My understanding is that, much like the Spit, this French fighter made a belated appearance and couldn’t make much of an impact against the German advance in 1940 because of low numbers.
Indeed, I gather that its main hour of glory was actually for the Vichy government against allied aircraft.
Are there any thoughts about how this aircraft might have fared had history taken a different turn and the French had managed to maintain a viable military effort against Germany in WWII?
By: XN923 - 16th January 2008 at 09:26
The Free French 520s were relegated to training and then replaced by the Aircobra…doesn’t say a whole lot for it.
Isn’t this more to do with serviceability and spares availability? The Free French didn’t have access to D.520 production until 1944 when, I understand, some squadrons began to use examples ‘liberated’ from Vichy and German sources (which had kept the aircraft in production throughout the war, albeit as a fighter trainer in the latter case).
Without the kind of development that the Spitfire and Bf109 were subject to between 1940 and 1945, it’s difficult to say how the D.520 would have held up. It does seem though that the D.520 was on a par with the Spitfire MkI and Bf109E at the time it met the latter in combat.
By: CSheppardholedi - 15th January 2008 at 00:08
If the 520 had been available is number, with well trained crew AND used modern tactics, they could have had a major impact on slowing the invasion. But then again, the French and English tanks were better than the German tanks, the French/English Forces outnumbered the German forces, but their tactics were, at best, outdated.
The tactics of the Blitzkrieg was too new to quickly retrain the ENTIRE force to work together, and while more and better aircraft would have perhaps blunted the spear, the rest of the services would also have needed newer and better equipment and most of all NEW TACTICS. How many times can one invade through the Arden?
The Free French 520s were relegated to training and then replaced by the Aircobra…doesn’t say a whole lot for it.
By: avion ancien - 14th January 2008 at 19:53
A splendid aeroplane – but then, I’m biased!
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January 14, 2008 at 3:24 pm