Vought TBU on:
[Wikipedia]
[Google]
[Amazon]
The Consolidated TBY Sea Wolf was a United States Navy torpedo bomber of World War II. A competitor and contemporary to the Grumman TBF Avenger, the Sea Wolf was subject to substantial delays and never saw combat; only 180 of the type were built before cancellation after VJ Day.
The original design was not by Consolidated Aircraft, but rather by Vought, who designed the then XTBU-1 Sea Wolf to a 1939 US Navy requirement. The first prototype flew two weeks after Pearl Harbor. Its performance was deemed superior to the Avenger and the Navy placed an order for 1,000 examples.
Several unfortunate incidents intervened; the prototype was damaged in a rough arrested landing trial, and when repaired a month later was again damaged in a collision with a training aircraft. Once repaired again, the prototype was accepted by the Navy. However, by this time Vought was heavily overcommitted to other contracts, especially for the F4U Corsair fighter, and had no production capacity. It was arranged that
The production TBYs were radar-equipped, with a radome under the right-hand wing. The first aircraft flew on 20 August 1944. By this time though, the Avenger equipped every torpedo squadron in the Navy, and there was no need for the Sea Wolf; in addition, numerous small problems delayed entry into service. Orders were cancelled after production started, and the 180 built were used for training.
TBY Seawolf at Brown Shoe Navy
AirToAirCombat.Com: Vought TBU-1 Sea Wolf
{{USN torpedo aircraft TBY TBU 1940s United States bomber aircraft Single-engined tractor aircraft Carrier-based aircraft World War II torpedo bombers of the United States Mid-wing aircraft Aircraft first flown in 1941
Design and development
The original design was not by Consolidated Aircraft, but rather by Vought, who designed the then XTBU-1 Sea Wolf to a 1939 US Navy requirement. The first prototype flew two weeks after Pearl Harbor. Its performance was deemed superior to the Avenger and the Navy placed an order for 1,000 examples.
Several unfortunate incidents intervened; the prototype was damaged in a rough arrested landing trial, and when repaired a month later was again damaged in a collision with a training aircraft. Once repaired again, the prototype was accepted by the Navy. However, by this time Vought was heavily overcommitted to other contracts, especially for the F4U Corsair fighter, and had no production capacity. It was arranged that Consolidated-Vultee
Convair, previously Consolidated Vultee, was an American aircraft manufacturing company that later expanded into rockets and spacecraft. The company was formed in 1943 by the merger of Consolidated Aircraft and Vultee Aircraft. In 1953, it ...
would produce the aircraft (as the TBY), but this had to wait until the new production facility in Allentown, Pennsylvania
Allentown (Pennsylvania Dutch language, Pennsylvania Dutch: ''Allenschteddel'', ''Allenschtadt'', or ''Ellsdaun'') is a city in Lehigh County, Pennsylvania, Lehigh County, Pennsylvania. The city has a population of 125,845 as of the 2020 United ...
, was complete, which took until late 1943.
Operational history
The production TBYs were radar-equipped, with a radome under the right-hand wing. The first aircraft flew on 20 August 1944. By this time though, the Avenger equipped every torpedo squadron in the Navy, and there was no need for the Sea Wolf; in addition, numerous small problems delayed entry into service. Orders were cancelled after production started, and the 180 built were used for training.
Variants
;XTBU-1 Sea Wolf :Prototype three-seat torpedo bomber powered by a R-2800-22 engine, one built. ;TBY-1 Sea Wolf :Production variant of the XTBU-1, not built. ;TBY-2 Sea Wolf :TBY-1 with an additional radar pod mounted under starboard-wing, 180 built, a further 920 were cancelled. ;TBY-3 Sea Wolf :Improved variant, order for 600 cancelled, not built.Specifications (TBY-2 Sea Wolf)
See also
References
Notes
Further reading
*Ginter, Steve, Bill Chana and Phil Prophett. ''Vought XTBU-1 & TBY-2 Sea Wolf'' (Naval Fighters number Thirty-Three). Simi Valley, CA: Ginter Books, 1995 . .External links
TBY Seawolf at Brown Shoe Navy
AirToAirCombat.Com: Vought TBU-1 Sea Wolf
{{USN torpedo aircraft TBY TBU 1940s United States bomber aircraft Single-engined tractor aircraft Carrier-based aircraft World War II torpedo bombers of the United States Mid-wing aircraft Aircraft first flown in 1941