{"product_id":"heller-80215-anf-les-mureaux-117-french-reconnaissance-aircraft-1-72-scale-plastic-model-kit","title":"Heller 80215 ANF Les Mureaux 117 French Reconnaissance Aircraft — 1\/72 Scale Plastic model kit","description":"\u003cp\u003eManufacturer: Heller, France\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eKit number: 80215\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eEAN\/barcode: 3279510802153\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eAircraft: ANF Les Mureaux 117\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eScale: 1\/72\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eParts: 52\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eFinished dimensions: approximately 138 mm long × 211 mm wingspan\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eBox dimensions: approximately 231 × 125 × 44 mm\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eKit type: Injection-moulded plastic\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eSubject: French inter-war\/early-WWII reconnaissance and observation aircraft\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eDocumented release: the current 80215 boxing dates from the modern Heller reissue programme; a Japanese catalogue records its release as 18 February 2015 under Heller item FF0215.\n\u003cbr\u003eThe manufacturer — Heller\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eHeller is one of France's best-known plastic model manufacturers and has an unusually strong catalogue of French aviation subjects. This includes many aircraft of the 1930s and the Armée de l'Air of 1939–40 that are not as extensively represented by the larger international model companies.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThe Mureaux 117 is a particularly good example of this approach. It is not a famous aircraft such as the Spitfire or Bf 109, but it was an important French reconnaissance aircraft and was actually in operational service when France entered the Second World War.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThe 80215 has also been around for a considerable time in Heller's catalogue. Heller collector records show the reference in use at least by the early 2010s, and a 2014 modeller's discussion specifically notes that the kit had been reissued.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThe subject has consequently become something of a specialist favourite among collectors of French 1930s aviation.\n\u003cbr\u003eKit contents\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThe 80215 contains 52 parts and produces a relatively large model for a single-engine 1\/72 aircraft:\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e    Length: approximately 138 mm\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e    Wingspan: approximately 211 mm\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e    Parts: 52\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThese figures are given in Heller's catalogue and independently in retailer records.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThe aircraft has a distinctive parasol-wing configuration, with the wing mounted above the fuselage on supporting struts. Consequently, despite its single engine, the completed model has a fairly substantial visual presence.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThe kit provides the basic cockpit\/crew areas, external airframe, undercarriage, engine and observation equipment appropriate to the aircraft.\n\u003cbr\u003eMarking options\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThe Heller 80215 boxing is documented as providing two versions.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThis is useful when assessing an older example because the decal sheet is an important part of the kit's completeness.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eHeller's collectors' forum contains multiple build records for this exact kit, and the model has been built representing French aircraft in the 1939–40 period.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eOne particularly interesting detail is that experienced modellers have identified some accuracy issues with the original kit and have used aftermarket corrections, particularly around the engine cowling and landing-gear arrangement. That does not detract from the kit's collectability, but it is worth knowing if you're assessing it as a modeller's item rather than purely as a collectible.\n\u003cbr\u003eThe real aircraft — ANF Les Mureaux 117\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThe ANF Les Mureaux 117 was the final major development of a family of French reconnaissance aircraft that began with the Mureaux 110 series.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThe family was developed to meet French military requirements for a modern reconnaissance and observation aircraft to replace older types such as the Breguet 19 and eventually the Potez 25.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThe aircraft were unusual-looking but technically interesting parasol-wing monoplanes, with the pilot and observer sitting in separate open cockpits.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThe Mureaux 117 prototype made its first flight in January 1935.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThe aircraft represented the transitional stage of French military aviation during the mid-1930s: it was considerably more modern than the biplanes it replaced, but it was itself rapidly overtaken by faster twin-engined monoplanes.\n\u003cbr\u003eDesign\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThe Mureaux 117 was an all-metal, single-engine, two-seat reconnaissance aircraft.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eIts principal characteristics included:\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e    parasol-mounted wing;\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e    two open tandem cockpits;\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e    fixed undercarriage;\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e    single engine;\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e    metal airframe;\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e    reconnaissance equipment;\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e    optional light-bombing capability.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThe parasol wing provided the observer with a relatively unobstructed view, which was particularly valuable for artillery observation and tactical reconnaissance.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThe aircraft was therefore designed around its operational job rather than maximum speed.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThe type was a member of the Mureaux 110–117 family, with the 117 incorporating improvements over earlier variants.\n\u003cbr\u003eDevelopment and production\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThe Mureaux 117 was developed at Ateliers de Construction du Nord de la France et des Mureaux (ANF).\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThe company had a significant connection with the town of Les Mureaux, west of Paris, which became an important centre of French aircraft production. The history of the town records the establishment and development of aircraft manufacturing there during the inter-war period.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eProduction figures vary between sources because the Mureaux family included several related variants.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eOne historical account gives approximately 115 Mureaux 117s produced between 1935 and 1936, while another specialist French aviation source gives a total of approximately 119 aircraft for the type.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThe difference is small enough that approximately 115–120 aircraft is a sensible catalogue figure.\n\u003cbr\u003eThe R2\/B2 reconnaissance-bomber version\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eAn especially interesting feature of the Mureaux 117 was its ability to perform more than straightforward observation.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eSome aircraft were equipped as R2 B2 machines:\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e    R2 = reconnaissance, two crew;\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e    B2 = bomber, two crew.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThe aircraft could carry bombs beneath the fuselage and wings. One source gives a potential bomb load of approximately 200 kg, while the more heavily equipped later R2 B2 aircraft could carry up to approximately 400 kg.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eHowever, not every Mureaux 117 was configured as a bomber. One historical account notes that only a relatively small proportion of the aircraft were actually equipped for bombing.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThis dual-purpose capability explains why the Mureaux 117 could continue to be useful even as newer reconnaissance aircraft were entering service.\n\u003cbr\u003eService with the French Air Force\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eBy the beginning of the Second World War, Mureaux 117s were distributed among French Groupes Aériens d'Observation (GAO) and training establishments.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eA specialist French aviation history gives approximately 93 Mureaux 117s in service at the outbreak of war, alongside Mureaux 113 and 115 aircraft.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThey were already considered older equipment by 1939.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThe French Air Force was in the process of replacing them with much more modern aircraft such as the Potez 63.11, but delays in deliveries meant that Mureaux aircraft remained operational.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eA Heller collector's historical summary notes that the Mureaux 117s were distributed among 19 observation groups in September 1939 while those units awaited more modern aircraft.\n\u003cbr\u003eBattle of France\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThe Mureaux 117 consequently saw real operational service during the Battle of France in 1940.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eIts primary work was:\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e    artillery observation;\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e    tactical reconnaissance;\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e    liaison;\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e    battlefield reporting;\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e    and, for equipped aircraft, light bombing.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThe aircraft's open cockpits and relatively modest performance made it highly vulnerable in an environment dominated by modern fighters.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eAs newer Potez reconnaissance aircraft became available, the Mureaux was progressively relegated to less dangerous duties.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eOne specialist history records that the first French aircraft lost during the Second World War was actually a Mureaux 115, shot down on 8 September 1939, illustrating the vulnerability of this class of aircraft.\n\u003cbr\u003eWhy the aircraft matters historically\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThe Mureaux 117 is important because it represents the last generation of French Army observation aircraft immediately before the rapid transition to modern twin-engined reconnaissance aircraft.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eIt illustrates the difficult position of the French Air Force in 1939–40: the country possessed a large and diverse aircraft industry, but many frontline units were still operating aircraft designed several years earlier while newer designs were entering service.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThe Mureaux 117 was therefore not an unsuccessful aircraft in its intended period—it was simply overtaken very quickly by advances in aviation.\n\u003cbr\u003eSurvivors\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThe Mureaux 117 is an exceptionally rare aircraft today.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eHistorical accounts indicate that the surviving Mureaux aircraft were ultimately scrapped after the war rather than preserved in museums. One aviation history describes the Mureaux family as having been scrapped soon after the war, leaving no complete original aircraft.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThat makes the Heller model particularly interesting for enthusiasts of French aviation: a 1\/72 kit is one of the few practical ways to represent this aircraft today.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Heller","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":57512972747132,"sku":"Heller-80215","price":14.5,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0432\/8584\/0033\/files\/38597973-4E28-498B-9A9C-450C0F704280.jpg?v=1790660926","url":"https:\/\/sussex-model-centre.co.uk\/products\/heller-80215-anf-les-mureaux-117-french-reconnaissance-aircraft-1-72-scale-plastic-model-kit","provider":"Sussex Model Centre","version":"1.0","type":"link"}