TFS Update June 12, 2017: D.520

[69thSpiritus]

A little info on the D520 and some WiP shots of the cockpit work which is quickly nearing completion.

Armament:
- 4 wing mounted MAC 1934 M39 7.5 mm,650 rounds per gun
- 1 nose mounted hs 404 20mm cannon 1 60 round drum

The D520 was by far the best mass product french fighter in May/June 1940.

After many post production improvements, it reached a top level speed of 540 KM/H.

Having a cleaner aerodynamic than the Bf-109 E, it bleeds less energy in turns, and has a real advantage in high speed maneuvers. However, in low speed turning dogfights, the Emil holds the turns longer thanks to its leading edge slats.

During battle of France, D520's are credited with 130 aircraft kills (Luftwaffe and Regia aeronautica), for the loss of 54.
The German ace Werner Molders was shot down by a D520 piloted by sous lieutenant René Pomier Layrargues on June 5, 1940.

During the Syria Lebanon campaign, most of the Vichy air force fighters where D520. In aerial combat, D520's are credited with 27 British/Australian aircraft shot down for the loss of 11 Vichy D520's.

The best ace on D520 was Pierre Le Gloan, on June 15, 1940, he shot down 4 Italian CR42's and a BR 20 on a single sortie.

 

 

Edited June 12, 2017 by 69thSpiritus_Mortem

[Danziger]

Very nice! I can't wait to get in this one!

[Beazil]

I am super stoked to get to fly this bird. And it flew for both sides in the conflict. Love it!

[I/JG2_Saladin]

Wonderful news ! Can't wait to meet 109's over Northern France in a desperate fight during Fall of France. I sow this aircraft at Le Bourget Museum and it looks write so it must flight write.

[ZachariasX]

it looks write so it must flight write.

 

The 520 is perhaps *the* example of an aircraft who's flight caracteristics are not up to its looks. Like an "anti-Mosquito".

 

It is beautiful. But it is a true handful to fly and to handle on the ground. It was also underpowered with the Hispano-Suiza 12Y, at least compared to the competition and given that one had 36 litres of displacement compared to the 27 litres of the Merlin. Paraphrasing Eric Brown, it was one of those planes that made you happy once you could leave the cockpit (alive) after a flight.

 

So I'd be expecting something like our dear Mig3, but retaining its charms in ground handling in flight as well.

[jeanba]

The 520 is perhaps *the* example of an aircraft who's flight caracteristics are not up to its looks. Like an "anti-Mosquito".

 

It is beautiful. But it is a true handful to fly and to handle on the ground. It was also underpowered with the Hispano-Suiza 12Y, at least compared to the competition and given that one had 36 litres of displacement compared to the 27 litres of the Merlin. Paraphrasing Eric Brown, it was one of those planes that made you happy once you could leave the cockpit (alive) after a flight.

 

So I'd be expecting something like our dear Mig3, but retaining its charms in ground handling in flight as well.

Brown's plane was completly worn out so, as usual with war prize, his comments should be taken with a pince of salt.

Nonetheless, it had a "surprising" stall behavior and its handling was good ...  once you got used to it

German report said that either pilots loved it or hated it, but nothing in the middle (it was used as a training aircraft by the Luftwaffe)

The engine was less powerfull but the compressor was very good so at altitude, the performances were caught up.

So it was not up to the 109's level, but in 1940, it was somewhere between Hurricane I and 109E

 

It should also be noted that on the net, you mainly find the performances of the "number 2" aircraft which was not representative of the production planes (heating problems were corrected, aerodynamics imporved ...).

Note that on the net, you also find some report on the Ms406 with fairly high performance ; actually, it's a reengined plane with a 1000 hp engine

Edited June 13, 2017 by jeanba

[ZachariasX]

Brown's plane was completly worn out so, as usual with war prize, his comments should be taken with a pince of salt.

Nonetheless, it had a "surprising" stall behavior and its handling was good ... once you got used to it

German report said that either pilots loved it or hated it, but nothing in the middle (it was used as a training aircraft by the Luftwaffe)

The engine was less powerfull but the compressor was very good so at altitude, the performances were caught up.

So it was not up to the 109's level, but in 1940, it was somewhere between Hurricane I and 109E

 

It should also be noted that on the net, you mainly find the performances of the "number 2" aircraft which was not representative of the production planes (heating problems were corrected, aerodynamics imporved ...).

Note that on the net, you also find some report on the Ms406 with fairly high performance ; actually, it's a reengined plane with a 1000 hp engine

I wish I had good reports other than Browns on the 520. You have good reports? Would be interesting.

 

War prize or not, flight characteristics (not performance) would remain the same until it would fall apart. And the last you want is an aircraft that somehow likes to kill its pilot. Having an aircraft that requires a lot of attention to fly in good weather is a nightmare in lesser conditions. If you are really good, you might get along with its peculiarities (same as take off and landing our in game Mig3, and some peeps actually seem to like this crate).

 

The 406 is just as ugly as it sounds. Swiss Air Force had it along the P-51 and for for even the most casual observer the 406 looked as ugly as it sounded in flight compared to the Mustang. No pilot that could help it would take the 406 if he could have a P-51. Still, it was a very reliable crate that served well and for a long time.

Edited June 13, 2017 by ZachariasX

[jeanba]

From the Docavia, plane sample 13 :

 

I have more, but I need to dig

 

As to handling, as I said, it was a "love or hate" affair

Brown was a hater, but in terms of manuevrability, french pilots fared well against Hurricanes or 109 and its accident ratio was not very bad

 

[I/JG2_Saladin]

The D520 was more then a match for the 109 E3 especially at hi altitude. And this is a document produced by the Armée de l'air (French air force) in 1940 comparing the best french bird to the 109 E3 captured during the funny war. Sorry its in french but "Google is your friend"

 

https://1drv.ms/b/s!AutwPlOKpNiE8XRz-khF9eqK0ceP

 

The engine of the D520 the HS 12Y45 was manufactured in USSR and powered on of the best Fighters of the War  the Yak-3 ! 

Edited June 14, 2017 by I/JG2_Saladin

[jeanba]

 

 

The engine of the D520 the HS 12Y45 was manufactured in USSR and powered on of the best Fighters of the War  the Yak-3 ! 

It is more complex than this : the Soviet bought the licence of the HS and modified it quite a lot.

It nonetheless gives an idea of how the HS would have evolved if France had not fallen

[ZachariasX]

The D520 was more then a match for the 109 E3 especially at hi altitude. And this is a document produced by the Armée de l'air (French air force) in 1940 comparing the best french bird to the 109 E3 captured during the funny war. Sorry its in french but "Google is your friend"

 

https://1drv.ms/b/s!AutwPlOKpNiE8XRz-khF9eqK0ceP

 

The engine of the D520 the HS 12Y45 was manufactured in USSR and powered on of the best Fighters of the War  the Yak-3 ! 

Merci beaucoup!

[Sutts]

Thanks for the update, really looking forward to your next releases.

[sallee]

If you can look that stylish as you hit the ground, nothing else matters. She's beautiful.

[Buzzsaw]

The Dewoitine D.520 was a very clean design, and had a lot of potential.

 

In May of 1940 it was not quite as good an aircraft as the Spitfire, but was better than the Hurricane.

 

The lack of performance of the early models was due to 87 octane fuel being used in the 12Y45 engine and the early development of the supercharger... if France had remained in the war, they would have received US 100 grade and the engine would have been easily capable of over 1200 PS by mid to late 1940.  As it was, it developed 935 PS in the 12Y45.

 

Development continued with the limited ability and budget of the Vichy French, and the upgraded 12Y49 engine was an improvement, even on 87 octane... it had a Full Throttle Height of 5200 meters, higher than the 4900 meters of the 109E with the DB601N engine.

 

As a basic platform, the aircraft's design was one which allowed for excellent maneuver at higher speeds...  which was the trend for Fighter design... like the FW190A.  If normal development had continued, there would have been a strong chance the aircraft could repeat the history of the Spad series in WWI.... a very fast, good climbing fighter with decent weapons, also equipped with a Hispano engine.  Think of the early Spad 7's... 150 hp and a single LMG.... later versions had 235 hp and two LMG's... a few even reached 300 hp.

 

Like the Spad, the D.520 was known for having a bit of a sharp stall, and a high landing speed... but these were not serious enough to concern pilots... less of an issue than the well known problems the 109 series had with its landing accident rate.

 

A tribute to the D.520, the Italians were still using it in early 1943, to attack US B-17 formations flying over Sicily and the boot of Italy.

Edited June 15, 2017 by Buzzsaw