To speed up the development and avoid wasting resources, the RLM officials asked for a smaller scale flying model to be built first.
How it turned out the FG 227’s overall performance was disappointing and it didn’t play any major role in the Bv 238 development.
In contrast the Belgian-built aircraft were fitted with two 13·2mm FN guns per wing. Only one of the Belgian-built examples was delivered before Belgium fell, however, and was allocated to the test centre at Evere, so it is unlikely it saw action.
The second image shows a Mitrailleuse d’Avion Browning FN Calibre 13,2mm. This was a refinement of the American Browning 0·5in/12·7mm-calibre AN/M2 machine-gun, improvements being its lighter weight and increased rate of fire. The Belgian company devised an anti-aircraft high-explosive shell for it, making it in essence a machine-gun/cannon hybrid.
A link with more.
In the background the D-AURE "Bayern" a Ju 90, the largest passenger aircraft in Germany at the time for 40 passengers. On the right the G-ADUH "Dryad" a de Havilland DH86 from Imperial Airways.
The building as it appears recently at this link.
https://www.luftfahrtarchiv-koeln.de/Butzweilerhof_1936_Architektur_Empfangshalle.htm
The Bundesarchiv caption says the plane is being refueled. This is wrong. What is happening is that the oil tank is being filled/topped up. Two facts prove this. Firstly the bowser/trailer/tanker is far too small to be used for refueling. Secondly, and more importantly the location where the fluid is being put into the plane is where the oil tank is.
This is confirmed by image two, the schematic diagram. Number 4 in the diagram is listed as oiltank. And it is where the filler hose in the image is inserted into the plane in the picture.
Plenty more images at the Destinations Journey entry on this plane. The Bréguet 731 are the ones with a different nose design.
The restored Mosquito flew in 2014, and the Tempest is being restored to flight. Though sadly and understandably not with the original Centaurus engine.
Of course they have more than just those two. But those two are relevant to this sub. The facility is a working hangar as well as a museum. The building is evocative of a cathedral to aviation.
During the interwar period, France prepared for a static future conflict by building the Maginot Line, creating a clear need for these observation balloons. But like many militaries they were sadly preparing for the last war. This trait with tragic and deadly consequences is sadly still with us to this day!
The emerged battlefield now featured a dense network of newly built power and telephone lines. Moving standard inflated balloons across these wires was a laborious, dangerous chore. It required detaching the balloon from its winch so a 40-man ground crew could manually guide it over obstacles using double ropes.
To solve this mobility issue, Zodiac motorized the balloons in 1934, creating the MBZ.3.
Technical Specifications
Envelope Size: 30m long, 8m diameter, holding 1,000 m³ of hydrogen.
Engine: 70hp Salmson with a fixed-pitch propeller.
Fuselage: Two-seater tandem observation nacelle.
Controls: Joystick-controlled elevator wing, steering rudder bar, and aerostatic controls.
Ballast & Landing: 70-liter rapid-empty water ballast and a 50m landing rope for ground crews.
Performance: 60 km/h top speed; 50 km/h cruise speed.
Altitude Ceiling: Limited to 200–300 meters during transit to prevent hydrogen loss via safety valves.
Ultimately, the MBZ.3 was a complex technological solution designed entirely to bypass an inadvertent obstacle of modern progress: overhead wires.
Following initial tests by experienced airship pilot Debroutelle, the French Navy established a three-month pilot training program at its Rochefort school in 1935. The motorized balloons entered active military service shortly after.
When World War II began, the mobile battlefield quickly exposed the MBZ.3 as a highly vulnerable target, prompting commands to withdraw them to safer rear areas. However, this deployment change came too late for Sous-Lieutenant Yvan Thiriet, who was killed when a German Me-109 shot down his MBZ.3 on November 10, 1939. A lasting memorial was constructed to honor his sacrifice.
https://www.aerosteles.net/stelefr-appenwihr-thiriet
Corporate Legacy
The balloon's manufacturer, Zodiac, shares a direct lineage with the famous modern inflatable boat brand. Throughout its extensive aerospace and engineering history, the company produced: Motorized observation balloons. Inflatable boats and helicopter pontoons. Aviation parachutes and commercial airliner escape slides. Though recently acquired and folded into the French aerospace corporation Safran, the historic Zodiac name still persists today.
There is lots more to the story. But I expect interest is quite low.
His story is in two places. With very slight variations.
Here are pages 6 through 12 that I scanned from AFV G2 Volume 6 Number 6. January-February 1979.
The article is Royal Marine Tanks at Normandy by J.D. Ladd.
Just window shopping for this year.
So I am in Chilliwack and I am (increasingly) disabled. Looking for someone to cut the grass. Weed eat around the edges and blow away any clippings. Not that big a job. It used to take me all of an hour to do that. But now with arthritis taking me apart it takes me quite a bit of time with regular agony sit down breaks.
So I am looking for recommendations for next year. I plan on managing for the remainder of this year. Anyone able to offer some suggestions please?
Thank you.
Built under license by National Steel Car. Taken on strength on 21 November 1939. Converted to a target tug on 1 July 1941. On 14 January 1943 she sustained category C damage when strong winds pushed her off a taxiway and she clipped a wing. Struck off 17 April 1944.
Wiki on the plane type here.
The plane also makes an appearance in this 1944 Japanese film ... Colonel Tateo Katō's Flying Squadron - Kato Hayabusa Sento Tai
