| SBD Dauntless A-24 Banshee | |
|---|---|
.jpg) A restored SBD-5 Dauntless from thePlanes of Fame Air Museum | |
| General information | |
| Type | Dive bomber Scout plane |
| National origin | United States |
| Manufacturer | Douglas Aircraft |
| Designer | |
| Primary users | United States Navy |
| Number built | 5,936 |
| History | |
| Manufactured | 1940–1944 |
| Introduction date | 1940 |
| First flight | 1 May 1940 |
| Retired | 1959 (Mexico) |
| Developed from | Northrop BT |
TheDouglas SBD Dauntless is aWorld War II American navalscout plane anddive bomber that was manufactured byDouglas Aircraft from 1940 through 1944. The SBD ("Scout Bomber Douglas") was theUnited States Navy's maincarrier-based scout/dive bomber from mid-1940 through mid-1944. The SBD was also flown by theUnited States Marine Corps, both from landair bases andaircraft carriers. The SBD is best remembered as the bomber that delivered the fatal blows to the Japanese carriers at theBattle of Midway in June 1942.[1] The type earned its nickname "Slow But Deadly" (from its SBD initials) during this period. Even though the SBD was ostensibly replaced by theCurtiss SB2C Helldiver in 1944, experience showed the earlier plane performed better, and both models fought side-by-side until the end of the war.[2]
During its combat service, the SBD proved to be an effective naval scout plane and dive bomber. It possessed long range, good handling characteristics, maneuverability, potent bomb load, and great diving characteristics from the perforateddive brakes. A land-based variant of the SBD – omitting thearrestor hook — was purpose-built for theU.S. Army Air Forces, as theA-24 Banshee. However, due to lack of specialized training, the Army's experience wasn't as successful and by the middle months of 1943 the A-24 was considered by pilots to be too vulnerable for service owing to its armament and slow speed, and was relegated to non-combat roles.[3][4]
Design work on theNorthrop BT-1 began in 1935. In 1937, the Northrop Corporation was taken over by Douglas, and the active Northrop projects continued under Douglas Aircraft Corporation.[5] The Northrop BT-2 was developed from the BT-1 by modifications ordered in November 1937, and provided the basis of the SBD, which first entered service in mid-1939.Ed Heinemann led a team of designers who considered a development with a 1,000 hp (750 kW)Wright Cyclone engine. The plane was developed at the Douglas El Segundo, California, plant, and that facility, along with the company's Oklahoma City plant, built almost all the SBDs produced.[1] One year earlier, both the U.S. Navy and Marine Corps had placed orders for the new dive bomber, designated theSBD-1 andSBD-2 (the latter had increased fuel capacity and different armament). The SBD-1 went to the Marine Corps in late 1940, and the SBD-2 to the Navy in early 1941, replacing theSBU Corsair andCurtiss SBC Helldiver squadrons on US carriers. Distinctive perforated splitflaps or "dive-brakes" had been incorporated into the BT-1 to eliminate tail buffeting during diving maneuvers.[6] Unusual for carrier aircraft, folding wings were not chosen for the design, opting instead for structural strength.[7]
The next version was theSBD-3, which began manufacture in early 1941. It had increasedarmor,self-sealing fuel tanks, and fourmachine guns. TheSBD-4 provided a 12-volt (up from 6-volt) electrical system, and a few were converted intoSBD-4Preconnaissance aircraft.
The next (and most produced) version, theSBD-5, was produced mostly in the Douglas plant inTulsa, Oklahoma. This version was equipped with a 1,200 hp (890 kW) engine and an increased ammunition supply. Over 2,400 of these were built. A few of them were shipped to theRoyal Navy for evaluation. In addition to American service, the SBD saw combat against the Japanese Army and Navy withNo. 25 Squadron of theRoyal New Zealand Air Force—but the RNZAF soon replaced them with the larger, faster, heavier and land-basedVought F4U Corsairs.[citation needed]
Some SBDs were also flown by the Free French Air Force against the GermanHeer andLuftwaffe. SBDs were also sold to Mexico.[citation needed]
The final version, theSBD-6, had more improvements,[clarification needed] but its production ended during the summer of 1944.
TheU.S. Army Air Forces had its own version of the SBD, called the A-24 Banshee. It lacked thetail hook used for carrier landings, and a pneumatic tire replaced the solid tail wheel. First assigned to the 27th Bombardment Group (Light) atHunter Field, Georgia, A-24s flew in theLouisiana maneuvers of September 1941. There were three versions of the Banshee (A-24, A-24A and A-24B) flown by the army to a very minor degree in the early stages of the war.[8] The USAAF used 948 of the 5,937 Dauntlesses built.
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U.S. Navy and Marine Corps SBDs saw their first action atPearl Harbor, when most of the Marine Corps SBDs ofMarine Scout Bombing Squadron 232 (VMSB-232) were destroyed on the ground atEwa Mooring Mast Field. Most U.S. Navy SBDs flew from theiraircraft carriers, which did not operate in close cooperation with the rest of the fleet. Most Navy SBDs at Pearl Harbor, like their Marine Corps counterparts, were destroyed on the ground.[9] On 10 December 1941, SBDs fromUSS Enterprise sank theJapanese submarineI-70.[10] In February–March 1942, SBDs from the carriersUSS Lexington,USS Yorktown, andUSS Enterprise, took part in various raids on Japanese installations in theGilbert Islands, theMarshall Islands,New Guinea,Rabaul,Wake Island, andMarcus Island.
The first major use of the SBD in combat was at theBattle of the Coral Sea where SBDs andTBD Devastators sank the Japanese light aircraft carrier (CVL)Shōhō and damaged the Japanese fleet carrierShōkaku. SBDs were also used for anti-torpedocombat air patrols (CAP) and these scored several victories against Japanese aircraft trying to attackLexington andYorktown.[11] Their relatively heavy gun armament with two forward-firing.50 in (12.7 mm)M2 Browning machine guns and either one or two rear flexible-mount.30 in (7.62 mm)AN/M2 machine guns was effective against the lightly built Japanese fighters, and many pilots and gunners took aggressive attitudes to the fighters that attacked them. SBD pilotStanley "Swede" Vejtasa was attacked by threeA6M2 Zero fighters; he shot down two of them andcut off the wing of the third in a head-on pass with his wingtip.[12][N 1]
The SBD's most important contribution to the American war effort came during theBattle of Midway in early June 1942. Foursquadrons of Navy SBD dive bombers attacked and sank or fatally damaged all four Japanese fleet carriers present, disabling three of them in the span of just six minutes (Akagi,Kaga,Sōryū) and, later in the day,Hiryū. They also caught two stragglingheavy cruisers of the Midway bombardment group of four, heavily damaging them, withMikuma eventually sinking.
At the Battle of Midway, Marine Corps SBDs were not as effective. One squadron, VMSB-241, flying fromMidway Atoll, was not trained in the techniques of dive-bombing with their new Dauntlesses (having just partially converted from theSB2U Vindicator).[13] Its pilots resorted to the slower but easierglide bombing technique. This led to many of the SBDs being shot down during their glide, although one survivor from these attacks is now on display at theNational Naval Aviation Museum and is the last surviving aircraft to have flown in the battle. The carrier-borne squadrons were effective, especially when they were escorted byGrumman F4F Wildcats.[14] The success of dive bombing resulted from one important factor,
Unlike American squadrons that attacked shortly before one at a time, allowing defending Japanese Zero fighters to concentrate on each squadron to shoot them down or drive them away from the carriers, three squadrons totaling 47 SBDs (VS-6, VB-6, and VB-3), one squadron of 12 TBD torpedo aircraft (VT-3), and six F4F fighters (from VF-3) all arrived simultaneously, with two of the SBD squadrons (VS-6 and VB-6) arriving from a different direction from the other squadrons. Without central fighter direction, the approximately 40 Zeros concentrated on the TBDs, with some fighting the F4Fs covering the TBDs, leaving the SBDs unhindered by fighter opposition in their approach and attack (although most of the TBDs were shot down).[15]
SBDs played a major role in theGuadalcanal campaign, operating off both American carriers and fromHenderson Field onGuadalcanal. SBDs proved lethal to Japanese shipping that failed to clearNew Georgia Sound (The Slot) by daylight. Losses inflicted included the carrierRyūjō, sunk near theSolomon Islands on 24 August. Three other Japanese carriers were damaged during the six-month campaign. SBDs sank a cruiser and nine transports during theNaval Battle of Guadalcanal.
In theAtlantic Ocean the SBD saw action duringOperation Torch, the Allied landings in North Africa in November 1942. The SBDs flew fromUSS Ranger and twoescort carriers. Eleven months later, duringOperation Leader, the SBDs saw their European debut when aircraft fromRanger attacked Nazi German shipping aroundBodø,Norway.[16]
By 1944 the U.S. Navy began replacing the SBD with the more powerfulSB2C Helldiver. During theBattle of the Philippine Sea in June 1944, a long range twilight strike was made against the retreating Japanese fleet, at (or beyond) the limit of the combat radius of the aircraft. The force had about twenty minutes of daylight over their targets before attempting the long return in the dark. Of the 215 aircraft, only 115 made it back. Twenty were lost to enemy action in the attack, and 80 were lost as one by one they expended their fuel and had to ditch into the sea.[17] In the attack were 26 SBDs, all of which made it back to the carriers.
The Battle of the Philippine Sea was the last major engagement of the carrier-borne SBDs. Marine squadrons continued to fly SBDs until the end of the war. Although the Curtiss Helldiver had a more powerful engine, a higher maximum speed and could carry nearly a thousand pounds more in bomb load, many of the dive bomber pilots preferred the SBD, which was lighter and had better low-speed handling characteristics, critical for carrier landings.
The Dauntless was one of the most important aircraft in thePacific War, sinking more enemy shipping in the Pacific than any other Allied bomber. Barrett Tillman, in his book on the Dauntless, claims that it has a "plus" score against enemy aircraft, meaning it was credited with more victories over enemy planes than losses from enemy action. This is considered to be a rare event for a nominal "bomber".[18]
A total of 5,936 SBDs were produced during the war. The last SBD rolled off the assembly lines at the Douglas Aircraft plant in El Segundo, California, on 21 July 1944. The Navy placed emphasis on the heavier, faster and longer-ranged SB2C. From Pearl Harbor through April 1944, SBDs had flown 1,189,473 operational hours, with 25 percent of all operational hours flown off aircraft carriers being in SBDs. Its battle record shows that in addition to six Japanese carriers, 14 enemycruisers had been sunk, along with sixdestroyers, 15 transports or cargo ships and scores of various lesser craft.[19]
The USAAF sent 52 A-24 Banshees in crates to the Philippines in the fall of 1941 to equip the27th Bombardment Group, whose personnel were sent separately. However, after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, these bombers were diverted to Australia and the 27th BGfought on the Bataan Peninsula as infantry. While in Australia the aircraft were reassembled for flight to the Philippines, but missing parts, including solenoids, trigger motors and gun mounts delayed their shipment. Plagued with mechanical problems, the A-24s were diverted to the91st Bombardment Squadron and designated for assignment toJava instead.
Referring to themselves as "Blue Rock Clay Pigeons" (after a brand oftrap shooting targets), the 91st BS based atMalang attacked the enemy-held harbor and airbase atBali and damaged or sank numerous ships around Java during theDutch East Indies campaign.[20] After the Japanese downed two A-24s and damaged three so badly that they could no longer fly, the 91st received orders to evacuate Java in early March 1942.
The A-24s remaining in Australia were assigned to the8th Bombardment Squadron of3d Bombardment Group, to defendNew Guinea. On 29 July 1942, seven A-24s attacked a convoy offBuna, but only one survived: the Japanese shot down five of them and damaged the sixth so badly that it did not make it back to base. Regarded by many pilots as too slow, short ranged and poorly armed, the remaining A-24s were relegated to non-combat missions. In the U.S., the A-24s became training aircraft or towed targets for aerial gunnery training. The more powerful A-24B was used later against the Japanese forces in theGilbert Islands.[8] From December 1943 until March 1944, the 531st Fighter Squadron of the 7th Air Force flew A-24Bs fromMakin Island in the Gilbert Islands against Japanese controlled islands in theMarshall Islands. The A-24Bs were then withdrawn from combat.
The A-24B (equivalent to the U.S. Navy SBD-5, with the omission of the arrestor hook) arrived in 1943 with the more powerful 1,200-hp Wright R-1820-60Cyclone engine, a more powerful engine than either the A-24 or A-24A. As a result, the A-24B could fly slightly faster and higher than the earlier models. The A-24B lacked the small air intake on the top of the engine cowling present on the earlier models and that is an easy way to distinguish the B model. The 407th Bomb Group, assigned to the 11th Air Force, flew A-24Bs against the Japanese held island ofKiska, Alaska, during July and August 1943.
A handful of A-24s survived in the inventory of the USAAF long enough to be taken over by theAir Force (USAF) when that service became independent of the Army in September 1947. The USAF established a new designation system for its aircraft, eliminating the "A-" (for attack) category(through 1962); all of the single-engined "A-" aircraft were given "F-" (for fighter) nomenclature (or were determined to be obsolete and scrapped); thus the few remaining A-24 Banshees became known as F-24 Banshees, soldiering on in a reserve role until 1950 when they were scrapped.[21]
The first production Dauntless sent into action was the "SBD-3", which was produced for theFrench Naval Aviation. A total of 174 Dauntlesses were ordered by theFrench Navy, but with the fall of France in the spring of 1940 that production batch was diverted to the U.S. Navy, which ordered 410 more.
TheFree French received about 80 SBD-5s and A-24Bs from the United States in 1944. They were used as trainers and close-support aircraft.
Squadron I/17Picardie used a few A-24Bs for coastal patrol. The most combat-experienced of the Banshee units was GC 1/18Vendee, which flew A-24Bs in support of Allied forces in southern France and also experienced how deadly German flak was, losing several aircraft in 1944. This squadron flew from North Africa to recently liberated Toulouse to support Allied and French resistance troops. Later, the unit was assigned to support attacks on cities occupied by the Germans on the French Atlantic coast. In April 1945 each SBD-5 averaged three missions a day in the European theater. In 1946 theFrench Air Force based its A-24Bs in Morocco as trainers.
French Navy Dauntlesses were based in Cognac at the end of 1944. The French Navy Dauntlesses were the last ones to see combat, during theIndochina War, flying from the carrierArromanches (the former Royal Navy carrierColossus). In late 1947 during one operation in the Indochina War,Flotille 4F flew 200 missions and dropped 65 tons of bombs. By 1949, the French Navy removed the Dauntless from combat status although the type was still flown as a trainer through 1953.
In 1943, theRoyal New Zealand Air Force received several SBD-3s and SBD-4s for use in training byNo. 25 Squadron. The following year the squadron used the SBD-5 in combat operations during theSolomon Islands campaign. It had been intended to equip four squadrons of the RNZAF with the Dauntless but only No. 25 Squadron used them. The RNZAF soon replaced them with F4U Corsairs.
The hyphenated numbers are original U.S. Army Air Forces Serial Numbers (AAF Ser. No.); four or five digit numbers are original U.S. Navy Bureau of Aeronautics (BuAer) Bureau Numbers (BuNo).
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Data from McDonnell Douglas aircraft since 1920 : Volume I[65]
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