SBD-3 Dauntless bombers of VS-8 over the burning Japanese cruiser Mikuma on 6 June 1942.jpg
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The Douglas SBD Dauntless is a World War II
American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...
naval scout plane and
dive bomber A dive bomber is a bomber aircraft that dives directly at its targets in order to provide greater accuracy for the bomb it drops. Diving towards the target simplifies the bomb's trajectory and allows the pilot to keep visual contact througho ...
that was manufactured by Douglas Aircraft from 1940 through 1944. The SBD ("Scout Bomber Douglas") was the United States Navy's main
carrier-based Carrier-based aircraft, sometimes known as carrier-capable aircraft or carrier-borne aircraft, are naval aircraft designed for operations from aircraft carriers. They must be able to launch in a short distance and be sturdy enough to withstand ...
scout/dive bomber from mid-1940 through mid-1944. The SBD was also flown by the United States Marine Corps, both from land air bases and
aircraft carrier An aircraft carrier is a warship that serves as a seagoing airbase, equipped with a full-length flight deck and facilities for carrying, arming, deploying, and recovering aircraft. Typically, it is the capital ship of a fleet, as it allows a ...
s. The SBD is best remembered as the bomber that delivered the fatal blows to the Japanese carriers at the Battle of Midway in June 1942.Parker, Dana T. ''Building Victory: Aircraft Manufacturing in the Los Angeles Area in World War II,'' pp. 25–34, Cypress, CA, 2013. . The type earned its nickname "Slow But Deadly" (from its SBD initials) during this period. During its combat service, the SBD proved to be an excellent naval scout plane and dive bomber. It possessed long range, good handling characteristics, maneuverability, potent bomb load, great diving characteristics from the perforated dive brakes, good defensive armament, and ruggedness. One land-based variant of the SBD – omitting the arrestor hook — was purpose-built for the
U.S. 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 ...
, as the A-24 Banshee.


Design and development

Design work on the
Northrop BT-1 The Northrop BT was an American two-seat, single-engine monoplane dive bomber built by the Northrop Corporation for the United States Navy. At the time, Northrop was a subsidiary of the Douglas Aircraft Company. While unsuccessful in its own r ...
began in 1935. In 1937, the Northrop Corporation was taken over by Douglas, and the active Northrop projects continued under Douglas Aircraft Corporation. 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 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. One year earlier, both the U.S. Navy and Marine Corps had placed orders for the new dive bomber, designated the ''SBD-1'' and ''SBD-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 the
SBU Corsair The Vought SBU-1 Corsair was a two-seat, all-metal biplane dive bomber built by Vought Aircraft Company of Dallas, Texas for the US Navy. Its design was based upon the F3U-1 two-seat fighter that was abandoned when the Navy decided not to obtain ...
and Curtiss SBC Helldiver squadrons on US carriers. Distinctive perforated split flaps or "dive-brakes" had been incorporated into the BT-1 to eliminate tail buffeting during diving maneuvers. Unusual for carrier aircraft, folding wings were not chosen for the design, opting instead for structural strength. The next version was the ''SBD-3'', which began manufacture in early 1941. It had increased armor, self-sealing fuel tanks, and four machine guns. The ''SBD-4'' provided a 12-volt (up from 6-volt) electrical system, and a few were converted into ''SBD-4P''
reconnaissance aircraft A reconnaissance aircraft (colloquially, a spy plane) is a military aircraft designed or adapted to perform aerial reconnaissance with roles including collection of imagery intelligence (including using photography), signals intelligence, as ...
. The next (and most produced) version, the ''SBD-5'', was produced mostly in the Douglas plant in Tulsa, Oklahoma. This version was equipped with a engine and an increased ammunition supply. Over 2,400 of these were built. A few of them were shipped to the Royal Navy for evaluation. In addition to American service, the SBD saw combat against the Japanese Army and Navy with No. 25 Squadron of the
Royal New Zealand Air Force The Royal New Zealand Air Force (RNZAF) ( mi, Te Tauaarangi o Aotearoa, "The Warriors of the Sky of New Zealand"; previously ', "War Party of the Blue") is the aerial service branch of the New Zealand Defence Force. It was formed from New Zeala ...
—but the RNZAF soon replaced them with the larger, faster, heavier and land-based Vought F4U Corsairs. Some SBDs were also flown by the Free French Air Force against the German
Heer Heer may refer to: People * Jeet Heer, Canadian author and journalist * Jeffrey Heer (born 1979), American computer scientist and entrepreneur * Kamal Heer (born 1973), Punjabi singer and musician * Oswald Heer (1809–1883), Swiss botanist and ...
and Luftwaffe. SBDs were also sold to Mexico. The final version, the ''SBD-6'', had more improvements, but its production ended during the summer of 1944. The
U.S. Army Air Force 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 ...
had its own version of the SBD, called the A-24 Banshee. It lacked the tail hook used for carrier landings, and a pneumatic tire replaced the solid tail wheel. First assigned to the 27th Bombardment Group (Light) at
Hunter Field Hunter Army Airfield , located in Savannah, Georgia, United States, is a military airfield and subordinate installation to Fort Stewart located in Hinesville, Georgia. Hunter features a runway that is 11,375 feet (3,468 m) long and an Airpor ...
, Georgia, A-24s flew in the
Louisiana maneuvers The Louisiana Maneuvers were a series of major U.S. Army exercises held in 1941 in northern and west-central Louisiana, an area bounded by the Sabine River to the west, the Calcasieu River to the east, and by the city of Shreveport to the nort ...
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."Douglas A-24"
''National Museum of the United States Air Force.''
The USAAF used 948 of the 5,937 Dauntlesses built.


Operational history


U.S. Navy and Marine Corps

U.S. Navy and Marine Corps SBDs saw their first action at Pearl Harbor, when most of the Marine Corps SBDs of Marine Scout Bombing Squadron 232 (VMSB-232) were destroyed on the ground at Ewa Mooring Mast Field. Most U.S. Navy SBDs flew from their
aircraft carrier An aircraft carrier is a warship that serves as a seagoing airbase, equipped with a full-length flight deck and facilities for carrying, arming, deploying, and recovering aircraft. Typically, it is the capital ship of a fleet, as it allows a ...
s, 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.Salamander Books, Ltd. 1974. . On 10 December 1941, SBDs from sank the Japanese submarine ''I-70''. In February–March 1942, SBDs from the carriers , , and , took part in various raids on Japanese installations in the
Gilbert Islands The Gilbert Islands ( gil, Tungaru;Reilly Ridgell. ''Pacific Nations and Territories: The Islands of Micronesia, Melanesia, and Polynesia.'' 3rd. Ed. Honolulu: Bess Press, 1995. p. 95. formerly Kingsmill or King's-Mill IslandsVery often, this n ...
, the Marshall Islands, New Guinea,
Rabaul Rabaul () is a township in the East New Britain province of Papua New Guinea, on the island of New Britain. It lies about 600 kilometres to the east of the island of New Guinea. Rabaul was the provincial capital and most important settlement in ...
, Wake Island, and Marcus Island. The first major use of the SBD in combat was at the
Battle of the Coral Sea The Battle of the Coral Sea, from 4 to 8 May 1942, was a major naval battle between the Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN) and naval and air forces of the United States and Australia. Taking place in the Pacific Theatre of World War II, the batt ...
where SBDs and TBD Devastators sank the Japanese light aircraft carrier (CVL) and damaged the Japanese fleet carrier . SBDs were also used for anti-torpedo combat air patrols (CAP) and these scored several victories against Japanese aircraft trying to attack ''Lexington'' and ''Yorktown''. Their relatively heavy gun armament with two forward-firing M2 Browning machine guns and either one or two rear flexible-mount 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 pilot Stanley "Swede" Vejtasa was attacked by three A6M2 ''Zero'' fighters; he shot down two of them and cut off the wing of the third in a head-on pass with his wingtip."USAF UA Vejtasa bio."
''au.af.mil.'' Retrieved: 23 August 2010.
The SBD's most important contribution to the American war effort came during the Battle of Midway in early June 1942. Four
squadron Squadron may refer to: * Squadron (army), a military unit of cavalry, tanks, or equivalent subdivided into troops or tank companies * Squadron (aviation), a military unit that consists of three or four flights with a total of 12 to 24 aircraft, de ...
s 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 (, , ) and, later in the day, . They also caught two straggling heavy cruisers of the Midway bombardment group of four, heavily damaging them, with eventually sinking. At the Battle of Midway, Marine Corps SBDs were not as effective. One squadron, VMSB-241, flying from
Midway Atoll Midway Atoll (colloquial: Midway Islands; haw, Kauihelani, translation=the backbone of heaven; haw, Pihemanu, translation=the loud din of birds, label=none) is a atoll in the North Pacific Ocean. Midway Atoll is an insular area of the Unit ...
, was not trained in the techniques of dive-bombing with their new Dauntlesses (having just partially converted from the SB2U Vindicator). Its pilots resorted to the slower but easier
glide bombing A dive bomber is a bomber aircraft that dives directly at its targets in order to provide greater accuracy for the bomb it drops. Diving towards the target simplifies the bomb's trajectory and allows the pilot to keep visual contact throughou ...
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 the National Naval Aviation Museum and is the last surviving aircraft to fly in the battle. The carrier-borne squadrons were effective, especially when they were escorted by Grumman F4F Wildcats. The success of dive bombing was due to one important circumstance: SBDs played a major role in the
Guadalcanal Campaign The Guadalcanal campaign, also known as the Battle of Guadalcanal and codenamed Operation Watchtower by American forces, was a military campaign fought between 7 August 1942 and 9 February 1943 on and around the island of Guadalcanal in th ...
, operating off both American carriers and from Henderson Field on
Guadalcanal Guadalcanal (; indigenous name: ''Isatabu'') is the principal island in Guadalcanal Province of Solomon Islands, located in the south-western Pacific, northeast of Australia. It is the largest island in the Solomon Islands by area, and the seco ...
. SBDs proved lethal to Japanese shipping that failed to clear New Georgia Sound (the slot) by daylight. Losses inflicted included the carrier , sunk near the Solomon Islands on 24 August. Three other Japanese carriers were damaged during the six-month campaign. SBDs sank a cruiser and nine transports during the Naval Battle of Guadalcanal. The SBD's strengths and weaknesses became evident. While the American strength was dive bombing, the Japanese stressed their Nakajima B5N2 "Kate" torpedo bombers, which had caused the bulk of the damage during the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. In the Atlantic Ocean the SBD saw action during
Operation Torch Operation Torch (8 November 1942 – Run for Tunis, 16 November 1942) was an Allies of World War II, Allied invasion of French North Africa during the Second World War. Torch was a compromise operation that met the British objective of secu ...
, the Allied landings in North Africa in November 1942. The SBDs flew from and two
escort carrier The escort carrier or escort aircraft carrier (U.S. hull classification symbol CVE), also called a "jeep carrier" or "baby flattop" in the United States Navy (USN) or "Woolworth Carrier" by the Royal Navy, was a small and slow type of aircraft ...
s. Eleven months later, during
Operation Leader Operation Leader was an air attack conducted against German shipping in the vicinity of Bodø, Norway, on 4 October 1943, during World War II. The raid was executed by aircraft flying from the United States Navy aircraft carrier , which was at ...
, the SBDs saw their European debut when aircraft from ''Ranger'' attacked Nazi German shipping around
Bodø Bodø (; smj, Bådåddjo, sv, Bodö) is a municipality in Nordland county, Norway. It is part of the traditional region of Salten. The administrative centre of the municipality is the town of Bodø (which is also the capital of Nordland count ...
, Norway. By 1944 the U.S. Navy began replacing the SBD with the more powerful
SB2C Helldiver The Curtiss SB2C Helldiver is a dive bomber developed by Curtiss-Wright during World War II. As a carrier-based bomber with the United States Navy (USN), in Pacific theaters, it supplemented and replaced the Douglas SBD Dauntless. A few surv ...
. During the Battle 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 when one by one they expended their fuel and had to ditch into the sea. 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 the
Pacific War The Pacific War, sometimes called the Asia–Pacific War, was the theater of World War II that was fought in Asia, the Pacific Ocean, the Indian Ocean, and Oceania. It was geographically the largest theater of the war, including the vast ...
, 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 due to enemy action. This is considered to be a rare event for a nominal "bomber".Tillman, Barrett ''The Dauntless Dive Bomber of World War Two.'' Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press, 1976. . 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 enemy
cruiser A cruiser is a type of warship. Modern cruisers are generally the largest ships in a fleet after aircraft carriers and amphibious assault ships, and can usually perform several roles. The term "cruiser", which has been in use for several hu ...
s had been sunk, along with six
destroyer In naval terminology, a destroyer is a fast, manoeuvrable, long-endurance warship intended to escort larger vessels in a fleet, convoy or battle group and defend them against powerful short range attackers. They were originally developed in ...
s, 15 transports or cargo ships and scores of various lesser craft.


United States Army Air Forces

The
U.S. 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 ...
sent 52 A-24 Banshees in crates to the Philippines in the fall of 1941 to equip the 27th Bombardment Group, whose personnel were sent separately. However, after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, these bombers were diverted to
Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...
and the 27th BG fought on the
Bataan Peninsula Bataan (), officially the Province of Bataan ( fil, Lalawigan ng Bataan ), is a province in the Central Luzon region of the Philippines. Its capital is the city of Balanga while Mariveles is the largest town in the province. Occupying the entir ...
as infantry. While in Australia the aircraft were reassembled for flight to the Philippines but their missing parts, including solenoids, trigger motors and gun mounts delayed their shipment. Plagued with mechanical problems, the A-24s were diverted to the 91st Bombardment Squadron and designated for assignment to Java Island instead. Referring to themselves as "Blue Rock Clay Pigeons" (after a brand of
trap shooting Trap shooting, or trapshooting in North America, is one of the three major disciplines of competitive clay pigeon shooting, which is shooting shotguns at clay targets. The other disciplines are skeet shooting and sporting clays. They are disting ...
targets), the 91st BS which were based at
Malang Malang (; ) is a landlocked List of regencies and cities of Indonesia, city in the Indonesian Provinces of Indonesia, province of East Java. It has a history dating back to the age of Singhasari, Singhasari Kingdom. It is the second most popul ...
attacked the enemy-held harbor and airbase at
Bali Bali () is a province of Indonesia and the westernmost of the Lesser Sunda Islands. East of Java and west of Lombok, the province includes the island of Bali and a few smaller neighbouring islands, notably Nusa Penida, Nusa Lembongan, and Nu ...
and damaged or sank numerous ships around Java during the
Dutch East Indies campaign The Dutch East Indies campaign of 1941–1942 was the conquest of the Dutch East Indies (present-day Indonesia) by forces from the Empire of Japan in the early days of the Pacific campaign of World War II. Forces from the Allies attempted u ...
. 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 the 8th Bombardment Squadron of
3d Bombardment Group 3-D, 3D, or 3d may refer to: Science, technology, and mathematics Relating to three-dimensionality * Three-dimensional space ** 3D computer graphics, computer graphics that use a three-dimensional representation of geometric data ** 3D film, a ...
, to defend New Guinea. On 29 July 1942, seven A-24s attacked a convoy off Buna, 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 the
Gilbert Islands The Gilbert Islands ( gil, Tungaru;Reilly Ridgell. ''Pacific Nations and Territories: The Islands of Micronesia, Melanesia, and Polynesia.'' 3rd. Ed. Honolulu: Bess Press, 1995. p. 95. formerly Kingsmill or King's-Mill IslandsVery often, this n ...
. From December 1943 until March 1944, the 531st Fighter Squadron of the 7th Air Force flew A-24Bs from Makin Island in the Gilbert Islands against Japanese controlled islands in the Marshall 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-1820-60 ''Cyclone'' 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 of Kiska, 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 the Air 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.


French Air Force and Naval Aviation (''Aeronavale'')

The first production Dauntless sent into action was the "SBD-3", which was produced for the French Naval Aviation. A total of 174 Dauntlesses were ordered by the French 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. The Free French received about 80 SBD-5s and A-24Bs from the United States in 1944. They were used as trainers and close-support aircraft. * Free French squadrons received 40 to 50 A-24Bs in Morocco and Algeria during 1943. * French Naval Aviation (''Aeronautique Navale'') received 32 in late 1944 for Flotilles 3FB and 4FB (16 SBD-5s for each). Squadron I/17 ''Picardie'' used a few A-24Bs for coastal patrol. The most combat-experienced of the Banshee units was GC 1/18 ''Vendee'', 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 the
French Air Force The French Air and Space Force (AAE) (french: Armée de l'air et de l'espace, ) is the air and space force of the French Armed Forces. It was the first military aviation force in history, formed in 1909 as the , a service arm of the French Army; ...
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 the Indochina War, flying from the carrier '' Arromanches'' (the former Royal Navy carrier ''Colossus''). 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.


Royal New Zealand Air Force

The
Royal New Zealand Air Force The Royal New Zealand Air Force (RNZAF) ( mi, Te Tauaarangi o Aotearoa, "The Warriors of the Sky of New Zealand"; previously ', "War Party of the Blue") is the aerial service branch of the New Zealand Defence Force. It was formed from New Zeala ...
received 18 SBD-3s and 23 SBD-4s and
No. 25 Squadron RNZAF No. 25 Squadron of the Royal New Zealand Air Force was formed at Seagrove, Auckland in July 1943 with Douglas SBD Dauntless dive bombers and served in the Southern Pacific based at the Piva Airstrip on Bougainville, flying missions against Japanes ...
used them in combat over the
South Pacific The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean (or, depending on definition, to Antarctica) in the south, and is bounded by the continen ...
. Under the original plan, four Squadrons (25, 26, 27 and 28) of the RNZAF were going to be equipped with the Dauntless but only 25 Squadron used them. The RNZAF soon replaced them with F4U Corsairs.


Variants

;XBT-2: prototype, airframe was a production Northrop BT-1 heavily modified and redesignated as the XBT-2. Further modified by Douglas as the XSBD-1. ;SBD-1: Marine Corps version without self-sealing fuel tanks; 57 built. ;SBD-1P:
reconnaissance aircraft A reconnaissance aircraft (colloquially, a spy plane) is a military aircraft designed or adapted to perform aerial reconnaissance with roles including collection of imagery intelligence (including using photography), signals intelligence, as ...
, converted from SBD-1s. ;SBD-2: Navy version with increased fuel capacity and different armament but without self-sealing fuel tanks, starting in early 1941; 87 built. ;SBD-2P: reconnaissance aircraft, converted from SBD-2s. ;SBD-3: began to be manufactured in early 1941. This provided increased protection, self-sealing fuel tanks, and four machine guns; 584 were built. ;SBD-4: provided a 24-volt (up from 12 volt) electrical system; In addition, a new propeller and fuel pumps rounded out the improvements over the SBD-3. 780 built. ;SBD-4P: reconnaissance aircraft, converted from SBD-4s. ;SBD-5: The most produced version, primarily produced at the Douglas Aircraft plant in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Equipped with a 1,200-hp engine and an increased ammunition supply. A total of 2,965 were built, and a few were shipped to the Royal Navy for evaluation. In addition to American service, these saw combat against the Japanese with No. 25 Squadron of the
Royal New Zealand Air Force The Royal New Zealand Air Force (RNZAF) ( mi, Te Tauaarangi o Aotearoa, "The Warriors of the Sky of New Zealand"; previously ', "War Party of the Blue") is the aerial service branch of the New Zealand Defence Force. It was formed from New Zeala ...
which soon replaced them with
F4U The Vought F4U Corsair is an American fighter aircraft which saw service primarily in World War II and the Korean War. Designed and initially manufactured by Vought, Chance Vought, the Corsair was soon in great demand; additional production co ...
s, and against the Luftwaffe with the Free French Air Force. A few were also sent to Mexico. ;SBD-5A: :as A-24B, for USAAF but delivered to USMC; 60 built. ;SBD-6: The final version, providing more improvements, including a engine, but production ended in the summer of 1944; 450 built. ;A-24 Banshee (SBD-3A): USAAF equivalent of the SBD-3 without arrestor hook; 168 built.Mondey 1996, p. 127. ;A-24A Banshee (SBD-4A): USAAF equivalent of the SBD-4; 170 built. ;A-24B Banshee (SBD-5A): USAAF equivalent of the SBD-5; 615 built.


Operators

; * Chilean Air Force operated A-24B Banshees.Smith 1997, p. 150. ; *
French Air Force The French Air and Space Force (AAE) (french: Armée de l'air et de l'espace, ) is the air and space force of the French Armed Forces. It was the first military aviation force in history, formed in 1909 as the , a service arm of the French Army; ...
Smith 1997, pp. 151–155. * French Navy ; * Mexican Air Force ; * Moroccan Desert Police ; *
Royal New Zealand Air Force The Royal New Zealand Air Force (RNZAF) ( mi, Te Tauaarangi o Aotearoa, "The Warriors of the Sky of New Zealand"; previously ', "War Party of the Blue") is the aerial service branch of the New Zealand Defence Force. It was formed from New Zeala ...
**
No. 25 Squadron RNZAF No. 25 Squadron of the Royal New Zealand Air Force was formed at Seagrove, Auckland in July 1943 with Douglas SBD Dauntless dive bombers and served in the Southern Pacific based at the Piva Airstrip on Bougainville, flying missions against Japanes ...
; * Royal Air Force received aircraft for evaluation from the nine originally tested by the Fleet Air Arm. * Royal Navy Fleet Air Arm received nine former United States Navy SBD-5s for evaluation. ; * United States Army Air Forces **
339th Bombardment Group 339th may refer to: * 339th Aviation Detachment, United States Army Aviation Branch * 339th Bombardment Group, unit of the New York Air National Guard *339th Bombardment Squadron, inactive United States Air Force unit *339th Fighter Group, unit of ...
(Dive), as operational training unit in 1942-1943 * United States Marine Corps * United States Navy


Notable accidents

* On 7 December 1943, during a joint U.S. NavyU.S. Marine simulated
close air support In military tactics, close air support (CAS) is defined as air action such as air strikes by fixed or rotary-winged aircraft against hostile targets near friendly forces and require detailed integration of each air mission with fire and moveme ...
exercise near Pauwela, Maui, Territory of Hawaii, the pilot of a U.S. Navy SBD-5, BuNo ''36045''Gero, David B. "Military Aviation Disasters: Significant Losses Since 1908". Sparkford, Yoevil, Somerset, UK: Haynes Publishing, 2010, , pp. 26–27. of squadron VB-10, initiated a slight right-hand turn and deployed dive brakes in preparation for a bomb run, but his aircraft was struck by a second VB-10 SBD-5, ''36099'', that did not have dive brakes deployed. Both aircraft crashed, and a bomb knocked loose from ''36045'' fell in the midst of a group of marines and detonated, killing 20 and seriously injuring 24. Both SBD pilots parachuted to safety, but both SBD gunners died, one after an unsuccessful bailout attempt. The collision was attributed to poor judgment and flying technique by both pilots. Aviation Archaeology Investigation & Research gives the date of this accident as 6 December.


Surviving aircraft

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).


New Zealand

;On display ;;SBD-4 * 06853 – Royal New Zealand Air Force Museum in Christchurch.


Solomon Islands

;On display ;;SBD-? * Unknown –
Vilu Military Museum Vilu Military Museum, also known as the Vilu War Museum, is a small open air museum in Vilu, on the island of Guadalcanal in the Solomon Islands. The museum houses the remains of American and Japanese equipment left over from the Guadalcanal ca ...
in
Guadalcanal Guadalcanal (; indigenous name: ''Isatabu'') is the principal island in Guadalcanal Province of Solomon Islands, located in the south-western Pacific, northeast of Australia. It is the largest island in the Solomon Islands by area, and the seco ...
.


United States

;Airworthy ;;A-24A * 42-60817 – based at the Erickson Aircraft Collection in Madras, Oregon as an SBD-3. ;;A-24B * 42-54682 – based at the
Lone Star Flight Museum The Lone Star Flight Museum, located in Houston, Texas, is an aerospace museum that displays more than 24 historically significant aircraft, and many artifacts related to the history of flight. The museum's collection is rare because most of ...
in
Houston, Texas Houston (; ) is the most populous city in Texas, the most populous city in the Southern United States, the fourth-most populous city in the United States, and the sixth-most populous city in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 in ...
as an SBD-5. ;;SBD-4 * 10518 – based at the Yanks Air Museum in Chino, California. * 10694 – based at the National Museum of World War II Aviation in
Colorado Springs, Colorado Colorado Springs is a home rule municipality in, and the county seat of, El Paso County, Colorado, United States. It is the largest city in El Paso County, with a population of 478,961 at the 2020 United States Census, a 15.02% increase since ...
. ;;SBD-5 * 28536 – based at the Planes of Fame in Chino, California. * 54532 – based at the Commemorative Air Force – Dixie Wing in
Peachtree City, Georgia Peachtree City is the largest city in Fayette County, Georgia, Fayette County, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, it had a population of 34,364. Peachtree City is located in South Metro Atlanta. P ...
;On display ;;A-24B * 42-54582 – National Museum of the United States Air Force at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base in Dayton, Ohio. * 42-54654 – Pima Air & Space Museum, adjacent to Davis-Monthan Air Force Base, Tucson, Arizona. ;;SBD-2 * 02106 – National Naval Aviation Museum at Naval Air Station Pensacola, Florida. Veteran of the Pearl Harbor attack and the Battle of Midway. * 02173 –
Pearl Harbor Aviation Museum Pearl Harbor Aviation Museum (formerly the Pacific Aviation Museum Pearl Harbor) is a non-profit founded in 1999 to develop an aviation museum in Hawaii. Part of Senator Daniel Inouye's vision for a rebirth of Ford Island, the museum hosts a vari ...
at
Ford Island, Hawaii Ford Island ( haw, Poka Ailana) is an islet in the center of Pearl Harbor, Oahu, in the U.S. state of Hawaii. It has been known as Rabbit Island, Marín's Island, and Little Goats Island, and its native Hawaiian name is ''Mokuumeume''. The isl ...
. ;;SBD-3 * 06508 – National World War II Museum in New Orleans, Louisiana. * 06583 – National Museum of the Marine Corps at Marine Corps Base Quantico, Virginia. * 06624 –
Air Zoo The Air Zoo, founded as the Kalamazoo Aviation History Museum, is an aviation museum and indoor amusement park next to the Kalamazoo-Battle Creek International Airport in Portage, Michigan. The Air Zoo holds many historical and rare aircraft, inc ...
in
Kalamazoo, Michigan Kalamazoo ( ) is a city in the southwest region of the U.S. state of Michigan. It is the county seat of Kalamazoo County. At the 2010 census, Kalamazoo had a population of 74,262. Kalamazoo is the major city of the Kalamazoo-Portage Metropolit ...
. It is on loan from National Naval Aviation Museum at Naval Air Station Pensacola. * 06694 – museum in
Corpus Christi, Texas Corpus Christi (; Ecclesiastical Latin: "'' Body of Christ"'') is a coastal city in the South Texas region of the U.S. state of Texas and the county seat and largest city of Nueces County, it also extends into Aransas, Kleberg, and San Patrici ...
. It is on loan from National Naval Aviation Museum at Naval Air Station Pensacola. ;;SBD-4 * 06833 – National Naval Aviation Museum at Naval Air Station Pensacola, Florida in its recovered condition in a simulated underwater exhibit. * 06900 –
San Diego Aerospace Museum San Diego Air & Space Museum (SDASM, formerly the San Diego Aerospace Museum) is an aviation and space exploration museum in San Diego, California, United States. The museum is located in Balboa Park and is housed in the former Ford Building, ...
in San Diego, California. It is on loan from the National Naval Aviation Museum at Naval Air Station Pensacola. * 10575 – Battle of Midway Memorial at
Midway Airport Chicago Midway International Airport , typically referred to as Midway Airport, Chicago Midway, or simply Midway, is a major commercial airport on the Southwest side of Chicago, Illinois, located approximately 12 miles (19 km) from the Lo ...
in Chicago, Illinois. ;;SBD-5 * 36173 – at the
Patriot's Point Patriots Point Naval & Maritime Museum is located in Mount Pleasant, South Carolina, at the mouth of the Cooper River on the Charleston Harbor, across from Charleston. Museum ships and exhibits Patriots Point is home to two museum ships: * , a ...
Naval and Maritime Museum in Mount Pleasant, South Carolina. * 36176 – Palm Springs Air Museum in
Palm Springs, California Palm Springs (Cahuilla: ''Séc-he'') is a desert resort city in Riverside County, California, United States, within the Colorado Desert's Coachella Valley. The city covers approximately , making it the largest city in Riverside County by land a ...
. * 36291 - Valiant Air Command Warbird Museum in Titusville, Florida. It is on loan from the National Naval Aviation Museum at Naval Air Station Pensacola. ;;SBD-6 * 54605 –
National Air and Space Museum The National Air and Space Museum of the Smithsonian Institution, also called the Air and Space Museum, is a museum in Washington, D.C., in the United States. Established in 1946 as the National Air Museum, it opened its main building on the Nat ...
in Washington, D.C. * 54654 –
USS Midway Museum The USS ''Midway'' Museum is a historical naval aircraft carrier museum located in downtown San Diego, California at Navy Pier. The museum consists of the aircraft carrier . The ship houses an extensive collection of aircraft, many of which we ...
in San Diego, California. ;Under restoration or in storage ;;SBD-1 * 1612 – for display at the
Air Zoo The Air Zoo, founded as the Kalamazoo Aviation History Museum, is an aviation museum and indoor amusement park next to the Kalamazoo-Battle Creek International Airport in Portage, Michigan. The Air Zoo holds many historical and rare aircraft, inc ...
in Portage, Michigan. ;;SBD-4 * 10508 – for display at the Castle Air Museum at the former Castle Air Force Base in Atwater, California. ;;SBD-5 * 36175 – to flightworthiness at the Military Aviation Museum in Virginia Beach, Virginia.


Specifications (SBD-5)


See also


References


Notes


Citations


Bibliography

* Bowers, Peter M. ''United States Navy Aircraft since 1911''. Annapolis, Maryland, USA: Naval Institute Press, 1990. . * Brazelton, David. ''The Douglas SBD Dauntless, Aircraft in Profile 196''. Leatherhead, Surrey, UK: Profile Publications Ltd., 1967. No ISBN. * Brown, Eric, CBE, DCS, AFC, RN, William Green and Gordon Swanborough. "Douglas Dauntless". ''Wings of the Navy, Flying Allied Carrier Aircraft of World War Two''. London: Jane's Publishing Company, 1980, pp. 52–60. . * Buell, Harold L. ''Dauntless Helldivers: A Dive Bomber Pilot's Epic Story of the Carrier Battles''. New York: Crown, 1991. . * Dann, Richard, S. ''SBD Dauntless Walk Around, Walk Around Number 33''. Carrollton, Texas, USA: Squadron/Signal Publications, Inc., 2004. . * Drendel, Lou. ''U.S. Navy Carrier Bombers of World War II''. Carrollton, Texas, USA: Squadron/Signal Publications, Inc., 1987. . * Francillon, René J. ''McDonnell Douglas Aircraft since 1920''. London: Putnam, 1979. . * Gunston, Bill. ''The Illustrated History of McDonnell Douglas Aircraft: From Cloudster to Boeing''. London: Osprey Publishing, 1999. . * Hernandez, Daniel V. with Lt. CDR Richard H. Best, USN Ret. ''SBD-3 Dauntless and the Battle of Midway''. Valencia, Spain: Aeronaval Publishing, 2004. . * Howard, John Jr. ''A Marine Dive-Bomber Pilot at Guadalcanal''. Tuscaloosa, Alabama, USA: University of Alabama Press, 1987. . * Janowicz, Krzysztof and Andre R. Zbiegniewski. ''Douglas SBD Dauntless'' (Bilingual Polish/English). Lublin, Poland: Kagero, 2007. * Jenks, Cliff F.L. with Malcolm Laird and Phil Listemann. ''Allied Wings No.5: The Dauntless in RNZAF Service''. France: www.raf-in-combat.com, 2008. . * Kinzey, Bert. ''SBD Dauntless in Detail & Scale, D&S Vol.48''. Carrollton, Texas, USA: Squadron/Signal Publications, Inc., 1996. . * Mondey, David, ''The Concise Guide to American Aircraft of World War II.'' London: Chancellor, 1996. . * * Pęczkowski, Robert. ''Douglas SBD Dauntless''. Sandomierz, Poland/Redbourn, UK: Mushroom Model Publications, 2007. . * Potter, E. B. ''Admiral Arliegh Burke.'' Annapolis, Maryland: U.S. Naval Institute Press, 2005. . * Smith, Peter C. ''Douglas SBD Dauntless''. Ramsbury, Marlborough, Wiltshire, UK: The Crowood Press Ltd., 1997. . * Smith, Peter C. ''The History of Dive-Bombing''. Barnsley, UK: Pen & Sword Aviation, 2007. . * Stern, Robert. ''SBD Dauntless in Action, Aircraft Number 64''. Carrollton, Texas, USA: Squadron/Signal Publications, Inc., 1984. . * Tillman, Barrett. ''The Dauntless Dive Bomber of World War II''. Annapolis, Maryland, USA: Naval Institute Press, 1976 (softcover 2006). . * Tillman, Barrett. ''SBD Dauntless Units of World War 2''. Botley, Oxford, UK: Osprey Publishing, 1998. . * Tillman, Barrett and Robert L. Lawson. ''U.S. Navy Dive and Torpedo Bombers of World War II''. St. Paul, Minnesota, USA: Motor Books Publishing, 2001. . * White, Alexander S. ''Dauntless Marine: Joseph Sailer Jr., Dive-Bombing Ace of Guadalcanal''. Santa Rosa, California, USA: Pacifica Press, 1997. . * Wildenberg, Thomas. ''Destined for Glory: Dive Bombing, Midway, and the Evolution of Carrier Airpower''. Annapolis, Maryland: U.S. Naval Institute Press, 1998. . * Wheeler, Barry C. ''The Hamlyn Guide to Military Aircraft Markings.'' London: Chancellor Press, 1992. . * Yenne, Bill. ''McDonnell Douglas: A Tale of Two Giants''. New York: Crescent Books, 1985. .


External links


Warbird Alley: SBD








* ttps://books.google.com/books?id=CCcDAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA90 '' "Diving Artillery" '', April 1942, Popular Science article on the first U.S. Army A-24 unit, with rare photos of the A-24
SBD-2 Dauntless BuNo 2106 Cockpit Panorama, National Naval Aviation Museum, NAS Pensacola, FL
{{Authority control SB1D Dauntless 1930s United States attack aircraft 1940s United States bomber aircraft Single-engined tractor aircraft Low-wing aircraft Carrier-based aircraft World War II dive bombers of the United States
Douglas Douglas may refer to: People * Douglas (given name) * Douglas (surname) Animals *Douglas (parrot), macaw that starred as the parrot ''Rosalinda'' in Pippi Longstocking *Douglas the camel, a camel in the Confederate Army in the American Civil W ...
Aircraft first flown in 1940