Breguet Br 693 by Azur

1/72 scale
Kit No. A053
Cost: $28.00
Decals: Four versions by Aviprint – All Armee de l’Air
Comments: Engraved panel lines, photo etch details, resin parts for engine faces and rear machine gun, internal bomb bay with bombs

History

The Bréguet 690 and its derivatives were a series of light twin-engine ground-attack aircraft operated by the French Air Force in World War II. The Breguet 690 was initially designed in response to a 1934 French Air Ministry specification calling for a twin-engined three-seat fighter. Several manufacturers submitted proposals, and the first to go into production was the Potez 630, in part because the design was ready for flight testing a full two years before the Breguet 690 (the Potez 630’s maiden flight was on April 25, 1936).

The Breguet proposal had been heavier and more powerful than the other submissions, its designers believing it to be a more versatile, multi-role aeroplane, but although design work began in 1935, around the same time as the Potez, the Breguet concept took longer to develop, at last taking flight on March 23, 1938. When it finally flew, it was found to have a performance superior to that of the Potez 630, and Breguet received a contract to supply 100 aircraft, configured as light attack bombers.

The Bréguet 690 was intended to be easy to maintain, forgiving to fly, and capable of 480 km/h (300 mph) at 4,000 m (13,120 ft). The type’s sturdy construction was frequently demonstrated and the armament was effective. Refinements began almost immediately. The first fruit of these efforts was the Breguet 691, a clean-looking cantilever mid-wing monoplane of all-metal construction, with two wing-mounted engines and a short fuselage nose reminiscent of the Bristol Beaufighter.  Aft of the wing, however, the fuselage tapered to a tailplane with twin endplate fins and rudders.

Conversion from Bre.690 to Bre.691 was relatively simple, the main change being deletion of the navigator’s position to provide a small bomb bay. Experience with the Bre.691 revealed that the Hispano-Suiza powerplants were unreliable, and the Bre.693.01 was introduced with two Gnome-Rhone 14M-6/7 engines after only 78 Bre.691s had been built. The next version and the subject of this kit was the Breguet 693, the most numerous of the lot with 234 aircraft built. Later versions had two extra rearward firing 7.5mm machine-guns, one installed in the tail of each engine nacelle, to improve self-defence.

The design and operational use of the Breguet 693 was shaped by the Armée de l’Air doctrine of the time, which by the late 1930’s concluded that low-altitude level-bombing was more suitable than dive-bombing for engaging enemy armor and artillery over the battlefield. The chosen tactic consisted in a nap-of-the-earth approach at maximum speed, followed by a strafing run or the delivery of time-delayed bombs directly over the target. French commanders widely considered this tactic as safe for the attackers, as the anti-aircraft weapons then in service were deemed inefficient.

The French Army was not using rapid firing anti-aircraft cannon at the time (the 25mm Hotchkiss and 20mm Oerlikon cannon were issued only later), relying instead on rifle-calibre machine guns and slow-firing 75 mm (2.95 in) guns. Unfortunately for the French, the Germans were equipped with a fair number of highly effective 20mm anti-aircraft guns as well as the devastating 88mm anti-aircraft cannon at the time of their invasion of France and the Low Countries in May 1940. Between them, these weapons could inflict punishment on both high- and low-altitude air attacks.

Operational History

When they were eventually delivered to front-line units, the little Bréguets were popular with their crews, although the unreliable engines of the Bre 691 affected aircraft availability rates, and undercarriage failures proved especially troublesome. These problems triggered accelerated development of the Breguet 693, but not until March 1940 were the first combat-worthy Bre. 693’s delivered, and there were now five squadrons to equip: GBA I/51, GBA II/51, GBA I/54, GBA II/54, and GBA II/35 (GBA stood for Groupe de bombardement d’assaut – assault bomber squadron), with a theoretical complement of 13 aircraft each.

Due to the late delivery, crews were still working up their new machines and developing tactics when the Germans attacked on May 10, 1940. On May 12th, GBAs I/54 and II/54 performed the Bréguet’s first operational sorties, against German motorized columns in the Maastricht-Tongeren-Bilsen area. German anti-aircraft fire was so devastating that only eight of the eighteen Bre.693s returned.

The disastrous results of this first engagement forced French commanders to reconsider their tactics. Until May 15th, GBA crews performed shallow dive attacks from higher altitude, which resulted in reduced losses, but the attacks were often ineffective because the Bréguet lacked a bombsight, and shallow dive approaches increased its vulnerability to German fighters. On subsequent missions, the GBAs re-introduced low-level attacks, but with smaller formations.

As the position of the French and Allied armies grew steadily more desperate, the attacking French bombers were engaged daily, and losses to anti-aircraft fire and German fighters inevitably mounted.  In late June 1940, the Armée de l’Air tried to evacuate its modern aircraft to North Africa, out of German reach, from where many hoped to continue the fight. However, the remaining short-ranged Bréguets, unable to cross the Mediterranean, were forced to stay behind. Unlike other modern French types, the Bréguet 690 family saw its combat career end with the Armistice.

The Kit

Azur’s Breguet Br 693 is injection molded in grey plastic and consists of 88 plastic parts, three resin parts for the engine and rear machine gun, and 26 photo etch parts for seat straps for the cockpit and rear gunner’s compartment, as well as a series of bomb fins. The kit bears engraved panel lines and recessed rivet detail. The cockpit is well appointed with raised detail on the main and side instrument panels, a rear bulkhead, and separately mounted seat (for which PE seat straps are provided), control yoke and rudder pedals. There is an internal bomb bay featuring six bombs, three to be mounted on each of two bomb racks, with PE parts for all bomb fins.

Beyond the bomb bay is a separate rear gunner’s compartment, augmented by internal structural ribbing molded onto the fuselage interior as well as what appears to be radio equipment to be cemented to the internal sidewall of the compartment, along with a series of individually mounted drum magazines for the rear machine gun, and a stool with separately mounted PE seat straps. What is curious is that although a machine gun is provided, the instructions indicate that modelers should not try to mount it in the gunner’s compartment until after the fuselage is sealed up — a course of action which I do NOT recommend.

Armorers load a Breguet 693 with bombs. Note the bomb bay doors, which appear to be metal framed glass or Plexiglas.

The kit features multiple fuselage windows which will require skilled masking at the painting stage. The engine nacelles and even the engine cowlings are presented in two halves, so there will definitely be some seam hiding required for the latter parts, although this can be mitigated by using a good liquid cement such as Tamiya Extra Thin Cemnet that will truly fuse the parts together. Another curiosity is that the part for the bomb bay doors is clear, however, upon trolling the internet for reference photos, this depiction is accurate. For some reason, the bomb bay doors were actually what appear to be framed Plexiglas (or whatever the French used as an equivalent).

Markings

Decals are provided for four versions, all of which bear a paint scheme of Khaki, Dark Brown and Dark Grey-Blue over Sky Grey-Blue.

The first version is Breguet 693AB.2 No. 1013, 3 Escadrille GBA II/54. Pilot S/C Thannberg, gunner S/C Bade, based at Chartres, June 1940. The second version is Breguet 693AB.2 No. 59, 4 Escadrille GBA II/51, based at Etampes, May 1940. Pilot Capitaine Nicot (Commander of 4 Escadrille GBAII/51) and gunner Adj. Izern. This aircraft made a successful emergency landing at Bouardu (date unknown) after a clash with six Messerschmitt Bf 109’s; the crew escaped but the aircraft had to be abandoned. They had a near identical incident with a second aircraft on June 14, 1940 with Breguet 693AB.2 No. 81, an action in which Adj. Izern was wounded.

A Breguet 693 which has crash landed in France after being damaged in combat. Regrettably, this was a common sight in the Spring of 1940 as the Armee de l’Air found itself outmatched by Luftwaffe aircraft and tactics.  Ironically, the Br 693 was a remarkably sleek, aerodynamic aircraft, a physically beautiful piece of engineering.

The third version is Breguet 693AB.2 No. 65, GBA I/51, based at Etampes, May 1940. On May 20, 1940, Capitaine Bernard and gunner Second Lieutenant Guimbretie’re made a successful emergency landing at Le Bourget after being damaged by flak. The aircraft was eventually repaired. The fourth version is Breguet 693AB.2 No. 93, 1 Escadrille GBA II/54, based at Toulouse-Francazal aribase, June 25, 1940. The commander of 1 Escadrille flew this aircraft to attack advancing German forces on June 6.

Conclusion

While it was not terribly effective in combat, the Breguet 693 was a beautiful, aesthetically pleasing aircraft that, with slightly heavier armament and a bit more speed, might have been a terror on the battlefield if employed exclusively as a gunship, as the Americans did with some of their medium bombers in the Pacific later in the war. It was a modern bomber that represented too little, too late for the French, who had but precious little time — a matter of weeks — to develop effective tactics with it. Highly recommended for cosmetic appeal and historical interest.

References

• www.avistar.org
• en.wikipedia.org
• ww2aircraft.net