This month the very latest Aircraft of the Aces title came out. It focuses on the fliers of the Morane-Saulnier MS.406, which was primarily used by the French during The Phoney War and the Battle of France, but then found a new lease of life with the Finns and the Swiss.


One thing that immediately strikes you is just how difficult a job the French pilots had during the Battle of France.


The MS.406 wasn't exactly a bad plane: it was maneuvrable and rugged. But performance-wise it wasn't in the same league as the Bf109E, which was its primary adversary at this time.


This makes it all the more remarkble that any of its pilots were able to record any sort of success at all with the type.


I strongly recommend this book, it looks at some of the hardest-pressed airmen in the history of aerial combat. Here's a little treat that I dug out - some original footage of the Morane-Saulnier MS.406 in action.


You don't have to speak French to enjoy it - although it would help! Can anyone give me a rough translation of the narration?