Morane-Saulnier M.S.406
Encyclopedia
The M.S.406 was a French
Armée de l'Air fighter aircraft
built by Morane-Saulnier
starting in 1938. Numerically it was France's most important fighter during the opening stages of World War II
.
Although sturdy and highly maneuverable, it was under-powered and weakly armed when compared to its contemporaries. Most critically, it was out-performed by the Messerschmitt Bf 109
E during the Battle of France
. The M.S.406 held its own in the early stages of the war (the so-called Phoney War), but when the war restarted in earnest in 1940, 387 were lost in combat or on the ground (for various reasons) for 183 kills in return. The type was more successful in the hands of Finnish and Swiss air forces who developed indigenous models.
Morane-Saulnier's response was the M.S.405. It was the development of the Morane Saulnier Engineer in chief: Paul-René Gauthier. The MS.405 was a low-wing monoplane of mixed construction, with fabric-covered wooden tail, but a bonded metal/wood material (Plymax
) skin fixed to duralumin
tubing. Plymax consisted of a thin sheet of duralumin
bonded to a thicker sheet of plywood
. Morane-Saulnier had a long history of producing warplanes dating back to pre-World War I years but in the inter-war period, they had concentrated on civil designs. The aircraft was a departure for them, being their first low-wing monoplane, first aircraft with an enclosed cockpit, and their first design with retracting landing gear. Prior to this, their most modern designs were fixed-gear parasol
monoplanes.
The new 860 hp (641 kW) Hispano-Suiza 12Ygrs engine driving a two-pitch Chauvière propeller powered the first M.S406-1 prototype, which flew on 8 August 1935. Development was very slow, and the second M.S.406-2 prototype with a 900 hp (671 kW) Hispano-Suiza 12Ycrs engine didn't fly until 20 January 1937, almost a year and a half later. With the new engine the fighter reached 275 mph (443 km/h), fast enough to secure an order for a further 16 pre-production prototypes, each including improvements on the previous version.
under the fuselage. Powered by the production 860 hp (641 kW) HS 12Y-31 engine, the new design was over 5 mph (8 km/h) faster than the 405, at 304 mph (489 km/h). Armament consisted of a 20 mm Hispano-Suiza HS.9 or 404
cannon with 60 rounds in the V of the engine and fired through the propeller hub, and two 7.5mm MAC 1934
machine guns (one in each wing, each with 300 rounds). A weakness of the MAC 1934 was its operation at high altitudes. It was found that at altitudes over 20,000 ft, the guns had a tendency to freeze. Heaters were added to the guns for high altitude use.
Production had just started when France fell, and only five examples had been completed. Production was allowed to continue under German supervision, converting earlier 406s to the 410 standard, but many of these received only the new wings.
engine of 1,300 hp (969 kW). One was fitted to a modified 410 to create the M.S.450, giving dramatic improvements in performance, especially at altitude. However the engine did not enter production before France fell, and the similarly modified Dewoitine D.520
(the D.523/D.551) was considered a better design for the engine anyway.
. The M.S.435 was a more powerful version with the 550 hp (410 kW) Gnome-Rhône 9K
engine.
licensed the M.S.406 for local production as the D-3800. Two of the pre-production M.S.405 samples were completed as M.S.406H and sent to them as pattern aircraft in late 1938 and early 1939. These examples had the earlier wing design of the 405, but were powered by the newer Hispano-Suiza 12Y-31 engines as used by the MS.406.
Pre-production started with a run of eight aircraft from EKW with engines built by Adolph Saurer AG driving a new Escher-Wyss EW-V3 fully adjustable propeller. Instruments were replaced with Swiss versions and the drum-fed MAC machine guns with locally designed and built belt-fed guns, so eliminating the wing-bulges of the French version, and avoiding the freezing problems encountered by French guns. The first of these aircraft was completed in November 1939. The pre-production models were then followed with an order for a further 74 examples, which were all delivered by 29 August 1940. In 1942, a further two were assembled with spares originally set aside for the original production run.
During 1944, surviving aircraft were modified with new cooling and hydraulic installations, and were fitted with ejector exhausts. These modifications were the same standard as the D-3801 series, making them identical with the exception of the engine installation. At the end of the war the remaining aircraft were used as trainers, until the last one was scrapped in 1954.
The D.3802 was based on the MS.540, with a Sauer YS-2 (1,250 hp) engine. The prototype flew in the autumn of 1944. This aircraft had several shortcomings, but it was capable of 630 km/h. 12 were produced and saw limited use with Fliegerstaffel 17 and some other units.
The last development of this aircraft was the D.3803, with Sauer YS-3 (1,500 hp) engine, and modified dorsal fuselage (with an all-round visibility canopy). The D.3803 was armed with three HS-404 20 mm cannons (one in the nose, two in the wings), plus up to 200 kg bombs and rockets. Despite not having a powerful engine, the type reached 680 km/h at 7,000 m. The performance was impressive, but the last development of this 1935 fighter design had several shortcomings and was not entirely successful. Its development was halted as P-51D Mustangs became available.
The aircraft designer Aarne Lakomaa turned the obsolete "M-S" into a first rate fighter, the Mörkö-Morane (Finnish
for Bogey or Ogre Morane), sometimes referred to as the "LaGG-Morane". Powered by captured Klimov M-105
P engines (a licensed version of the HS 12Y) of 1,100 hp (820 kW) with a fully adjustable propeller, the airframe required some local strengthening and also gained a new and more aerodynamic engine cowling. These changes boosted the speed to 326 mph (525 km/h). Other changes included a new oil cooler taken from the Bf 109
, the use of four belt-fed guns like the M.S.410, and the excellent 20mm MG 151/20 cannon in the engine mounting. However, supplies of the MG 151 were limited, and several received captured 12.7mm Berezin UB
S guns instead.
The first example of the modified fighter, MS-631, made its first flight on 25 January 1943, and the results were startling: the aircraft was 40 km/h (25 mph) faster than the original French version, and the service ceiling was increased from 10,000 to 12,000 m (32,800 to 39,360 ft).
Originally it was planned to convert all the 41 remaining M.S.406s and M.S.410s with the Soviet engine, but it took time, and the first front-line aircraft of this type did not reach LeLv 28 until July/August 1944. By the end of the Continuation War
in 1944, only three examples had been converted (including the original prototype). Lieutenant Lars Hattinen (an ace with six victories) scored three kills with the Mörkö-Morane. More fighters arrived from the factory, though, and the Mörkö-Moranes took part in the Lapland War
as reconnaissance and ground attack aircraft. Not all the Mörkö-Morane conversions were completed before March 1945, when the entire re-engining programme was halted. After the end of the war, the total was brought to 41, which served as advanced trainers with TLeLv 14 until September 1948. In 1952 all remaining Finnish Moranes were scrapped.
at St. Nazaire converted to produce the type. Production began in late 1938, and the first production example flew on 29 January 1939. Deliveries were hampered more by the slow deliveries of the engines than by lack of airframes.
By April 1939, the production lines were delivering six aircraft a day, and when the war opened on 3 September 1939, production was at 11 a day with 535 in service. Production of the M.S.406 ended in March 1940, after the original order for 1,000 had been delivered to the Armée de l'Air, and a further 77 for foreign users (30 for Finland and 45 for Turkey
). Additional orders for Lithuania
and Poland
were canceled with the outbreak of the war.
The MS 406 equipped 16 Groupes de Chasse and three Escadrilles in France and overseas, and 12 of the Groupes saw action against the Luftwaffe. The aircraft was very manoeuvrable and could withstand heavy battle damage, but was outclassed by the Bf 109 and losses were heavy (150 aircraft lost in action and 250-300 lost through other causes).
After the armistice
, only one Vichy unit, GC. 1/7, was equipped with the MS. 406.
Germany took possession of a large number of M.S.406s and the later M.S.410s. The Luftwaffe
used a number for training, and sold off others. Finland
purchased additional M.S.406s (as well as a few 406/410 hybrids) from the Germans, while others were passed off to Italy
and Croatia
. Those still in French hands saw action in Syria
against the RAF
, and on Madagascar
against the Fleet Air Arm
. Both Switzerland
and Turkey
also operated the type; the Swiss actually managing to down a number of both German and Allied aircraft, 1944-1945.
Before the Pacific campaign
proper, Vichy authorities in French Indochina
were engaged in a frontier war against Thailand
, during 1940-41. A number of M.S.406s stationed in Indochina downed Thai fighters before the French Air Force abandoned the theatre. Some examples of the M.S.406 were captured by the Thai Air Force.
, against the USSR and carried out 259 operational sorties and shot down 16 Soviet aircraft. In modified form, the M.S.406 were later involved in the Continuation War
. Between November 1939 and 4 September 1944, Lv28 scored 118 aerial victories flying the Morane M.S.406 (the unit flew Bf 109Gs for a time, as well). The unit lost 15 aircraft.
Total Finnish kills amounted to 121. The top Morane ace in all theatres was W/O Urho Lehtovaara
, with 15 of his 44.5 total kills achieved in Moranes. The Finnish nicknames were Murjaani (blackmoor), a twist on its name, and Mätimaha (roe-belly) and Riippuvatsa (hanging belly) for its bulged ventral fuselage.
Independent State of Croatia
Vichy France
Germany
Italy
Kingdom of Yugoslavia
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
Armée de l'Air fighter aircraft
Fighter aircraft
A fighter aircraft is a military aircraft designed primarily for air-to-air combat with other aircraft, as opposed to a bomber, which is designed primarily to attack ground targets...
built by Morane-Saulnier
Morane-Saulnier
Aéroplanes Morane-Saulnier is a French aircraft manufacturing company formed in October 1911 by Raymond Saulnier and the Morane brothers, Leon and Robert...
starting in 1938. Numerically it was France's most important fighter during the opening stages of World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
.
Although sturdy and highly maneuverable, it was under-powered and weakly armed when compared to its contemporaries. Most critically, it was out-performed by the Messerschmitt Bf 109
Messerschmitt Bf 109
The Messerschmitt Bf 109, often called Me 109, was a German World War II fighter aircraft designed by Willy Messerschmitt and Robert Lusser during the early to mid 1930s...
E during the Battle of France
Battle of France
In the Second World War, the Battle of France was the German invasion of France and the Low Countries, beginning on 10 May 1940, which ended the Phoney War. The battle consisted of two main operations. In the first, Fall Gelb , German armoured units pushed through the Ardennes, to cut off and...
. The M.S.406 held its own in the early stages of the war (the so-called Phoney War), but when the war restarted in earnest in 1940, 387 were lost in combat or on the ground (for various reasons) for 183 kills in return. The type was more successful in the hands of Finnish and Swiss air forces who developed indigenous models.
M.S.405
In 1934, the Service Technique Aéronautique (Aeronautical Technical Service) of the Armée de l'Air issued a requirement for a new and completely modern single-seat fighter (referred to as a C1 design), with a monoplane layout and retracting landing gear.Morane-Saulnier's response was the M.S.405. It was the development of the Morane Saulnier Engineer in chief: Paul-René Gauthier. The MS.405 was a low-wing monoplane of mixed construction, with fabric-covered wooden tail, but a bonded metal/wood material (Plymax
Plymax
Plymax is a building material, used in airplanes. It consists of a thin sheet of duralumin bonded to a thicker sheet of plywood. Most notably it was used in the Morane-Saulnier M.S.406, and French aircraft of the 1930s. It was also used on the bodies of some cars such as a 1931 Triumph Super 9. The...
) skin fixed to duralumin
Duralumin
Duralumin is the trade name of one of the earliest types of age-hardenable aluminium alloys. The main alloying constituents are copper, manganese, and magnesium. A commonly used modern equivalent of this alloy type is AA2024, which contains 4.4% copper, 1.5% magnesium, 0.6% manganese and 93.5%...
tubing. Plymax consisted of a thin sheet of duralumin
Duralumin
Duralumin is the trade name of one of the earliest types of age-hardenable aluminium alloys. The main alloying constituents are copper, manganese, and magnesium. A commonly used modern equivalent of this alloy type is AA2024, which contains 4.4% copper, 1.5% magnesium, 0.6% manganese and 93.5%...
bonded to a thicker sheet of plywood
Plywood
Plywood is a type of manufactured timber made from thin sheets of wood veneer. It is one of the most widely used wood products. It is flexible, inexpensive, workable, re-usable, and can usually be locally manufactured...
. Morane-Saulnier had a long history of producing warplanes dating back to pre-World War I years but in the inter-war period, they had concentrated on civil designs. The aircraft was a departure for them, being their first low-wing monoplane, first aircraft with an enclosed cockpit, and their first design with retracting landing gear. Prior to this, their most modern designs were fixed-gear parasol
Parasol wing
A parasol wing monoplane is an aircraft design in which the wing is not mounted directly to the fuselage, but rather, the fuselage is supported beneath it by a set of struts, called cabane struts...
monoplanes.
The new 860 hp (641 kW) Hispano-Suiza 12Ygrs engine driving a two-pitch Chauvière propeller powered the first M.S406-1 prototype, which flew on 8 August 1935. Development was very slow, and the second M.S.406-2 prototype with a 900 hp (671 kW) Hispano-Suiza 12Ycrs engine didn't fly until 20 January 1937, almost a year and a half later. With the new engine the fighter reached 275 mph (443 km/h), fast enough to secure an order for a further 16 pre-production prototypes, each including improvements on the previous version.
M.S.406
The result of these changes was the M.S.406. The two main changes were the inclusion of a new wing structure which saved weight, and a retractable radiatorRadiator (engine cooling)
Radiators are used for cooling internal combustion engines, mainly in automobiles but also in piston-engined aircraft, railway locomotives, motorcycles, stationary generating plant or any similar use of such an engine....
under the fuselage. Powered by the production 860 hp (641 kW) HS 12Y-31 engine, the new design was over 5 mph (8 km/h) faster than the 405, at 304 mph (489 km/h). Armament consisted of a 20 mm Hispano-Suiza HS.9 or 404
Hispano-Suiza HS.404
The Hispano-Suiza HS.404 was an autocannon widely used as both an aircraft and land weapon in the 20th century by British, American, French, and numerous other military services. The cannon is also referred to as Birkigt type 404, after its designer. Firing a 20 mm caliber projectile, it delivered...
cannon with 60 rounds in the V of the engine and fired through the propeller hub, and two 7.5mm MAC 1934
MAC 1934
In 1934 the Manufacture d'Armes de Châtellerault completed the development of the MAC 1934 machine gun to replace the Darne mod. 1933 machine gun aboard aircraft of the Armée de l'Air...
machine guns (one in each wing, each with 300 rounds). A weakness of the MAC 1934 was its operation at high altitudes. It was found that at altitudes over 20,000 ft, the guns had a tendency to freeze. Heaters were added to the guns for high altitude use.
M.S.410
While the 406s were entering service in 1939, an upgrade series was started to improve the design. The result was the M.S.410, which included a stronger wing, simpler fixed radiator in place of the earlier retractable design, four belt-fed MAC guns in place of the earlier two drum-fed weapons, and exhaust ejectors for additional thrust. The added thrust boosted the top speed to 316 mph (509 km/h), an improvement of about 10 mph (16 km/h) over the 406.Production had just started when France fell, and only five examples had been completed. Production was allowed to continue under German supervision, converting earlier 406s to the 410 standard, but many of these received only the new wings.
M.S.411, M.S.412
A single example of the M.S.411 was constructed by converting the 12th aircraft of the pre-production line with the 406 wing and the 1,000 hp (746 kW) Hispano-Suiza 12Y-45 engine. A later modification was started as the M.S.412 with the 1,050 hp (783 kW)Hispano-Suiza 12Y-51 engine, but this was not completed by the time the war ended.M.S.450
In 1939, Hispano started prototype deliveries of the new Hispano-Suiza 12ZHispano-Suiza 12Z
-References:...
engine of 1,300 hp (969 kW). One was fitted to a modified 410 to create the M.S.450, giving dramatic improvements in performance, especially at altitude. However the engine did not enter production before France fell, and the similarly modified Dewoitine D.520
Dewoitine D.520
The Dewoitine D.520 was a French fighter aircraft that entered service in early 1940, shortly after the opening of World War II. Unlike the Morane-Saulnier M.S.406, which was at that time the Armée de l'Airs most numerous fighter, the Dewoitine D.520 came close to being a match for the latest...
(the D.523/D.551) was considered a better design for the engine anyway.
Other variants
The M.S.406 airframe was also used in a number of other projects. The M.S.430 was a two-seat trainer built by inserting a "plug" in the central fuselage with an extra cockpit for the trainee pilot, and using the much less powerful 390 hp (291 kW) Salmson 9 radial engineRadial engine
The radial engine is a reciprocating type internal combustion engine configuration in which the cylinders point outward from a central crankshaft like the spokes on a wheel...
. The M.S.435 was a more powerful version with the 550 hp (410 kW) Gnome-Rhône 9K
Gnome-Rhône 9K
|-Applications:*IAR 15...
engine.
Swiss variants
D-3800
In 1938, SwitzerlandSwitzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
licensed the M.S.406 for local production as the D-3800. Two of the pre-production M.S.405 samples were completed as M.S.406H and sent to them as pattern aircraft in late 1938 and early 1939. These examples had the earlier wing design of the 405, but were powered by the newer Hispano-Suiza 12Y-31 engines as used by the MS.406.
Pre-production started with a run of eight aircraft from EKW with engines built by Adolph Saurer AG driving a new Escher-Wyss EW-V3 fully adjustable propeller. Instruments were replaced with Swiss versions and the drum-fed MAC machine guns with locally designed and built belt-fed guns, so eliminating the wing-bulges of the French version, and avoiding the freezing problems encountered by French guns. The first of these aircraft was completed in November 1939. The pre-production models were then followed with an order for a further 74 examples, which were all delivered by 29 August 1940. In 1942, a further two were assembled with spares originally set aside for the original production run.
During 1944, surviving aircraft were modified with new cooling and hydraulic installations, and were fitted with ejector exhausts. These modifications were the same standard as the D-3801 series, making them identical with the exception of the engine installation. At the end of the war the remaining aircraft were used as trainers, until the last one was scrapped in 1954.
D.3801/3803
The Swiss continued development of the MS.412 when French involvement stopped following the June 1940 Armistice. The Dornier-Altenrhein factory completed a prototype powered with a licenced-produced HS-51 12Y engine, generating 1,060 hp (791 kW) together with the fixed radiator and revised exhausts as tested on the MS.411, in October 1940. The new type retained the armament changes and other improvements introduced on the D.3800. This series was put into production in 1941 as the D-3801 with continued deliveries until 1945 with 207 completed. Another 17 were built from spares between 1947 and 1948. Reliability of the new engine was at first extremely poor, with problems with crankshaft bearings causing several accidents. The engine problems slowed deliveries, with only 16 aircraft produced in 1942 and a single aircraft delivered in 1943. The engine problems were eventually resolved in 1944. With 1,060 hp from the Hispano-Suiza 12Y-51, the speed was boosted to 535 km/h (332 mph), roughly equivalent to the D.520 or the Hurricane. Weights were between 2,124-2,725 kg. After being retired from operational use as a fighter when the North American P-51 Mustang was acquired in 1948, the type remained in service as a trainer and target tug until 1959.The D.3802 was based on the MS.540, with a Sauer YS-2 (1,250 hp) engine. The prototype flew in the autumn of 1944. This aircraft had several shortcomings, but it was capable of 630 km/h. 12 were produced and saw limited use with Fliegerstaffel 17 and some other units.
The last development of this aircraft was the D.3803, with Sauer YS-3 (1,500 hp) engine, and modified dorsal fuselage (with an all-round visibility canopy). The D.3803 was armed with three HS-404 20 mm cannons (one in the nose, two in the wings), plus up to 200 kg bombs and rockets. Despite not having a powerful engine, the type reached 680 km/h at 7,000 m. The performance was impressive, but the last development of this 1935 fighter design had several shortcomings and was not entirely successful. Its development was halted as P-51D Mustangs became available.
Finnish variants
Mörkö-Morane
France sent 30 Morane-Saulnier to Finland, between 4 and 29 February 1940. By 1943 Finnish had received an additional 46 M.S.406s and 11 M.S.410s purchased from the Germans. By this point, the fighters were hopelessly outdated, but the Finns were so desperate for serviceable aircraft that they decided to start a modification program to bring all of their examples to a new standard.The aircraft designer Aarne Lakomaa turned the obsolete "M-S" into a first rate fighter, the Mörkö-Morane (Finnish
Finnish language
Finnish is the language spoken by the majority of the population in Finland Primarily for use by restaurant menus and by ethnic Finns outside Finland. It is one of the two official languages of Finland and an official minority language in Sweden. In Sweden, both standard Finnish and Meänkieli, a...
for Bogey or Ogre Morane), sometimes referred to as the "LaGG-Morane". Powered by captured Klimov M-105
Klimov M-105
-See also:-External links:*...
P engines (a licensed version of the HS 12Y) of 1,100 hp (820 kW) with a fully adjustable propeller, the airframe required some local strengthening and also gained a new and more aerodynamic engine cowling. These changes boosted the speed to 326 mph (525 km/h). Other changes included a new oil cooler taken from the Bf 109
Messerschmitt Bf 109
The Messerschmitt Bf 109, often called Me 109, was a German World War II fighter aircraft designed by Willy Messerschmitt and Robert Lusser during the early to mid 1930s...
, the use of four belt-fed guns like the M.S.410, and the excellent 20mm MG 151/20 cannon in the engine mounting. However, supplies of the MG 151 were limited, and several received captured 12.7mm Berezin UB
Berezin UB
Berezin UB was a 12.7 mm caliber Soviet aircraft machine gun widely used during World War II.-Development:...
S guns instead.
The first example of the modified fighter, MS-631, made its first flight on 25 January 1943, and the results were startling: the aircraft was 40 km/h (25 mph) faster than the original French version, and the service ceiling was increased from 10,000 to 12,000 m (32,800 to 39,360 ft).
Originally it was planned to convert all the 41 remaining M.S.406s and M.S.410s with the Soviet engine, but it took time, and the first front-line aircraft of this type did not reach LeLv 28 until July/August 1944. By the end of the Continuation War
Continuation War
The Continuation War was the second of two wars fought between Finland and the Soviet Union during World War II.At the time of the war, the Finnish side used the name to make clear its perceived relationship to the preceding Winter War...
in 1944, only three examples had been converted (including the original prototype). Lieutenant Lars Hattinen (an ace with six victories) scored three kills with the Mörkö-Morane. More fighters arrived from the factory, though, and the Mörkö-Moranes took part in the Lapland War
Lapland War
The Lapland War were the hostilities between Finland and Nazi Germany between September 1944 and April 1945, fought in Finland's northernmost Lapland Province. While the Finns saw this as a separate conflict much like the Continuation War, German forces considered their actions to be part of the...
as reconnaissance and ground attack aircraft. Not all the Mörkö-Morane conversions were completed before March 1945, when the entire re-engining programme was halted. After the end of the war, the total was brought to 41, which served as advanced trainers with TLeLv 14 until September 1948. In 1952 all remaining Finnish Moranes were scrapped.
Operational history
In late 1930s a war with Germany was clearly looming, and the Armée de l'Air placed an order for 1,000 airframes in March 1938. Morane-Saulnier was unable to produce anywhere near this number at their own factory, so a second line was set up at the nationalized factories of SNCAOSNCAO
Société nationale des constructions aéronautiques de l'ouest was a state-owned French aircraft manufacturer, which originated on November 16, 1936, from the merger of the factories of Breguet in Bouguenais, and Loire-Nieuport in St Nazaire and Issy-les-Moulineaux.The company had been formed as one...
at St. Nazaire converted to produce the type. Production began in late 1938, and the first production example flew on 29 January 1939. Deliveries were hampered more by the slow deliveries of the engines than by lack of airframes.
By April 1939, the production lines were delivering six aircraft a day, and when the war opened on 3 September 1939, production was at 11 a day with 535 in service. Production of the M.S.406 ended in March 1940, after the original order for 1,000 had been delivered to the Armée de l'Air, and a further 77 for foreign users (30 for Finland and 45 for Turkey
Turkey
Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
). Additional orders for Lithuania
Lithuania
Lithuania , officially the Republic of Lithuania is a country in Northern Europe, the biggest of the three Baltic states. It is situated along the southeastern shore of the Baltic Sea, whereby to the west lie Sweden and Denmark...
and Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
were canceled with the outbreak of the war.
The MS 406 equipped 16 Groupes de Chasse and three Escadrilles in France and overseas, and 12 of the Groupes saw action against the Luftwaffe. The aircraft was very manoeuvrable and could withstand heavy battle damage, but was outclassed by the Bf 109 and losses were heavy (150 aircraft lost in action and 250-300 lost through other causes).
After the armistice
Armistice with France (Second Compiègne)
The Second Armistice at Compiègne was signed at 18:50 on 22 June 1940 near Compiègne, in the department of Oise, between Nazi Germany and France...
, only one Vichy unit, GC. 1/7, was equipped with the MS. 406.
Germany took possession of a large number of M.S.406s and the later M.S.410s. The Luftwaffe
Luftwaffe
Luftwaffe is a generic German term for an air force. It is also the official name for two of the four historic German air forces, the Wehrmacht air arm founded in 1935 and disbanded in 1946; and the current Bundeswehr air arm founded in 1956....
used a number for training, and sold off others. Finland
Finland
Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...
purchased additional M.S.406s (as well as a few 406/410 hybrids) from the Germans, while others were passed off to Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
and Croatia
Croatia
Croatia , officially the Republic of Croatia , is a unitary democratic parliamentary republic in Europe at the crossroads of the Mitteleuropa, the Balkans, and the Mediterranean. Its capital and largest city is Zagreb. The country is divided into 20 counties and the city of Zagreb. Croatia covers ...
. Those still in French hands saw action in Syria
Syria-Lebanon campaign
The Syria–Lebanon campaign, also known as Operation Exporter, was the Allied invasion of Vichy French-controlled Syria and Lebanon, in June–July 1941, during World War II. Time Magazine referred to the fighting as a "mixed show" while it was taking place and the campaign remains little known, even...
against the RAF
Royal Air Force
The Royal Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Formed on 1 April 1918, it is the oldest independent air force in the world...
, and on Madagascar
Battle of Madagascar
The Battle of Madagascar was the Allied campaign to capture Vichy-French-controlled Madagascar during World War II. It began on 5 May 1942. Fighting did not cease until 6 November.-Geo-political:...
against the Fleet Air Arm
Fleet Air Arm
The Fleet Air Arm is the branch of the British Royal Navy responsible for the operation of naval aircraft. The Fleet Air Arm currently operates the AgustaWestland Merlin, Westland Sea King and Westland Lynx helicopters...
. Both Switzerland
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
and Turkey
Turkey
Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
also operated the type; the Swiss actually managing to down a number of both German and Allied aircraft, 1944-1945.
Before the Pacific campaign
Pacific War
The Pacific War, also sometimes called the Asia-Pacific War refers broadly to the parts of World War II that took place in the Pacific Ocean, its islands, and in East Asia, then called the Far East...
proper, Vichy authorities in French Indochina
French Indochina
French Indochina was part of the French colonial empire in southeast Asia. A federation of the three Vietnamese regions, Tonkin , Annam , and Cochinchina , as well as Cambodia, was formed in 1887....
were engaged in a frontier war against Thailand
French-Thai War
The Franco-Thai War was fought between Thailand and Vichy France over certain areas of French Indochina that had once belonged to Thailand....
, during 1940-41. A number of M.S.406s stationed in Indochina downed Thai fighters before the French Air Force abandoned the theatre. Some examples of the M.S.406 were captured by the Thai Air Force.
In Finnish service
The M.S.406 had a parallel career in Finland. In February 1940 the first 30 French fighters were allocated to LeLv 28, commanded by Major Jusu. These aircraft received the Finnish designations MS-301 to MS-330. They were used in combat during the Winter WarWinter War
The Winter War was a military conflict between the Soviet Union and Finland. It began with a Soviet offensive on 30 November 1939 – three months after the start of World War II and the Soviet invasion of Poland – and ended on 13 March 1940 with the Moscow Peace Treaty...
, against the USSR and carried out 259 operational sorties and shot down 16 Soviet aircraft. In modified form, the M.S.406 were later involved in the Continuation War
Continuation War
The Continuation War was the second of two wars fought between Finland and the Soviet Union during World War II.At the time of the war, the Finnish side used the name to make clear its perceived relationship to the preceding Winter War...
. Between November 1939 and 4 September 1944, Lv28 scored 118 aerial victories flying the Morane M.S.406 (the unit flew Bf 109Gs for a time, as well). The unit lost 15 aircraft.
Total Finnish kills amounted to 121. The top Morane ace in all theatres was W/O Urho Lehtovaara
Urho Lehtovaara
Urho Sakari Lehtovaara was born on 27 October 1917 in Pyhäjärvi, northern Finland and died on 5 January 1949. He was to become one of the top scoring Finnish Air Force aces and he was awarded the Mannerheim Cross on 9 July 1944....
, with 15 of his 44.5 total kills achieved in Moranes. The Finnish nicknames were Murjaani (blackmoor), a twist on its name, and Mätimaha (roe-belly) and Riippuvatsa (hanging belly) for its bulged ventral fuselage.
Operators
- Bulgarian Air ForceBulgarian Air ForceThe Bulgarian Air Force is a branch of the Military of Bulgaria, the other two being the Bulgarian Navy and Bulgarian land forces. Its mission is to guard and protect the sovereignty of Bulgarian airspace, to provide aerial support and to assist the Land Forces in case of war. The Bulgarian Air...
received 20 aircraft in 1942.
- Nationalist Chinese Air ForceRepublic of China Air ForceThe Republic of China Air Force is the aviation branch of the Republic of China Armed Forces. The ROCAF's primary mission is the defense of the airspace over and around Taiwan...
ordered 12 aircraft in 1938 and they were shipped to Haiphong, but diverted to Escadrille EC 2, which fought against the Japanese and Thai in December 1940 One or two aircraft may have reached the Chinese Air Force
Independent State of Croatia
- Zrakoplovstvo Nezavisne Države HrvatskeAir Force of the Independent State of CroatiaThe Air Force of the Independent State of Croatia, the Zrakoplovstvo Nezavisne Države Hrvatske was the national air force of the Independent State of Croatia during World War II, founded under German authority in April 1941...
received over 15 aircraft.
- IlmavoimatFinnish Air ForceThe Finnish Air Force is one of the branches of the Finnish Defence Forces. Its peacetime tasks are airspace surveillance, identification flights, and production of readiness formations for wartime conditions...
received 76 M.S.406 and 11 M.S.410
- Armée de l'Air
Vichy FranceVichy France
Vichy France, Vichy Regime, or Vichy Government, are common terms used to describe the government of France that collaborated with the Axis powers from July 1940 to August 1944. This government succeeded the Third Republic and preceded the Provisional Government of the French Republic...
Germany
- LuftwaffeLuftwaffeLuftwaffe is a generic German term for an air force. It is also the official name for two of the four historic German air forces, the Wehrmacht air arm founded in 1935 and disbanded in 1946; and the current Bundeswehr air arm founded in 1956....
operated captured aircraft.
Italy
- Regia AeronauticaRegia AeronauticaThe Italian Royal Air Force was the name of the air force of the Kingdom of Italy. It was established as a service independent of the Royal Italian Army from 1923 until 1946...
- Lithuanian Air Force ordered 13 Moranes, but none were delivered.
- Polish Air ForcePolish Air ForceThe Polish Air Force is the military Air Force wing of the Polish Armed Forces. Until July 2004 it was officially known as Wojska Lotnicze i Obrony Powietrznej...
ordered 160 aircraft, but none were delivered, due to the fall of Poland. - Polish Air Force in exile in FrancePolish Air Forces in France and Great BritainThe Polish Air Forces was a name of Polish Air Forces formed in France and the United Kingdom during World War II. The core of the Polish air units fighting alongside the allies were experienced veterans of Invasion of Poland of 1939 and they contributed to Allied victory in the Battle of Britain...
operated at least 91 aircraft in several training and combat units:- Groupe de Chasse de Varsovie
- Section no.1 Łaszkiewicz GC III/2
- Section no.2 Pentz GC II/6
- Section no.3 Sulerzycki GC III/6
- Section no.4 Bursztyn GC III/1
- Section no.5 Brzeziński GC I/2
- Section no.6 Goettel GC II/7
- Jasionowski Koolhoven Flight
- DAT section Krasnodębski GC I/55 based at ChâteaudunChâteaudunChâteaudun is a commune in the Eure-et-Loir department in northern France. It is a sub-prefecture of Eure-et-Loir.-Geography:Châteaudun is located about 45 km northwest of Orléans, and about 50 km south-southwest of Chartres, on the river Loir, a tributary of the...
and ÉtampesÉtampesÉtampes is a commune in the metropolitan area of Paris, France. It is located south-southwest from the center of Paris . Étampes is a sub-prefecture of the Essonne department.... - DAT section Skiba GC I/55
- DAT section Kuzian based at NantesNantesNantes is a city in western France, located on the Loire River, from the Atlantic coast. The city is the 6th largest in France, while its metropolitan area ranks 8th with over 800,000 inhabitants....
- DAT section Opulski based at RomorantinRomorantinRomorantin is a traditional French variety of white wine grape, that is a sibling of Chardonnay. Once quite widely grown in the Loire, it has now only seen in the Cour-Cheverny AOC. It produces intense, minerally wines somewhat reminiscent of Chablis....
- DAT section Krasnodębski based at Toulouse-FrancazalToulouseToulouse is a city in the Haute-Garonne department in southwestern FranceIt lies on the banks of the River Garonne, 590 km away from Paris and half-way between the Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea...
- Centre d'Instruction d'Aviation de Chasse at Montpellier
- Ecole de Pilotage No 1 (Chasse) at Etampes
- Ecole de Pilotage at Avord
- Centre d'Instruction at Tours
- Depot d'Instruction de l'Aviation Polonaise at Lyon-Bron
- Montpellier Flight
- Swiss Air ForceSwiss Air ForceThe Swiss Air Force is the air component of the Swiss Armed Forces, established on July 31, 1914, as part of the Army and as of January 1966 an independent service.In peacetime, Dübendorf is the operational Air Force HQ...
- Turkish Air ForceTurkish Air ForceThe Turkish Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the Turkish Armed Forces. It ranks 3rd in NATO in terms of fleet size behind the USAF and Royal Air Force with a current inventory of 798 aircraft .-Initial stages:...
received 45 Moranes. At least 30 of them were originally intended for shipment to Poland and had Polish stencilling.
- Royal Thai Air ForceRoyal Thai Air ForceThe Royal Thai Air Force or RTAF is the air force of the Kingdom of Thailand. Since its establishment in 1913, as one of the earliest air forces of Asia, the Royal Thai Air Force had engaged in many major and minor battles. During the Vietnam war era, the air force has been developed with USAF-aid...
operated several captured aircraft.
Kingdom of Yugoslavia
- Royal Yugoslav Air Force ordered 25 aircraft, but the fall of France precluded their delivery
Specifications (M.S.406)