- Yes
- No
caid’s suggestion #184
I would like to suggest an interesting Swiss fighter of the Early WW2. the Morane Saulnier MS 406H
The Morane Saulnier MS 406H was the original plane on which the D.3800 was based. the plane built by Morane Saulnier was shipped to Switzerland in 1938. two of those planes were built for the Swiss airforce who immediately produced the plane in a fairly large numbers. but the MS.406H was different than the D.3800. the main difference was the armament which was still the French armament. a normalization was initiated in 1940 but this normalization required a lot of work. for example, replacing the French 20mm to install the Swiss 20mm with the larger magazine required to change the engine support, cooling system, fuel link, gun control line. the plane also had a lot of other things to change to bring it to the D.3800 standard. the plane was carrying less ammunition but had essentially the same performance. the two planes were named J-1 and J-2 respectively and were used as the front fighter just like the D.3800. a preseries of 9 planes was also built in Switzerland but those were closer to the D.3800 standard.
there is a small external difference between the MS.406 and MS.406H. the most notable is the position of the antenna over the canopy instead of behind it. there is also some internal difference but essentially the planes are almost identical.
the difference between the MS 406H and D.3800 is more noticeable. the armament is completely different. the D.3800 carries a different machine gun and cannon and the cannon has more ammo. The antenna was also move in front of the cockpit and there are a dozen other smaller differences which was later retrofitted to the MS 406H
Firepower
While the picture does not show it clearly, it appears the 20mm Hub cannon was indeed there. the documents mention the need to change a lot of part to install the Swiss armament to replace the original armament. which implies the French 20mm HS 404 was indeed there. the picture does not show the propeller hup very well which makes it unclear if there is a hole of the 20mm or not. what is certain the 7.5mm MAC 34 was installed, one in each wing. the 20mm is either the HS.9 or HS.404 which are very similar in performance. the 20mm carry 60 rounds while the 7,5mm carry 500 rounds each.
flight performance
The plane was renowned for its maneuverability. It would be capable of dogfighting any fighter it encounters. the Hispano-Suiza HS 31 12Y providing 860 hp. this allows the plane to reach 486 km/h at 5000m (the highest speed) and 439 at sea level. the climbing speed is varied but will have an early rate of about 13 m/sec. the ceiling is 9.850 m which is right for the needs of this plane and the range is 900 km. the plane weighs 1,893 kg empty and 2.470 kg full. the plane will have a better speed and climbing than the French MS.410 while retaining the same maneuverability
Survivability
the aircraft is built of mixed material. most of it is made of metal but also include other material such as wood. it makes it have an average survivability against small armament. the plane however has no armour except for a ballistic glass behind the pilot’s head. the pilot sits in the middle of the plane and will have the average survivability. overall, it would perform just as well as the French MS.406.
Sources
- https://www.avionslegendaires.net/avion-militaire/ekw-kw-d-3800/
- Morane-Saulnier MS.406, J-1, Swiss AF | Aircraft of World War II - WW2Aircraft.net Forums
- Combat aircraft. Morane-Saulnier: are they as good as they say?
- Morane-Saulnier MS.406 C.1 : Morane-Saulnier
- Morane-Saulnier M.S.406 - Wikipedia
