The D.501 was a subvariant of the D.500 series of aircraft developed by the French Air Ministry in the early 1930s. The D.501 used a different powerplant and armament compared to the D.500. Instead of the regular Hispano-Suiza 12Xbrs engine, it used the 12Xcrs, which allowed mounting a more powerful armament in the form of a 20 mm cannon as well as a couple of machine guns. For the time of its introduction, autocannons were very rare in regular fighters, since most used a pair of light machine guns. As such, the armament could be considered one of the best for its time. A total of 160 D.501s were produced by the time of World War II, with very limited service on the front line.

IThe D.501 was introduced in Update 1.73 "Vive la France".