Bloch MB . 170 The Bloch MB . 170 and its family of derivatives were French reconnaissance bomber s designed and built shortly before World War II . They were , by far , the best aircraft of this type available to the " Armée de l ' Air " at the outbreak of the war , with speed and maneuverability that allowed them to evade interception by the German fighter s of the time . Although the aircraft could have been in service by 1937 , debate over what role to give the aircraft delayed deliveries until 1940 . Too few in number to make any measurable impact on the Battle of France , they continued in service with the Vichy forces after the armistice . The MB . 174 will also be remembered as the aircraft flown by Antoine de Saint - Exupéry , author of " The Little Prince " during the campaign . His work " Pilote de Guerre " - translated as " Flight to Arras " and published in 1942 - is based on a 1940 reconnaissance mission in this type of aircraft . Design and development . In 1936 , the Ministry for the Air initiated a programme of modernisation of French aviation which included a request concerning a two - or three - seat multi - role aircraft that could be used as a light - bomber or attack aircraft or for reconnaissance . A design team at the former Bloch factory at Courbevoie ( which had recently become part of the nationalised SNCASO ) , led by Henri Deplante , proposed the MB . 170 , a twin - engined , low - winged cantilever monoplane . The first prototype , the MB 170 AB2 - A3 No . 01 , equipped as a two - seat attack bomber or a three - seat reconnaissance aircraft , made its maiden flight on 15 February 1938 . It was powered by two Gnome - Rhône 14N radial engines and was armed with a 20 mm Hispano - Suiza cannon in the nose , two 7 . 5 mm MAC 1934 machine guns in the wing , with another machine gun flexibly mounted in the rear cockpit , with a ventral cupola housing either a rearward firing machine gun or a camera . The second prototype , the MB 170 B3 No . 2 was a dedicated three seat bomber , with the ventral cupola housing the camera removed , a revised canopy and larger tail fins . After many modifications it became the definitive MB . 174 version . After the 50th example was delivered in May 1940 , the MB . 175 succeeded the MB . 174 on the assembly lines in full flow . This version , a dedicated bomber , had a redesigned bomb bay capable of carrying bombs of 100 – 200 kg ( 220 - 440 lb ) , where the MB . 174 was limited to 50 kg ( 110 lb ) bombs . The MB . 175 ' s fuselage was lengthened and widened to accommodate this greater capacity , but only 25 specimens were delivered before France ' s defeat . They were eventually used in the same reconnaissance units as the MB . 174s . The MB . 176 was a version with Pratt & Whitney R - 1830 radial engines but which proved to have poorer performance than the MB . 175 . It was ordered into production in order to ease demand on the French engine manufacturers . Operational history . The Bloch MB . 174 flew for the first time in July 1939 and entered in active service in March 1940 . It was issued to strategic reconnaissance units where it replaced the Potez 637 that had proved too vulnerable during the Phoney war . Its first operational mission was flown by the famed pilot and writer , Cap . Antoine de Saint - Exupery , of Groupe de Reconnaissance II / 33 , on 29 March 1940 . The Bloch 174 appeared extremely effective in these missions as its speed and maneuverability at altitude allowed it to escape from most modern " Luftwaffe " fighters . Only 3 examples were lost to enemy fire during the Battle of France . However , like the majority of the modern equipment of the " Armée de l ' Air " during the campaign , they arrived too late and in insufficient numbers . At the time of the armistice , most surviving MB . 174s and 175s had been evacuated to North Africa . A few were recovered by the Germans and then used for pilot training . During the Vichy government rule on the French empire , MB . 174s frequently flew over Gibraltar to monitor the British fleet . In March 1941 , German engineers used engines taken from MB . 175s ( as well as other captured aircraft ) to propel the Messerschmitt Me 323 cargo aircraft , some of which actually flew with parts taken from already complete MB . 175s . After Operation Torch , as French forces split from Vichy to side with the Allies , remaining examples of the MB . 170 line flew their final combat missions during the battle of Tunisia . They were replaced by reconnaissance variants of the P - 38 Lightning , and used as transports and target tug s . A final version designed for the torpedo bomber role , the MB . 175T , was built in small series in 1947 and served with the " Aéronavale " until 1950 .