Reviewed August 2026
by Martin J Quinn

According to Wikipedia:

Béarn was an aircraft carrier converted from an incomplete Normandie-class battleship for the Marine Nationale (French Navy) during the 1920s. Entering service in 1928, the navy intended to use her to develop tactics and techniques for carrier aviation. The only aircraft carrier France produced until after World War II, the ship played a minor role in early stages of the war, training in home waters and conducting pilot training.

In late May 1940 Béarn ferried gold to purchase aircraft from the United States, but she was diverted to Martinique in the French West Indies when the French armistice with Germany was signed in June. Under pressure from the United States, which was worried about the Germans taking control of her if she returned to France, the carrier remained there for the next four years. To placate the Americans, the local commander agreed to have her immobilized in mid-1942. The Vichy French government ordered him to sabotage the ship in May 1943 and he ultimately complied by having Béarn run aground.

She was towed to Puerto Rico after the islands joined the Free French later that year for preliminary repairs that would allow her to steam under her own power to New Orleans, Louisiana, to be converted into an aircraft ferry. The conversion was completed in early 1945; on her first trip with a load of aircraft she collided with another ship and had to divert to French Morocco for emergency repairs. Full repairs took almost six months and she then transported personnel and equipment between Metropolitan France and French North Africa for several months.

In October the ship sailed for French Indochina with aircraft, material and supplies as the French planned to reassert control over their Japanese-occupied colony. Béarn remained there for a year before returning home where she was immediately placed in reserve. Two years later, the ship was reactivated as the flagship of the Marine nationale's submarine and anti-submarine group and also served as a submarine tender. In 1960 Béarn was hulked and served as a barracks ship until she became so uneconomical that a replacement vessel was constructed in 1966. She was sold for scrap the following year.

Armory Models Béarn

The eBay seller I bought this from brands the kit as being from "Armory Models", which I believe may be a white label for SS Models.  "MRY-SFW" was also prominently displayed on the box and instructions.

Béarn came in a regular brown box. Inside the box were nine individually wrapped print rafts and instructions.  Regrettably, the hull is printed in four (yes, four) parts.  Other print rafts contain the forward and aft sections of the flight deck, the island, ships boats, directors props and more. I purchased the waterline version of the kit.

When I removed the parts from the box - which had been sitting for a good two months after delivery, most of the parts still had a  tacky feel when handled.  I put all the print rafts in a window and left them there for several days, rotating them once or twice.  When I removed them from the window, the parts were no longer tacky.  Well, at least to the touch. 

As mentioned, the hull is printed as four separate parts.  This print raft contains the forward most section of the ship.  Ladders, boat booms, davits, chocks, bitts, capstans, winches and more are printed integral to this part.  There is also recessed planking and deck plating, both of which look overscale.  The hull has recessed horizontal lines to replicate hull plating. 

Unlike most 3D printed parts I've seen, which have a myriad of print supports attaching the part to the print raft, the bow section and printed as one solid piece.  There is a lightly scored line, which I assume is the demarcation line between the part and the raft.  This is going to be a challenge to remove without damaging it. There are no tabs to help with alignment between the hull sections, which would have been helpful. 

The next section of the hull, printed as one large part, as above.  There are vents on either side of the hull, which are decent, especially the one's on the starboard side, which, I presume, represent the exhausts for the uptakes.  There is 1/2 an accommodation ladder printed to the hull.  The other half is printed to the next section of the hull.  That's going to be a treat to sand and smooth out.  In addition to the flight deck planking, there are oversized rectangles on the deck, which I am guessing are supposed to be tie downs. In scale, the deck crew would break an ankle tripping over these things. 

The smallest raft in the kit holds props (for the full hull version), directors, searchlights, AA guns, cable reels, a small section of anchor chain, and a breakwater.  The props and directors don't appear to be fully formed/cured. 

The instructions are actually somewhat adequate for a model this size.  They are printed on one side of three pieces of paper.  There is a parts manifest and exploded view drawings, that show the print raft needed for that particular step.  There are no paint instructions or color callouts. 

If you are looking for the positives, this kit is an actual 1/350 model of the French aircraft carrier Béarn.  The only previous kit I know of this class is the out-of-production L'Arsenal kit, and that was a limited run injection molded kit in 1/400.  In fairness, there are some decent parts to be found:  the crane, the anchor chain and some of the guns look pretty good.  The island looks decent, though being printed in one piece, it's going to be a chore to paint. 

On the other hand, you have some soft details elsewhere, and on two different print rafts, the parts were not fully cured, even after being left to bake in the sun.  And lets not mention the parts were tacky to the touch when I took them out of the box.  The deck planking and deck plating are both over scale, and I'm not impressed with what I think are tie downs on the flight deck.

The biggest issue with this kit is the four piece hull. Four pieces!!  Why?!?  I know technology has not gotten to the point where either the printer can print a capital ship hull in one pieces, or most manufacturers can't afford the printers that can, but this hull should have been a maximum of two pieces.  One top of that you've got the fact the the hull parts are printed integral to the print raft, which is going to be quite a hassle to remove, without damaging the hull.  Plus, there are no tabs to help fit the hull pieces together, and you have several items - like the accommodation ladder - that straddle two sections of hull.  Finally, there are those mysterious grooves in the aft section of the hull, which will be difficult to fill and smooth. How did their "quality control" let that part leave the building? 

I can not recommend this kit at all. I mean, if you are a die-hard Marine Nationale and/or Béarn-class fans, who MUST have this ship in their collection, then by all means, spend your money. Otherwise, I'd take a pass. My feeling is as long as modelers continue to buy junk, these manufacturers are going to continue to churn out junk, and the they'll have no incentive to improve the product.

This is Armory Models/MRY-SFW 1/350 Béarn, kit number SSC350601-A, which is the waterline version.  It's available on eBay starting at around $140.00 and up, before shipping.  I paid less for mine, and the price does seem to fluctuate from month to month and seller to seller.