Heller 80392 Breguet 693/2 Heller Museum — 1/72 Scale Plastic model kit

Manufacturer: Heller, France

Kit number: 80392

EAN/barcode: 3279510803921

Aircraft: Breguet 693/2

Scale: 1/72

Series: Heller Museum

Parts: 57

Finished length: approximately 133–141.6 mm, depending on catalogue measurement

Wingspan: approximately 207 mm

Material: Injection-moulded plastic
Heller and the Heller Museum series

The Heller Museum range has a particularly interesting history. Heller began developing its historically focused aircraft range in the 1960s, under the technical direction of Roland de Narbonne. The objective was to reproduce important French aircraft that were often poorly represented in plastic model form.

Heller's description of the Museum series emphasises the amount of historical research that went into the original tooling. Because many original aircraft drawings and archives were unavailable or incomplete, Heller's designers sometimes had to reconstruct aircraft dimensions and shapes from surviving documentation.

The modern Museum reissues deliberately retain much of the character of those classic kits while updating their presentation. Heller states that contemporary reissues received new decal sheets and colour/decorating instructions, while retaining the basic characteristics of the original models.

That makes the 80392 particularly interesting to collectors: it is not simply a modern newly designed Breguet kit, but a modern presentation of a historically important Heller tooling.
Kit contents

The 80392 contains 57 parts and is a relatively compact twin-engined aircraft in 1/72. Specialist catalogues consistently identify the kit as a 57-piece model.

The kit provides:

injection-moulded plastic airframe parts;

twin engine nacelles;

propellers;

cockpit and crew areas;

undercarriage;

defensive armament;

bomb/attack equipment appropriate to the aircraft;

decals;

assembly instructions.

Glue and paint are not included.

The current Museum boxing is intended for both modelling and collecting, and Heller's updated decal and colour information makes it considerably more useful than simply purchasing an old original example for nostalgia.
The real aircraft — Breguet 693

The Breguet 693 was a French twin-engined ground-attack aircraft developed immediately before the Second World War.

It evolved from the Breguet 690 family, which had originally been conceived as a twin-engined fighter. As French military requirements changed, the design was developed into a dedicated attack aircraft, resulting in the Breguet 691 and ultimately the improved Breguet 693.

The aircraft was a relatively modern design for France in the late 1930s:

twin engines;

low-mounted monoplane wing;

retractable landing gear;

enclosed cockpit;

heavily constructed fuselage;

internal bomb bay;

cannon and machine-gun armament.

Its compact twin-engine configuration gave it a purposeful appearance quite different from the larger French bombers of the period.
Development

The original Breguet 690 prototype first flew in 1938.

The French Air Force was looking for a fast, modern aircraft capable of carrying out tactical attacks against ground targets. The Breguet design was selected for further development and the Breguet 691 entered production.

The Breguet 693 represented an important improvement.

One of its principal changes was the replacement of the original engines with Gnome-Rhône 14M radial engines, which provided improved reliability and performance.

The 693's compact dimensions and robust construction made it well suited to low-level attack missions.
Engines and performance

The Breguet 693 was powered by two Gnome-Rhône 14M-6/7 radial engines, each producing approximately 700 hp.

Representative specifications are approximately:

Crew: 2

Engines: 2 × Gnome-Rhône 14M

Power: approximately 700 hp each

Maximum speed: approximately 480 km/h

Length: approximately 9.67 m

Wingspan: approximately 15.37 m

Armament: cannon, machine guns and bombs

Role: low-level attack/reconnaissance

At 1/72, those full-size dimensions translate to roughly 134 mm in length and 214 mm wingspan, explaining why the Heller kit is a substantial twin-engine model despite its compact overall size.
Armament

The Breguet 693 was heavily armed for a tactical attack aircraft of its era.

Its forward-firing weapons included a 20 mm Hispano-Suiza cannon together with several 7.5 mm machine guns.

Additional machine guns provided defensive fire.

The aircraft also carried bombs internally, allowing it to attack ground targets while maintaining a relatively clean external aerodynamic configuration.

The combination of cannon, machine guns and bombs made the 693 a genuine close-support/ground-attack aircraft, rather than simply a reconnaissance machine.
The Battle of France

The Breguet 693's operational career is closely connected with the Battle of France in May–June 1940.

By the beginning of the German offensive, the French Air Force had only recently begun receiving substantial numbers of the new aircraft.

The type consequently entered combat under extremely difficult circumstances.

Breguet 693 crews were frequently required to operate at very low altitude against German columns and other ground targets.

This was dangerous work. Flying at low altitude exposed the aircraft to:

rifle and machine-gun fire;

anti-aircraft artillery;

German fighters;

and rapidly changing battlefield conditions.

The aircraft's relatively heavy construction gave crews some protection, but losses were substantial.
The Breguet 693 in combat

The 693 nevertheless demonstrated that it could deliver effective attacks.

French crews carried out low-level attacks against German troop concentrations, transport and armoured formations.

The problem was not simply the design of the Breguet itself. France entered the campaign with a relatively small number of operational modern attack aircraft, while German air superiority made repeated low-level missions extremely hazardous.

The Breguet therefore suffered heavy losses during the 1940 campaign.

The type's short operational career is one of the more unfortunate examples of a technically promising aircraft appearing just as the strategic situation of the country using it was deteriorating.
Breguet 693/2

The 693/2 represented a production development of the basic Breguet 693.

The "/2" designation is particularly relevant when cataloguing the Heller kit because it distinguishes this subject from earlier versions in the Breguet 690 family.

The Heller Museum boxing is specifically labelled Breguet 693/2, rather than simply Breguet 693.
Vichy and post-armistice service

Following the French armistice in June 1940, surviving Breguet 693 aircraft were retained by the French authorities under the restrictions imposed by Germany.

Some aircraft continued to serve with French forces in limited roles.

The German occupation and dismantling of much of the French military aviation system effectively ended the Breguet's career as a major French combat aircraft.

Some surviving aircraft were subsequently used for training or other secondary purposes.
Production

The Breguet 690 family was produced in relatively small numbers compared with aircraft such as the Bf 109 or Ju 88.

Approximately 250 Breguet 693 aircraft were produced, with the majority manufactured during the rapid rearmament period immediately before the German invasion.

The overall Breguet 690 family production figure is higher because it includes the 690, 691 and other related variants.

The aircraft therefore represents a relatively small but important chapter in French aviation development immediately before the fall of France.
Why the Breguet 693 is historically important

The Breguet 693 is significant because it demonstrates that French aircraft designers were developing modern dedicated ground-attack aircraft immediately before WWII.

It combined:

a modern monoplane layout;

twin-engine performance;

heavy forward armament;

internal bomb carriage;

and a robust structure.

Its short operational career was largely a consequence of the circumstances in which it entered service rather than an indication that the concept itself was obsolete.

For collectors of French WWII aircraft, the Breguet 693 is particularly desirable because it represents one of the more distinctive indigenous French combat aircraft of 1940.
Survivors

The Breguet 693 is extremely rare today.

No complete airworthy original Breguet 693 is known to be operating. This is one reason the aircraft has substantial historical appeal despite never reaching the fame of the Spitfire, Bf 109 or Ju 87.

Heller's long-standing Museum treatment is therefore particularly useful to collectors because it preserves the appearance of an aircraft that is difficult to experience in full-size form.