The Great Lakes BG was an American carrier-based dive bomber of the 1930s. Designed and built by the

Great Lakes Aircraft Company Great Lakes Aircraft Company is an aircraft manufacturer known for the 2T-1A Sport Trainer biplane. The company has a long history of building both private and military aircraft. Origins In 1929, the Great Lakes Aircraft Company (GLAC) was for ...

of Cleveland, Ohio, 61 were used by the

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 ...

and

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 ...

from 1934 to 1940.

Development and design

The Great Lakes Aircraft Company, who had previously built 18 TG-1 and 32 TG-2 variants of the

Martin T4M Martin may refer to: Places * Martin City (disambiguation) * Martin County (disambiguation) * Martin Township (disambiguation) Antarctica * Martin Peninsula, Marie Byrd Land * Port Martin, Adelie Land * Point Martin, South Orkney Islands Austra ...

,Swanborough and Bowers 1976, p.312. received an order from 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 ...

for a prototype two seat dive bomber capable of carrying a 1,000 lb (454 kg) bomb in 1933.Swanborough and Bowers 1976, p.193. (This compared with contemporary Scout Bombers such as the

Vought SBU 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 obta ...

and the

Curtiss SBC Helldiver The Curtiss SBC Helldiver was a two-seat scout bomber and dive bomber built by the Curtiss-Wright Corporation. It was the last military biplane procured by the United States Navy. Delivered in 1937, it became obsolete even before World War II ...

, also capable of dive bombing, which had bombloads of 500 lb (227 kg)). The resulting design was a single engined biplane with single bay, unequal span tapered wings and a fixed tailwheel undercarriage. The aircraft was powered by a Pratt & Whitney Twin Wasp Junior

radial engine The radial engine is a reciprocating type internal combustion engine configuration in which the cylinders "radiate" outward from a central crankcase like the spokes of a wheel. It resembles a stylized star when viewed from the front, and is ...

.Donald 1997, p.467. The prototype XBG-1 was completed in mid-1933 and evaluated against the competing Consolidated XB2Y-1, proving superior. As a result, in November 1933, orders were placed for production of the aircraft as the BG-1, which was fitted with a canopy over the cockpits for the two crew, in place of the open cockpits of the prototype. A total of 61 of these aircraft were built, including the prototype.Grossnick 1995, p.461.

Operational history

The BG-1 entered service in October 1934, equipping VB-3B (later re-designated VB-4) aboard the carriers and .Grossnick 1995, p.51. It was also operated by the

Marine Corps 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 (refl ...

, equipping two squadrons from 1935.Swanborough and Bowers 1976, p.193-194. The BG-1 continued in front line use with the Navy until 1938, and with the Marines Corps until 1940. It was used for utility duties at shore bases until June 1941. About 22 were converted to

target drones Target may refer to: Physical items * Shooting target, used in marksmanship training and various shooting sports ** Bullseye (target), the goal one for which one aims in many of these sports ** Aiming point, in field artillery, f ...

for naval anti-aircraft gunnery, with one being used to test TV-guidance for air-to surface missiles, and was successfully guided by signals from a Beechcraft JRB to hit a target raft on

Chesapeake Bay The Chesapeake Bay ( ) is the largest estuary in the United States. The Bay is located in the Mid-Atlantic region and is primarily separated from the Atlantic Ocean by the Delmarva Peninsula (including the parts: the Eastern Shore of Maryland / ...

on 19 April 1942.

Variants

;XBG-1 :Prototype. Open cockpit and powered by a

Pratt & Whitney R-1535 The Pratt & Whitney R-1535 Twin Wasp Junior was an engine used in American aircraft in the 1930s. The engine was introduced in 1932 as a 14-cylinder version of the 9-cylinder R-985. It was a two-row, air-cooled radial design. Displacement was ...

-64 radial engine, one built.Orbis 1985, p.1999 ;BG-1 :Production version with enclosed cockpit and powered by a

-82 radial engine, 60 built. ;XB2G-1 :Developed version with retractable undercarriage and an enclosed bomb bay. One prototype only.Donald 1997, p.468.

Operators

; *

** VB-4M / VMB-2 - March 1935 to December 1940 ** VB-6M / VMB-1 - October 1935 to October 1940 ** VMO-1 - September 1940 to May 1941 ** VMS-1 - December 1938 to June 1941 ** VMS-2 - December 1940 to April 1941 *

** VB-3B / VB-4 - November 1934 to June 1939Kernahan 1993, p. 4 ** VB-7 - July 1939 to August 1940

Specifications (BG-1)

References

Notes

Bibliography

* * * * * The ''

Illustrated Encyclopedia of Aircraft The ''Illustrated Encyclopedia of Aircraft'' was a weekly partwork magazine by Aerospace Publishing (an imprint of Orbis Publishing) which was published in the United Kingdom (and sold in other countries too) during the early 1980s. The magazi ...

'' (Part Work 1982-1985), 1985, Orbis Publishing.

External links

Great Lakes
''Aerofiles''. {{Great Lakes aircraft B01G Great Lakes BG1 Single-engined tractor aircraft Biplanes Carrier-based aircraft Aircraft first flown in 1933