what is it?
The Bloch MB.170 and its derivatives were French reconnaissance bombers designed and built shortly before the Second World War. They were the best aircraft of this type available to the Armée de l'Air at the outbreak of the war, with speed, altitude and manoeuvrability that allowed them to evade interception by the German fighters. Although the aircraft could have been in service by 1937, debate over what role to give the aircraft delayed deliveries until 1940.
How to recognise it: 2 piston engines with propellers · 17.9 m wingspan
base stats
Bars compare against all aircraft: 3,500 km/h, 20,000 km, 850 seats; size and number built on a log scale up to 640 t (An-225) and 45,000 built (Cessna 172).
fun facts
- First flew 87 years ago, in 1939.
- Top speed is 4.1× a car on the Dutch motorway (130 km/h).
- Wingspan of 17.9 m: about 4 cars parked nose to tail.
- Range of 1,650 km: 9× Amsterdam to Brussels.
- Can fly 1.2× higher than Mount Everest (8,849 m).
piston: A car-like piston engine turning a propeller: simple and cheap, the classic small plane.
spec sheet
- first flight
- 1939-07
- introduced
- 1940
- retired
- 1950
- status
- retired
- number built
- 163
- role
- reconnaissance bomber
- makers
- Sud-Ouest, Bloch
- engines
- 2× Gnome-Rhône 14N
- crew
- 3
- length
- 12.2 m
- wingspan
- 17.9 m
- height
- 3.6 m
- max take-off weight
- 7,175 kg
- top speed
- 530 km/h
- cruise speed
- 460 km/h
- range
- 1,650 km
- ceiling
- 11,000 m
Specs are for the version in the Wikipedia article's specification section. Blank means the sources don't say.
Sources: Wikidata Q884618, Wikipedia: Bloch MB.170 (CC BY-SA 4.0).Updated 2026-10-24.