| XB2Y | |
|---|---|
 | |
| General information | |
| Type | Dive bomber |
| National origin | United States of America |
| Manufacturer | Consolidated Aircraft |
| Primary user | United States Navy |
| Number built | 1 |
| History | |
| First flight | 1933 |
TheConsolidated XB2Y was anAmerican prototype single-engineddive bomber of the 1930s. It was intended to meet aUnited States Navy requirement for a carrier-based dive bomber, but was unsuccessful, only a single example being built.
In 1932, theUnited States Navy issued a specification for a two-seatcarrier-baseddive bomber capable of carrying a 1,000 lb (450 kg) bomb.[1] Orders were placed for competing prototypes of designs to meet the Navy's requirement withConsolidated Aircraft and theGreat Lakes Aircraft Company in June 1932.[2][3]
Consolidated's proposal was the Model 24 (or XB2Y in theUS Navy's designation system), a single-baybiplane developed from a basic design prepared by the Navy'sBureau of Aeronautics with detailed design led by Consolidated's B Douglas Thomas,[2] formerly Chief Designer of Thomas Morse Aircraft, which had become part of Consolidated Aircraft in 1929.[4]
In order to withstand the highg-forces experienced during pullup after a dive attack, much of the aircraft's center-section was cut from a solid steel block.[2][5] It was powered by a similarPratt & Whitney R-1535 Twin Wasp Juniorair-cooledradial engine as used by the Great Lakes design,[2][3] and had a fixedtailwheel undercarriage. The crew of two sat in tandem in separate cockpits, with the observer in the rear cockpit armed with a single flexibly mounted machine gun, and the pilot with a single fixedsynchronized machine gun firing through the aircraft's propeller arc. Its bombload was carried on a crutch under the fuselage that swung down to ensure the bomb would clear the propeller when dropped in a steep dive.[2]
The prototype XB2Y-1 (serial number9221[6]) was completed in 1933, being delivered on 28 June 1933.[2] Testing was unsuccessful,[2] with the aircraft's performance being unsatisfactory,[7] while the aircraft also proved very expensive to build.[2][5] The US Navy preferred the Great Lakes design, with 60 being ordered asBG-1s.[3]
The XB2Y-1 was modified to a scout configuration, removing the bomb crutch. This allowed it to reach a height of 23,400 ft (7,100 m),[2] and it was used byNACA atLangley,Virginia for pilot view tests.[8]
Data from General Dynamics Aircraft and their Predecessors[9]
General characteristics
Performance
Armament
Aircraft of comparable role, configuration, and era
Related lists
Media related toConsolidated XB2Y at Wikimedia Commons