Latécoère 631 F-BARA — Air France Agency Display Model, circa 1947–1948

Rare and spectacular Air France agency display model representing the legendary Latécoère 631, the great post-war French six-engine flying boat, here presented with the registration F-BARA.

Made of painted wood and metal in the historic Air France colours, this model rests on its elegant Air France globe base, characteristic of agency and exhibition models intended for commercial offices, travel agencies and promotional display areas of the airline.

The Latécoère 631 was one of the largest civil flying boats ever built in France. A metal-hulled aircraft with a high wing and six engines, it was designed for major transatlantic and colonial routes. Latécoère describes it as a civil transatlantic flying boat, built in only 11 examples, with a capacity of approximately 50 passengers, a wingspan of 57.43 metres, six Wright R-2600-C14 engines and a stated range of around 6,800 km.

Technical characteristics of the real Latécoère 631

Type: civil transatlantic flying boat
Construction: metal, hull-type aircraft
Configuration: high wing, six engines
Engines: 6 Wright R-2600-C14 engines
Power: approximately 1,950 hp each
Passengers: up to approximately 50 passengers, depending on configuration
Wingspan: 57.43 m
Length: 43.46 m
Height: 10.35 m
Maximum speed: approximately 395 to 417 km/h, depending on sources
Cruising speed: approximately 295 km/h
Range: approximately 6,000 to 6,800 km
Total production: 11 examples built

Air France history

In July 1947, Air France used the Latécoère 631 to connect mainland France with the West Indies. The flight departed from Biscarrosse and flew to Fort-de-France, lasting approximately 30 hours, with two rotations per month. This route perfectly illustrates the ambition of the aircraft: to transport passengers over very long distances in a spirit of prestige and comfort, during the final era of the great long-range flying boats.

Despite this ambition, the commercial career of the Latécoère 631 was short. The rapid arrival of modern land-based aircraft, such as the Lockheed Constellation and the Douglas DC-4, brought an end to the age of large passenger flying boats. The Latécoère 631 therefore remains today a rare and fascinating symbol of prestigious French post-war aviation.

The Air France agency model

Comparable Latécoère 631 models were produced from 1947 onwards by La Maquette d’Étude et d’Exposition, Aubervilliers, for Air France agencies and exhibition spaces. Two variants are notably documented: F-BARA and F-BDRA. These models were generally made to approximately 1/50 scale, in wood and metal, with an Air France globe base.

Collecting interest

This model is an exceptional piece for collectors of aviation, Air France memorabilia, agency display models or French industrial design from the 1940s. It combines several highly sought-after qualities: impressive size, period manufacture, original globe base, Air France livery, F-BARA registration and the representation of an iconic aircraft produced in very small numbers.

A spectacular decorative object and a rare historical document, this model evokes the heroic age of the great French transatlantic flying boats and the international ambition of Air France in the aftermath of the Second World War.

This model also recalls the great Air France route to the West Indies, opened in 1947 by the Latécoère 631 between Biscarrosse and Fort-de-France, via Port-Étienne in Mauritania. A true French “flying ocean liner,” the Latécoère 631 connected mainland France to Martinique in approximately thirty hours, symbolising Air France’s long-distance ambitions in the post-war period.

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