Dora Wings 1/48 Morane-Saulnier MS.406C1

The Morane-Saulnier M.S.406 is a French fighter aircraft developed and manufactured by Morane-Saulnier starting in 1938. It was France's most numerous fighter during the Second World War and one of only two French designs to exceed 1,000 in number. At the beginning of the war, it was one of only two French-built aircraft capable of 400 km/h (250 mph) – the other being the Potez 630.

In response to a requirement for a fighter issued by the French Air Force in 1934, Morane-Saulnier built a prototype, designated MS.405, of mixed materials. This had the distinction of being the company's first low-wing monoplane, as well as the first to feature an enclosed cockpit, and the first design with a retracting undercarriage. The entry to service of the M.S.406 to the French Air Force in early 1939 represented the first modern fighter aircraft to be adopted by the service. Although a sturdy and highly manoeuvrable fighter aircraft, it was considered underpowered and weakly armed when compared to its contemporaries and the M.S.406 was outperformed by the Messerschmitt Bf 109E during the Battle of France.

The type was capable of holding its own during the so-called Phoney War from September 1939 to 10 May 1940. Upon the invasion of France in May 1940, approximately 400 Moranes were lost. Out of these, around 150 were lost to enemy fighters and ground fire, while another 100 aircraft were destroyed on the ground during enemy air raids; the remainder were deliberately destroyed by French military personnel to prevent the fighters from falling into German hands. French M.S.406 squadrons had achieved 191 confirmed victories, along with another 83 probable victories. Limited production of the type continued in France for sometime after the Armistice of 22 June 1940 under German supervision.

I have bought very few Dora Wings kits and built none, so I cannot really comment on how well the build, but others have had little to no trouble with them so I have to assume this one will be the same. There are a lot of olive green sprues and I was surprised by how thick the fuselage halves are. Sprue gates are a bit larger than some, but nothing out of the ordinary. The kit does rely on photo etch for the small cockpit details including the instrument panels and the seat harness. However, it appears that for at least the panels, you don't have to use the p.e. as alternate all plastic ones are provided. Interestingly, the p.e. panels have no instrument details and you much rely on decals to provide that. The main panel is also made of three sections that you must join together.

In fact, the first three pages of the instructions are all on assembling the various interior bits that include some framework and detail parts for the interior side panels. This is also true of the area behind the pilot. There are some small panels on the fuselage that have to be added and the exhaust, must be installed on the inside of the nose section. Once all the interior bits are together, the fuselage halves are then joined.

Then one moves onto the fin and rudder. Interestingly, the lower, forward quarter of the rudder is a separate insert. I guess this prevents a too thick piece that would probably create a sink area. After adding the upper cowing piece, one moves on to the wings. Standard stuff with separate gear wells and a one piece lower wing with upper halves. Ailerons are separate items. This is also true of the elevators. Once all the flight surfaces are attached, the clear bits are next. A separate windscreen, canopy, and rear section are provided. Not sure if the canopy is thin enough to slide back or not.

Next up, the lower radiator assembly is done. Some of the p.e. is used here. One is offered two different prop spinner combos, but no indication of which is used with which markings option, but it is not difficult to figure out as one has a canon barrel sticking out and the other does not. Last parts are the landing gear, tail skid, antennas and the usual myriad of bits that are easily broken off during construction.

Instructions are well done and provide multiple paint options. The four markings options are all from April-June 1940. One is the box art plane from the Fighter Training Flight. Others are the personal aircraft of General Pinsard, and unlike the other options, this one is a solit upp color. The other two are line aircraft from GC2 and GC6. Each of the three standard colors planes have a different camo pattern that is fairly complex. The decal sheet is very nicely done and if none of the schemes grabs you, there are aftermarket.

It is nice to see this one released. Previously in this scale we have had a fairly horrible Hobbycraft offering and a much nicer, but more difficult to build one from Classic Airframes. Hopefully this one will pay off for Dora Wings as it really looks like it will make into a nice model.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Morane-Saulnier_M.S.406

June 2024

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