type's weaknesses). Improvements in the power and reliability of French radial engines allowed the Aeronavale to field large single-engine carrier bombers, although an interest remained in twin engine types. The Armee de l'Aire similarly pushed for a more modern twin-engine night and day fighter that could replace the Bloch MB.178N.

In late 1940, the private design firm of Vasseur et cie in Paris proposed a long-ranged twin-engine carrier fighter to the Aeronavale. The small design team, led by Bruno and Marie Vasseur, presented a radical design using a continuous-aerofoil profile. Although the French Navy rejected the design due to its size, they awarded Vasseur et cie twenty thousand francs to continue developing a twin-engine carrier fighter. In January 1942, in order to acquire access to high-speed wind-tunnels as well as more funding, the Vasseurs entered into a joint development contract with the Hanriot firm, which attempted to tailor the design to match more potentially lucrative night fighter contracts for the Armee de l'Aire. Vasseur et cie's design team, lacking any means of production, found themselves at odds with Hanriot over the direction of the project, and launched a legal action. In July 1942, before the lawsuit could reach court, Hanriot offered to buy the project out from Vasseur et cie.

Despite Hanriot's interest in offering a night-fighter to the Armee de l'Aire, the Aeronavale remained their primary customer. Hanriot presented a quarter-sized prototype to the Aeronavale in August 1942, and optimistically assured the French Navy that the plane could achieve four hundred fifty knots and a range of three thousand kilometers, yet still be able to fly from a carrier deck. The Aeronavale was skeptical of this claim, but was sufficiently impressed at the model that they ordered three prototypes for testing at the Centre d'Essais en Vol in Brétigny-sur-Orge. The Armee de l'Aire, more cautious about the design, determined to wait to see the results of the French Navy's tests before committing to their own testing.

Although the aircraft, designated the H.312 Roussette, was generally orthodox in layout, several design elements were unusual. The original design called for each of the engines to power a contra-rotating propeller, but this was only used on the first prototype, as it was a serious maintenance hassle that the French Navy did not want. Tricycle gear was also used, as this was the Aeronavale's preference for use on carrier catapults. Hanriot additionally replaced the glass nose cone of the original Vasseur design with a shaped fiberglass cone that allowed for the installation of a forward-looking radio-teledetecteur array, turning the aircraft into a potential night-fighter.

Hanriot delivered the first H.312 prototype to Brétigny-sur-Orge in January 1943. The Aeronavale dubbed it the "Roussette", using the French vernacular for a bat as well as a species of shark (Scyliorhinidae or catshark). Testing quickly demonstrated that the H.312 could not live up to Hanriot's promised speed, range, and fight ceiling capabilities, although test pilots enjoyed the plane's handling, particularly at lower speeds. The RTD setup, which Hanriot advertised as the plane's greatest strength, proved to be one of the type's most significant issues, as no second crewman was provided in the original design to operate the set. The pilot had to operate the radio-teledetecteur controls by reaching over his left shoulder and watching the screen which was next to his right knee. This resulted in pilot fatigue as the lone crewman attempted to juggle radar operation with actually flying the airplane. Hanriot eventually gave up and provided a seat for a second crewman, who served as navigator and radar operator.

The Aeronavale ordered a number of Roussettes in 1943 and 1944, and the cautious Armee de l'Aire placed an order in December 1943. Despite its origin as a carrier aircraft, most Roussettes did not serve aboard carriers; they instead were incorporated into land-based squadrons assigned for fleet protection. All Roussettes used in carrier operations were of the twin-seat variety, assigned to the carriers Bucentaure or Conquerant as a dedicated night-fighter squadron. Even aboard these large carriers, the Aeronavale found the H.312 to be a challenging plane to operate successfully. The Armee de l'Aire instead became the definitive user of the Roussette, ordering several hundred two-seat planes for use as night fighters.

General Characteristics
Crew: one
Length: 11.52 m (37 ft 9 in)
Wingspan: 15.37 m (50 ft 5 in)
Height: 5.16 m (16 ft 11 in)
Wing area: 35.32 m² (380.04 ft²)
Empty weight: 6,400 kg (14,110 lb)
Loaded weight: 7,900 kg (17,416 lb)
Powerplant: 2 × Gnome-Rhone 18k air-cooled R18 engines, (2,240hp / 1,670.4 kW) with two-stage variable speed Turbomeca supercharger or 2 × Hispano-Suiza 12Z-55 liquid-cooled V-12 engines, (1,800 hp / 1,342 kW takeoff) with two-stage variable speed Turbomeca supercharger

Performance
Maximum speed: 708 kph (382 knots / 440 mph) at 6,000 meters
Cruise speed: 500 km/h (308 mph)
Range: 2,800 km (1,740 mi)
Service ceiling: 10,000 m (32,808 ft)
Rate of climb: 3,850 ft/min (19.58 m/sec)

Armament
- 2 × 23mm DEFA 501 revolver cannon with three hundred rounds
- 1 × 37mm belt-fed cannon with forty rounds
- 750kg underwing stores (bombs, torpedoes, or rockets)

Variants
- H.312 Roussette: Initial variant, equipped for carrier operations.
- H.313: Night fighter with two-man crew.

Dewoitine D.800 Flèche

General characteristics
Crew: One
Length: 9.69 m (31ft 9.5in)
Wingspan: 11 m (initial version, rounded wingtips) or 10.50 m (final version, squared wingtips) (36ft 11in)
Height: 3.39 m (11ft 1.5in)
Wing area: 19,70 m²
Empty weight: 2,358 kg (5,198 lb)
Max takeoff weight: 3,600 kg (7,937 lb)
Powerplant: 1 × Rateau A.62 centrifugal turbojet, 15.7 kN (1,600 kgf / 3,527.4 lbf)

Performance
Maximum speed: 720 km/h (447 mph)
Range: 900 km (559 mi)
Service ceiling: 15,500 m (50,855 ft)
Rate of climb: 20.8 m/s (4,094 ft/min)
Power to weight ratio: 0.444 lbf/lb at loaded weight
Wingloading: 182.7 kg/m² / 37.43 lb/ft²

Armament
Guns: 4 × 23 mm Hispano-Suiza HS.406 cannon with 125 rounds per gun

Notes
This is the historical FMA Pulqui I, which was designed in Argentina by Emil Dewoitine and some Argentine co-workers. Used with Hood's permission.
First flight February 1944, entry into squadron service around September or so. Estimated quantity manufactured: between 50-100, no more. Production will probably run from July to December of 1944, after which it will be ended.

In 1947, twenty-five of the aircraft were transferred to the Ecole guerre aérienne des Alliés in Limoges to serve as adversary aircraft.

Breguet-Nord N.1515 Noratlas
Developed from the lighter Breguet-Nord N.1510 Normandie, the Noratlas featured a longer fuselage and slightly larger wing. The new aircraft, which first flew in February 1944, was designed to transport a stripped-down light tank or armoured car by air.

Specifications
Crew: 4 (pilot, copilot/navigator, radio operator, flight engineer)
Capacity: 65 paratroopers, 85 troops, or 15,000kg (33,069 lbs) of cargo
Length: 33 m (108 ft 3 in)
Wingspan: 38.5m (126 ft 4 in)
Height: 9 m (29 ft 6 in)
Wing Area: 170 m² (1,829.8 ft²)
Empty Weight: 25,000 kg (55,115.5 lb)
Loaded Weight: 36,620 kg (80,733 lb)
Max Takeoff Weight: 42,725 kg (94,192 lb)
Powerplant: 4 × Hispano-Suiza HS-24K TRP-Composé turbo-compound engines, 3,500 hp (2,600 kW) each, with 4-blade adjustable-pitch propellers

Performance
Max Speed: 500 km/h (310.7 mph)
Cruise Speed: 400 km/h (248.5 mph )
Range: 5,500km (3,417 mi) at 6,000m with payload
Service Ceiling: 7,600 m (25,000 ft)
Rate of Climb: 7 m/s (1378 ft/min)
Max Wingloading: 251 kg/m² (51.5 lb/ft²)

Armament (Some Versions only)
- 1 × 23mm HS.406 in tail
- 1 × 23mm HS.406 in nose

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

Arsenal VG.640 Graoully fighter

Specifications
Wingspan: 10.7 m (35.1 feet)
Length: 9.06 m (29.7 feet)
Height: 3.14 m (10.3 feet)
Wing Area: 18.8 m² (202.36 ft²)
Empty weight: 2,500 kg (5,511 lbs)
Loaded Weight: 3,319 kg (7,317 lbs)
Engine: 1 × Gnome-Rhone Curtana ATR-001 axial turbojet 9 kN (918 kgf / 2,023 lbf thrust)
Crew: 1 (pilot)

Performance
Max speed: 750 kph (466 mph) @ 9,000 meters
Range: 550 km (314 miles)
Service ceiling: 12,250 m (40,190 ft)
Rate of climb: 20.5 m/s (4035 ft/min)
Power to weight ratio: 0.276 lbf/lb at loaded weight
Wingloading: 176.5 kg/m² / 36.2 lb/ft²

Armament
- 2 × 23 mm HS.406 with 90 rounds in nose

Variants
- VG.640: Single-seat fighter
- VG.640T: Twin-seat advanced trainer

Notes
- This is based off the Russian Yak-15/Yak-17 concept.
- First flight May 1944, entry into service October/November 1944.
- Production ended after 261x aircraft.
- Due to maintenance costs, all VG.640s were retired from French service by April 1949.

Exports
Between 1946 and 1947, as more modern jets entered French service, a number of aircraft were sold, at minimal cost, to a number of air forces, including Bulgaria, Yugoslavia, Romania, and Greece. The intent was to encourage the air forces of those countries to follow up with orders of more modern jet fighters.
- Bulgaria: 12x aircraft
- Yugoslavia: 24x aircraft
- Romania: 24x aircraft
- Greece: 18x aircraft

Bayerische Flugzeugwerke Bf262A Fighter Aircraft
Seventy-two of these aircraft were ordered from Germany in 1945 in order to provide some reserve fighter capacity and experiment with various different alternative designs. In 1948, the aircraft were replaced in frontline service by more modern aircraft of local manufacture, and a number of them were assigned to the Ecole guerre aérienne des Alliés as aggressor instructor aircraft. At this time, their Junkers engines were replaced with Gnome-Rhone TRA-05 Curtana axial turbojets

General characteristics:
Crew: 1
Length: 10.60 m
Wingspan: 12.60 m
Height: 3.50 m
Wing area: 21.7 square metres
Empty weight: 3,795 kg
Loaded weight: 6,473 kg
Maximum takeoff weight: 7,130 kg
Powerplant: Two Junkers Jumo 004 B-1 turbojets, 898 kg thrust each
Aspect ratio: 7.32

Performance
Maximum speed: 900 kph
Range: 1,050 km
Service ceiling: 11,450 m
Rate of climb: 1,200 m/min (At max weight of 7,130 kg)

Armament
Guns: 4 × 23 mm DEFA cannons

Dassault MD.450 Ouragan I
In early 1944, Dewoitine's D.800 Flèche and Arsenal de l'Aéronautique's VG.640 Graoully had their first flights. The performance of both aircraft, however, was disappointing to the Service Technique de l'Aéronautique, which oversaw development of jet fighters for the French Air Force. Great hope had been placed on the Dewoitine D.800, which was intended to exceed eight hundred kilometers per hour. Instead, it barely achieved seven hundred and twenty, barely better than the most powerful production propeller fighters of the day. To the surprise of many, Arsenal's VG.640 - a conversion of a propeller-driven fighter to jet power - achieved better speeds, although its range was significantly less, and climb slightly poorer. The Armee de l'Aire eventually ordered seventy-six D.800s and several hundred VG.640s, but most were used as preliminary jet trainers rather than true fighters.

The third French aviation manufacturer to produce a jet fighter was the Société des Avions Dassault. Dassault (then under its previous name of Bloch) had designed and build the first French turbojet testbed, the Triton, during 1942, and Marcel Bloch and his engineers had been working for much of that time on their own jet fighter. Whereas Arsenal and Dewoitine were building their first jets in the VG.640 and D.800, Dassault's designers had more experience - and more tools at their disposal. Bloch also resisted the STA's occasional meddling oversight, and refused to be hurried to rush substandard designs into development. What emerged from Dassault's factory in late December of 1944 was head and shoulders above its French peers, and indeed one of the finest of the first-generation jet fighters: the Dassault MD.450 Ouragan. What the Flèche and Graoully promised, the Ouragan delivered: a speedy, fast-climbing, nimble jet fighter. The Ouragan succeeded in great part due to its powerplant: the first Rateau-Anxionnaz A.65 turbojet, which had a single centrifugal stage and a single axial stage compressor. Although something of a hybrid, the A.65 produced 2,200 kilograms (five thousand pounds) of thrust, more than double the thrust achieved from the early TRAC-1C and A.62 turbojets. Dassault's heavy use of the ONERA wind-tunnels, particularly the full-sized 15m testing tunnel and Modane-Avrieux, helped the engineers eliminate many streamlining issues (such as the ones which plagued the Flèche) and test the designs in scale before ever constructing the real aircraft.

The Ouragan was not without its flaws. The planned engine, the Rateau-Anxionnaz A.65 turbojet, was not ready in 1945 when the design first appeared, and Dassault made do with an intermediate engine, the A.63. This reduced the performance figures of the initial aircraft. The A.65 would not be ready until late 1947, when it appeared on the MD.451 Ouragan II and the MD.455 Mistral carrier-based variant. Although both the A.63 and the A.65 were more fuel efficient than their early predecessors, the Ouragan never had great range. The fighter also had a slight tendency to enter spins that required some skill and experience to pull out of. The Armee de l'Aire exhibited cautious optimism prior to the Ouragan's first flight in January of 1945. Afterward, the STA presented Dassault with a list of changes necessary for series production, and immediately ordered twenty-five preproduction examples. It would take another nine months for the Ouragan I to reach production, but once production began, it became the preferred first-generation fighter of the French Air Force.

Dassault worked steadily to improve the design, unveiling in 1947 the follow-on Ouragan II, which finally incorporated the A.65 engine the aircraft was designed for. The lessons learned proved valuable for work on the next aircraft in the development line, the Dassault Mystere.

General characteristics
Crew: One
Length: 10.73 m (35 ft 2 in)
Wingspan: 13.16 m (43 ft 2 in)
Height: 4.14 m (13 ft 7 in)
Wing area: 23.8 m² (256.2 ft²)
Aspect ratio: 7.3:1
Empty weight: 4 142 kg (9,132 lb)
Loaded weight: 7 404 kg (16,323 lb)
Max takeoff weight: 7 900 kg (17,416 lb)
Powerplant: 1 × Rateau-Anxionnaz A.63 turbojet, 17.5 kN (3,934 lbf / 1,784 kgf)

Performance
Never exceed speed: Mach 0.83
Maximum speed: 870 km/h (470 knots, 540 mph) (Mach 0.71) at sea level
Cruise speed: 725 km/h (391 knots, 450 mph)
Combat radius: 450 km (245 nm, 280 mi)
Ferry range: 920 km (500 nm, 570 mi)
Service ceiling: 13 000 m (42,650 ft)
Rate of climb: 23.6 m/s (4646 ft/min)
Takeoff distance: 783 m (2,570 ft)
Landing distance: 910 m (2,985 ft)

Armament
Guns: 4 × 23 mm DEFA 501 revolver cannon with 125 rounds per gun
Rockets: 16× 105 mm (4.1 in) Brandt T-10 air-to-ground unguided rockets; or, 2× Matra rocket pods with 18× SNEB 68 mm rockets each
Bombs: 2,270 kg (5,000 lb) of payload on four external hardpoints, including a variety of unguided iron bombs such as 2× 454 kg (1,000 lb) bombs or 2× 458 liter (121 US gallon) napalm bombs or Drop tanks for extended range.



Dassault MD.451 Ouragan II
A straight upgrade of the existing Dassault MD.450 Ouragan I, the Ouragan II incorporated a number of minor changes to ease manufacturing and improve overall performance. The largest upgrade was the A.65 turbojet, which had significantly better thrust and maintenance characteristics.

General characteristics
Crew: One
Length: 10.73 m
Wingspan: 13.16 m
Height: 4.14 m
Wing area: 23.8 m²
Aspect ratio: 7.3:1
Empty weight: 4 142 kg
Loaded weight: 7 404 kg
Max takeoff weight: 7 900 kg
Powerplant: 1 × Rateau-Anxionnaz A.65 turbojet, 22.2 kN

Performance
Never exceed speed: Mach 0.83
Maximum speed: 940 km/h (Mach 0.76) at sea level
Cruise speed: 750 km/h
Combat radius: 450 km
Ferry range: 920 km
Service ceiling: 13 000 m
Rate of climb: 23.6 m/s (6 min 21 sec to 9,000m)
Takeoff distance: 783 m
Landing distance: 910 m

Armament
Guns: 4 × 23 mm DEFA 501 revolver cannon with 125 rounds per gun
Rockets: 16× 105 mm (4.1 in) Brandt T-10 air-to-ground unguided rockets; or, 2× Matra rocket pods with 18× SNEB 68 mm rockets each
Bombs: 2,270 kg of payload on four external hardpoints, including a variety of unguided iron bombs such as 2× 454 kg bombs or 2× 458 liter napalm bombs or Drop tanks for extended range.

Dewoitine D.832 Mousquetaire

General Characteristics
Crew: 3 (bombardier, pilot, navigator)
Length: 20.3 m (66.6 ft)
Wingspan: 24.3 m (79.7 ft)
Height: 7.2 m (23.6 ft)
Wing Area: 82.65 m²
Empty Weight: 16,808 kg (37,055 lbs)
Loaded Weight: 27,665 kg (60,990 lbs)
Max Takeoff Weight: 35,550 kg (78,374 lbs)
Powerplant: 4x Gnome-Rhone TRA-05 Curtana axial turbojets 11 kN (1122 kgf / 2,473 lbf thrust)

Performance
Maximum Speed: 910 kph (565 mph, 491 knots)
Cruise Speed: 770 kph (478 mph, 415 knots)
Range: 1895 km (1,177 miles)
Power to weight ratio: 0.162 kgf/kg at loaded weight
Ceiling: 13200 m (43,300 ft)
Rate of Climb: 1355 m/min (22.6 m/sec; 74 ft/sec)

Performance
Bombs: 3,000 kg (6,600 lb) of bombs in internal bay (1,000 kg (2,200 lb) normal)