The Grumman J2F Duck (company designation G-15) is an American single-

engine An engine or motor is a machine designed to convert one or more forms of energy into mechanical energy. Available energy sources include potential energy (e.g. energy of the Earth's gravitational field as exploited in hydroelectric power ...

amphibious biplane. It was used by each major branch of the

U.S. armed forces The United States Armed Forces are the military forces of the United States. The armed forces consists of six service branches: the Army, Marine Corps, Navy, Air Force, Space Force, and Coast Guard. The president of the United States is the ...

from the mid-1930s until just after

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

, primarily for

utility As a topic of economics, utility is used to model worth or value. Its usage has evolved significantly over time. The term was introduced initially as a measure of pleasure or happiness as part of the theory of utilitarianism by moral philosoph ...

and

air-sea rescue Air-sea rescue (ASR or A/SR, also known as sea-air rescue), and aeronautical and maritime search and rescue (AMSAR) by the ICAO and IMO, is the coordinated search and rescue (SAR) of the survivors of emergency water landings as well as people ...

duties. It was also used by the Argentine Navy, who took delivery of their first example in 1937. After the war, J2F Ducks saw service with independent civilian operators, as well as the armed forces of Colombia and

Mexico Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...

. The J2F was an improved version of the earlier JF Duck, the main differences being a longer

float Float may refer to: Arts and entertainment Music Albums * ''Float'' (Aesop Rock album), 2000 * ''Float'' (Flogging Molly album), 2008 * ''Float'' (Styles P album), 2013 Songs * "Float" (Tim and the Glory Boys song), 2022 * "Float", by Bush ...

and a more-powerful engine (900

horsepower Horsepower (hp) is a unit of measurement of power, or the rate at which work is done, usually in reference to the output of engines or motors. There are many different standards and types of horsepower. Two common definitions used today are t ...

versus 775).Allen 1983, p. 49.

Development

The J2F-1 Duck first flew on 2 April 1936, powered by a 750 hp (559 kW)

Wright R-1820 The Wright R-1820 Cyclone 9 is an American radial engine developed by Curtiss-Wright, widely used on aircraft in the 1930s through 1950s. It was produced under license in France as the Hispano-Suiza 9V or Hispano-Wright 9V, and in the Soviet Un ...

Cyclone, and was delivered to the

U.S. Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage o ...

on the same day. The J2F-2 had an uprated Wright Cyclone engine of 790 hp (589 kW). Twenty J2F-3 variants were built in 1939 for use by the Navy as executive transports with plush interiors. Due to pressure of work following the United States entry into the

war War is an intense armed conflict between states, governments, societies, or paramilitary groups such as mercenaries, insurgents, and militias. It is generally characterized by extreme violence, destruction, and mortality, using regular o ...

in 1941, production of the J2F Duck was transferred to the Columbia Aircraft Corp of New York. They produced 330 aircraft for the Navy and

U.S. Coast Guard The United States Coast Guard (USCG) is the maritime security, search and rescue, and law enforcement service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the country's eight uniformed services. The service is a maritime, military, mul ...

. If standard Navy nomenclature practice had been followed, these would have been designated JL-1s, but it was not, and all Columbia-produced airframes were delivered as J2F-6s. Several surplus Navy Ducks were converted for use by the

United States Air Force The United States Air Force (USAF) is the Aerial warfare, air military branch, service branch of the United States Armed Forces, and is one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Originally created on 1 August 1907, as a part ...

in the

role as the OA-12 in 1948.

Design

The J2F was an equal-span single-bay biplane with a large

monocoque Monocoque ( ), also called structural skin, is a structural system in which loads are supported by an object's external skin, in a manner similar to an egg shell. The word ''monocoque'' is a French term for "single shell". First used for boats, ...

central

which also housed the retractable main

landing gear Landing gear is the undercarriage of an aircraft or spacecraft that is used for takeoff or landing. For aircraft it is generally needed for both. It was also formerly called ''alighting gear'' by some manufacturers, such as the Glenn L. Martin ...

, a similar design to the

Leroy Grumman Leroy Randle "Roy" Grumman (4 January 1895 – 4 October 1982) was an American aeronautical engineer, test pilot, and industrialist. In 1929, he co-founded Grumman Aircraft Engineering Co., later renamed Grumman Aerospace Corporation, and now ...

-designed landing gear first used for

Grover Loening Grover Cleveland Loening (September 12, 1888 – February 29, 1976) was an American aircraft manufacturer. Biography Loening was born in Bremen, in what was then Imperial Germany, on September 12, 1888, while his American-born father was statione ...

's early amphibious biplane designs, and later adopted for the

Grumman FF The Grumman FF "Fifi" (company designation G-5) was an American biplane fighter aircraft operated by the United States Navy during the 1930s.Eden and Moeng 2002, p. 762. It was the first carrier aircraft with retractable landing gear.Winchester ...

fighter biplane. The

aircraft An aircraft is a vehicle that is able to fly by gaining support from the air. It counters the force of gravity by using either static lift or by using the dynamic lift of an airfoil, or in a few cases the downward thrust from jet engine ...

had strut-mounted stabilizer floats beneath each lower

wing A wing is a type of fin that produces lift while moving through air or some other fluid. Accordingly, wings have streamlined cross-sections that are subject to aerodynamic forces and act as airfoils. A wing's aerodynamic efficiency is e ...

. A crew of two or three were carried in tandem cockpits, forward for the

pilot An aircraft pilot or aviator is a person who controls the flight of an aircraft by operating its directional flight controls. Some other aircrew members, such as navigators or flight engineers, are also considered aviators, because they a ...

and rear for an observer with room for a radio operator if required. It had a cabin in the

fuselage The fuselage (; from the French ''fuselé'' "spindle-shaped") is an aircraft's main body section. It holds crew, passengers, or cargo. In single-engine aircraft, it will usually contain an engine as well, although in some amphibious aircraf ...

for two passengers or a

stretcher A stretcher, gurney, litter, or pram is an apparatus used for moving patients who require medical care. A basic type (cot or litter) must be carried by two or more people. A wheeled stretcher (known as a gurney, trolley, bed or cart) is often ...

. The Duck's main pontoon was blended into the fuselage, making it almost a flying boat despite its similarity to a conventional landplane which has been float-equipped. This configuration was shared with the earlier

Loening OL The Loening OL, also known as the Loening Amphibian, was an American two-seat amphibious biplane designed by Grover Loening and built by Loening for the United States Army Air Corps and the United States Navy. Design and development First flown ...

, Grumman having acquired the rights to Loening's hull, float, and undercarriage designs.Allen 1983, p. 47. Like the

F4F Wildcat The Grumman F4F Wildcat is an American carrier-based fighter aircraft that entered service in 1940 with the United States Navy, and the British Royal Navy where it was initially known as the Martlet. First used by the British in the North Atla ...

, its narrow-tracked landing gear was hand-cranked.

Operational history

The J2F was used by the

Marines Marines, or naval infantry, are typically a military force trained to operate in littoral zones in support of naval operations. Historically, tasks undertaken by marines have included helping maintain discipline and order aboard the ship (refle ...

, Army Air Forces, and

Coast Guard A coast guard or coastguard is a maritime security organization of a particular country. The term embraces wide range of responsibilities in different countries, from being a heavily armed military force with customs and security duties to ...

. Apart from general utility and light transport duties, its missions included mapping, scouting/observation, anti-submarine patrol,

work, photographic surveys,

reconnaissance In military operations, reconnaissance or scouting is the exploration of an area by military forces to obtain information about enemy forces, terrain, and other activities. Examples of reconnaissance include patrolling by troops (skirmisher ...

, and

target tug A target tug is an aircraft which tows an unmanned drone, a fabric drogue or other kind of target, for the purposes of gun or missile target practice. Target tugs are often conversions of transport and utility aircraft, as well as obsolescent com ...

. J2Fs of the utility squadron of US

Patrol Wing A Patrol Wing (PatWing) was a United States Navy aviation unit with the commander of a Patrol Wing known as the Commodore, the ComPatWing or COMPATWING. From 1 November 1942 to 30 June 1973 Patrol Wings were designated "Fleet Air Wings". On 26 Mar ...

10 were destroyed at

Mariveles Naval Section Base Map of Manila, Naval Base Manila is at Cavite in Manila Bay Naval Base Manila, Naval Air Base Manila was a major United States Navy base south of the City of Manila, on Luzon Island in the Philippines. Some of the bases dates back to 1898, t ...

, Philippines, by a Japanese air raid on 5 January 1942. The only Duck to survive the attack had a dead engine but had been concealed at Cabcaben airfield during the

Battle of Bataan The Battle of Bataan ( tl, Labanan sa Bataan; January 7 – April 9, 1942) was fought by the United States and the Philippine Commonwealth against Japan during World War II. The battle represented the most intense phase of the Japanese inva ...

, to be repaired afterwards with a cylinder removed from a destroyed J2F-4 submerged in Manila Bay. Following repairs the J2F-4 departed after midnight on 9 April 1942, overloaded with five passengers and the pilot, becoming the last aircraft to depart Bataan before the surrender of the Bataan to the Japanese only hours later. Among its passengers was

Carlos P. Romulo Carlos Peña Romulo Sr. (January 14, 1898 – December 15, 1985) was a Filipino diplomat, statesman, soldier, journalist and author. He was a reporter at the age of 16, a newspaper editor by 20, and a publisher at 32. He was a co-founder of t ...

(diplomat, politician, soldier, journalist, and author), who recounted the flight in his 1942 best-selling book ''I Saw the Fall of the Philippines'' (Doubleday, Doran & Company, Inc., Garden City, New York 1943, pp. 288–303), for which he received the

Pulitzer Prize for Correspondence {{Pulitzer The Pulitzer Prize for Correspondence was awarded from 1929 to 1947. Winners *1929: Paul Scott Mowrer of the ''Chicago Daily News'', for his coverage of international affairs including the Franco-British Naval Pact and Germany's campai ...

Variants

;J2F-1 :Initial production version with 750 hp R-1820-20 engines, 29 built. ;J2F-2 :

United States Marine Corps The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for conducting expeditionary and amphibious operations through combi ...

version with nose and dorsal guns and underwing bomb racks, 21 built. ;J2F-2A :As J2F-2 with minor changes for use in the

United States Virgin Islands The United States Virgin Islands,. Also called the ''American Virgin Islands'' and the ''U.S. Virgin Islands''. officially the Virgin Islands of the United States, are a group of Caribbean islands and an unincorporated and organized territory ...

, nine built. ;J2F-3 :J2F-2 but powered by an 850 hp R-1820-26 engine, 20 built. ;J2F-4 :J2F-2 but powered by an 850 hp R-1820-30 engine and fitted with target towing equipment, 32 built. ;J2F-5 :J2F-2 but powered by a 1,050 hp R-1820-54 engine, 144 built. ;J2F-6 :Columbia Aircraft built version of the J2F-5 with a 1,050 hp R-1820-64 engine in a long-chord

cowling A cowling is the removable covering of a vehicle's engine, most often found on automobiles, motorcycles, airplanes, and on outboard boat motors. On airplanes, cowlings are used to reduce drag and to cool the engine. On boats, cowlings are a cove ...

, fitted with underwing bomb racks and provision for target towing gear; 330 built. ;OA-12 :

Air-sea rescue Air-sea rescue (ASR or A/SR, also known as sea-air rescue), and aeronautical and maritime search and rescue (AMSAR) by the ICAO and IMO, is the coordinated search and rescue (SAR) of the survivors of emergency water landings as well as people ...

conversion for the

United States Army Air Forces The United States Army Air Forces (USAAF or AAF) was the major land-based aerial warfare service component of the United States Army and ''de facto'' aerial warfare service branch of the United States during and immediately after World War II ...

(and later

, OA-12A).

Operators

; *

Argentine Naval Aviation ) Gulf War , anniversaries = , decorations = , battle_honours = , commander1 = President , commander1_label = Commander-in-Chief , commander2 ...

received four new-build Grumman G-15s (equivalent to J2F-4s) in 1939, to supplement the eight Grumman G-20s (export version of the Grumman JF-2) received in 1937.Lezon and Stitt 2003, pp. 41–42, 44–45 In 1946–1947, 32 ex-US Navy Ducks (consisting of one J2F-4, 24 J2F-5s, and 7 J2F-6s) were acquired,Lezon and Stitt 2004, pp. 48–49. with the last examples remaining in use until 1958.Lezon and Stitt 2004, p. 59. ; *

Colombian Navy ) , colors= , march= ''"Viva Colombia, soy marinero"'' , mascot= , battles= Battle of Lake Maracaibo Thousand Days War (Civil war) Colombia-Peru War World War II Korean War Colombian Armed Conflict Operation Atalanta , notable_commanders= José ...

Allen 1983, p.77 (operated three examples from 1948). ; *

Mexican Navy The Mexican Navy is one of the two independent armed forces of Mexico. The actual naval forces are called the ''Armada de México''. The ''Secretaría de Marina'' (''SEMAR'') (English: Naval Secretariat) includes both the ''Armada'' itself and ...

(operated three ex-U.S. Navy J2F-6s from 1950 to 1951).Allen 1983, p. 52. Columbia-built J2F-6 Duck USMC Valle AZ 22

; * Peruvian Navy (operated one ex-USN example from 1961 to 1964). ; *

United States Coast Guard The United States Coast Guard (USCG) is the maritime security, search and rescue, and law enforcement service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the country's eight uniformed services. The service is a maritime, military, mu ...

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...

Surviving aircraft

* 1649 – J2F-4 airworthy with the Mid America Flight Museum in

Mount Pleasant, Texas Mount Pleasant is the county seat of and largest city in Titus County, Texas, Titus County, in the U.S. state of Texas. As of the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census, Mount Pleasant's population was 16,047; it is situated in Northeast Texas. ...

. * 33549 – J2F-6 airworthy at

Fantasy of Flight Fantasy of Flight is an aviation museum in Polk City, Florida. It opened in November 1995, to house Kermit Weeks' collection of aircraft that, until Hurricane Andrew damaged many in 1992, were housed at the Weeks Air Museum in Tamiami, Florid ...

Polk City, Florida Polk City is a city in Polk County, Florida, United States. The population was 1,562 at the 2010 census. As of 2018, the population recorded by the U.S. Census Bureau is 2,422. It is part of the Lakeland– Winter Haven Metropolitan Statistic ...

. * 33559 – J2F-6 airworthy at the Erickson Aircraft Collection in

Madras, Oregon Madras ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Jefferson County, Oregon, United States. Originally called "The Basin" after the circular valley the city is in, it is unclear whether Madras was named in 1903 for the cotton fabric called "Madras" ...

. * 33581 – J2F-6 on static display at the

National Naval Aviation Museum The National Naval Aviation Museum, formerly known as the National Museum of Naval Aviation and the Naval Aviation Museum, is a military and aerospace museum located at Naval Air Station Pensacola, Florida. Founded in 1962 and moved to its cur ...

in Pensacola, Florida. * 33587 – J2F-6 on static display at the

National Museum of the United States Air Force The National Museum of the United States Air Force (formerly the United States Air Force Museum) is the official museum of the United States Air Force located at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, northeast of Dayton, Ohio. The NMUSAF is the ...

Dayton, Ohio Dayton () is the sixth-largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Montgomery County. A small part of the city extends into Greene County. The 2020 U.S. census estimate put the city population at 137,644, while Greater D ...

. * 33594 – J2F-6 airworthy with Comanche Warbirds Inc. in Houston, Texas. * 33614 – J2F-6 under restoration to airworthy for Fantasy of Flight in Polk City, Florida. * 36976 – J2F-6 on static display at the

EAA Aviation Museum The EAA Aviation Museum, formerly the EAA AirVenture Museum (or Air Adventure Museum), is a museum dedicated to the preservation and display of historic and experimental aircraft as well as antiques, classics, and warbirds. The museum is lo ...

in Oshkosh, Wisconsin. * 48-0563 – OA-12 in storage with the Skyfire Corporation in Wilmington, Delaware.

Specifications (J2F-6)

Popular culture

* A J2F Duck was used in the 1971 film ''

Murphy's War ''Murphy's War'' is an Eastmancolor 1971 Panavision war film starring Peter O'Toole and Siân Phillips. It was directed by Peter Yates based on the 1969 novel by Max Catto. The film's cinematographer was Douglas Slocombe. The film is set in ...

'', which includes a spectacular three-minute rough water

takeoff Takeoff is the phase of flight in which an aerospace vehicle leaves the ground and becomes airborne. For aircraft traveling vertically, this is known as liftoff. For aircraft that take off horizontally, this usually involves starting with a ...

scene along with numerous flying and aerobatic sequences. The actual airplane used in this film is on display at the National Museum of the United States Air Force near Dayton, Ohio, although it has been restored and painted to represent a rescue OA-12. * A Grumman Duck was also seen in several episodes of the 1970s TV series '' Baa Baa Black Sheep'', (aka Black Sheep Squadron) based on the activities of Marine fighter squadron

VMF-214 Marine Fighter Attack Squadron 214 (VMFA-214) is a United States Marine Corps attack squadron consisting of Lockheed Martin F-35B STOVL jets. It is currently in the process of transitioning from its fleet of AV-8B Harrier ( V/STOL) jets. The ...

Notes

References

* Allen, Francis J. "A Duck Without Feathers". ''

Air Enthusiast ''Air Enthusiast'' was a British, bi-monthly, aviation magazine, published by the Key Publishing group. Initially begun in 1974 as ''Air Enthusiast Quarterly'', the magazine was conceived as a historical adjunct to ''Air International'' maga ...

''. Issue 23, December 1983 – March 1984, pp. 46–55, 77–78. * Bridgeman, Leonard. “ The Grumman Duck .” ''Jane's Fighting Aircraft of World War II''. London: Studio, 1946. . * Hosek, Timothy. ''Grumman JF Duck – Mini in Action 7''. Carrollton, Texas: Squadron/Signal Publications Inc., 1996. . * Jarski, Adam. ''Grumman JF/J2F Duck (Monografie Lotnicze 98)'' (in Polish with English captions). Gdańsk, Poland: AJ-Press, 2007. . * * Lezon, Ricardo Martin and Robert M. Stitt. "Eyes of the Fleet:Seaplanes in Argentine Navy Service: Part one". ''Air Enthusiast''. Issue 108, November/December 2003. pp. 34–45. * Lezon, Ricardo Martin and Robert M. Stitt. "Eyes of the Fleet:Seaplanes in Argentine Navy Service: Part two". ''Air Enthusiast''. Issue 10, January/February 2004. pp. 46–59. * * Nuñez Padin, Jorge Félix. ''Grumman G.15, G.20 & J2F Duck (Serie Aeronaval Nro. 15)'' (in Spanish). Buenos Aires, Argentina: Museo de Aviación Naval, Instituto Naval, 2002. *

External links

(1945) NAVAER 01-220QA-1 Pilot's Handbook of Flight Operating Instructions Navy Model J2F-6 Airplane

(retrieved 2015-01-31)

(retrieved 2015-01-31) {{USN utility aircraft Grumman J02F J02F Duck 1930s United States military utility aircraft Single-engined tractor aircraft Biplanes Floatplanes Amphibious aircraft Aircraft first flown in 1936 Carrier-based aircraft