Morane Saulnier MS-410 Fighter 1/72 Scale Plastic Model Kit RS Models 92124

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.

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.
M.S.410

While the M.S.406 was entering squadron service in 1939, an upgrade series was initiated with the aim of improving the design. The result was the M.S.410, which included the adoption of a stronger wing, simpler fixed radiator in place of the earlier retractable design, an arrangement of four belt-fed MAC guns in place of the earlier pair of drum-fed weapons, and the fitting of exhaust ejectors for additional thrust. The added thrust boosted the top speed to 509 km/h (316 mph; 275 kn) at 4,000 m (13,000 ft), resulting in an improvement of about 40 km/h (25 mph; 22 kn) over the M.S.406 at the same height. Production of the M.S.410 had only just started in May 1940, when the German attack resulted in the conversion programme being stopped, by which point only five examples of the type had been completed. Production was allowed to continue under German supervision, converting earlier 406s to the 410 standard, but many of these aircraft received only the new wings. Altogether, a total of 74 planes were modified.