Latecoere 290 and 298 (French Wings) Paperback – February 9, 2011

MMP has launched a new series of books in English which seems intended to cover the obscure French designs between the two World Wars, although we'll have to see exactly how the series develops. There has been a need for such books for some time. French aircraft of WWI are adequately covered and much has been written about French aircraft in the post WWII period but the period in between has been badly neglected, in English at least.The first volume illustrates this issue perfectly. I had not even heard of the Latecoere firm much less any aircraft they produced. It's always a pleasure to read about aircraft for the first time so this series is off on the right foot as far as I'm concerned.The series is in the larger A4 format which seems to be the new standard for MMP books except for the long established Red, Orange, and Yellow series which continue to be released in B5 size. The eighty pages of the book are divided into two sections, 54 pages for the 298 and the rest for the 290 and derivatives. Curiously, the two parts are not in chronological order; the later 298 is covered first.The text focuses on the development and service history of the two types. There is scant information on the details of the designs, not even a table of performance and dimensions. The only table is a production list for the 298. I can only conclude that this information did not survive the fall of France in 1940 and the subsequent occupation and liberation.The books are copiously illustrated with photographs and color profiles including some plan views. The photographs no doubt represent the best available, perhaps all that is available. The quality varies although there are few close ups. The profiles are the only color in the book. Line drawings would have been useful but again the information to produce them may have been inadequate.Highly recommended to anyone with interest in this area.

Excellent volume for the money. Good balance of text and illustrations. I can't add anything else to the older reviews.

Gérard Bousquet had compiled a commendable history of the the Latécoère types 290 and 298. As is the situation with many of the fascinating French aircraft that were used during the Second World War, little has been published in English about the two interesting torpedo bombers. Perhaps the only existing and extensive description of the 29.0 and 298 to have been written in the language was to be found in Floatplanes by William Green which was Volume Six of the War Planes Of The Second World War series published in 1962. Bousquet has produced a well written text detailing the service history of both of the torpedo bombers. The book is is printed to a very high standard and is all but free of errors of editing and translations which often blight English language books published in Poland. The photographs and profiles, by Daniel Laurelut and Teodor Liviu Morosanu, of the aircraft are remarkable and beautiful; all are printed large and clear. I hesitate to criticize such a well produced labour of love in any way, but, it remains necessary to keep the aforementioned Floatplanes by William Green on the shelf as the book is lacking in technical description and in line drawings to explain and illustrate the development of the aircraft. Nonetheless, the book is most interesting and of excellent value. Let us hope for several more volumes in the French Wings series.

In the years leading up to World War II the French built a lot of aircraft. Unfortunately in the 'lot' of aircraft, there were a lot of different designs intended to meet specifications that were not very competitive with designs like the Spitfire or Bf-109. None of the designs were produced in anywhere near the quantities of the other planes. The 290 was a very antiquated design, even for 1933. The 298 was considerably better and soldiered on through the end of the War, but by then the days of float planes were all but over.This book does the usual superb job for which the publisher is noted. The line drawings are excellent and the collection of original photographs show a side of World War II that is little known in this country.

This book kicks off a new series - 'French Wings' (some more in the form of  Breguet 27 (French Wings)  & Nieuport Delage 29 and 62 (French Wings)  have already been published)- dealing with interwar and WW2 French military aircraft and starts off by covering the (perhaps) lesser known torpedo floatplanes Latecoere 290 and 298. For some reason the order in the book is reversed, with the later 298 being covered first, followed by a similar section on the 290 and its derivatives (all the way to 296, as well as the 28 and 440 predecessor / prototype aircraft). And even though neither one fired a single torpedo in anger (bombs were dropped), there was much potential to be had, if they could have been used in the way originally intended, something the book is good at exploring.While the volume is relatively slim, the large page size and the limited operational use of the two platforms allow for a comprehensive coverage, including the requirements that led to the development of the two, to the prototype development and construction, to the testing and modifications carried out, the production process and difficulties, the corproate situation (the merger with Breguet), the training and eventual operative use, with all the combat sorties covered... The careers of the Latecoere 298 in the French Navy, Vichy Forces, with the Free French, the RAF and the Luftwaffe are all covered, as well as the post WW2 use up to 1950, when the last example was struck of register. The Latecoere 290 is covered all the way to the last use in 1940. Lists with all the operational (and combat) losses are provided as well, as are plans for post WW2 reengining of the 298s to a much more powerful Jumo powerplant.The book is copiously illustrated with period photographs and colour drawings, allowing modellers as well as general aviation enthusiasts to enjoy and benefit from it - for the modellers the colour codes are given, too.The only fault in my opinion is that the shipboard (as opposed to floatplane) version - the Latecoere 299, of which two prototypes were made for use on the French aircraft Carrier Bearn - is not included. As it is even more obscure than the 298 and 290, it would really have increased the value of the book, if more information was provided on this version.So overall an excellent start to a new series on French military aviation and definitely something for a WW2 aviation enthusiast, especially for those into French aviation, or into rarer types. Breguet 27 (French Wings)Nieuport Delage 29 and 62 (French Wings)

Good read

I'd never heard of the Coastal Torpedo Plane until I read this book and only the French had a need for two....Lovely clean lines and excellent maneuverability of the aircraft; excellent photos and drawings, and the fact that twice as many aircraft were lost to accidents as opposed to damage from the enemy make this book an interesting and enjoyable read.

C'est bien triste mais il faut se résoudre à voir des auteurs français publier en anglais sur les avions des années 1930-40. Le sujet est original et traite de deux avions peu connus. Pour celui qui ne veut pas investir dans la pavé sur le Laté 298 publié chez Lela Presse, voici l'ouvrage à acheter, et vous avez le Laté 290 en prime. Texte succinct mais documenté qui dit l'essentiel, bonnes photos N&B et planches couleur, un ouvrage à ne pas manquer !

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