The Spanish Civil War was in many ways a proving ground for the weapons and tactics that would be used in far more vast ways all over Europe just a few years later, and dive-bombers in particular gained much attention there thanks to the exploits of the Legion Kondor. Vultee’s V-72 dive bomber was an attempt to an aircraft in the class of the Ju 87 Stuka, and the type was selected for production by the British, who in 1940 desperately needed combat aircraft.

Vultee was to build the type as the Vengeance Mk IIB for the RAF, while those license-built by Northrop would be Vengeance Mk Is. These initial orders were supplemented by US Lend-Lease supplied Mk IAs and IIIs, these receiving the US designation A-31. The US aircraft were not used operationally, although the XA-31B flew with a prototype Wasp Major engine, the XA-31B had a R-3350-18, and the five YA-31Cs tested R-3350-17s for the B-29 program.

Special Hobby has issued a 1/72 A-35B kit, with USAAF, French, RAF, and Australian marking options.

A competitor to Grumman’s Avenger, the Vought Sea Wolf was somewhat later to arrive, with the first prototype taking to the air in December 1941, by which time production TBFs were beginning to be turned out. Despite this late start, the program was still pushed, given the wartime need, and the fact that the TBU, with a more powerful R-2800 engine, was at least on paper a better performer than the Grumman aircraft. However, the program was stymied by Vought’s concentration on the F4U, and thus the whole effort ended up being transferred to Consolidated, as the TBY. It was not until the fall of 1944 that production TBY-2s began being delivered, and although there were still plans to buy large numbers, production was cancelled at war’s end after 180 had been delivered.

Sea Wolf Bibliography:

Photo: in-flight view of a TBY-2 Aviation News December 31, 1945 p.7

Paul Stockley Review of the Octopus/Pavla 1/72 TBY-2 kit Scale Aviation Modeller International April 2004

A train-watcher's collection of B&W railroad photography concentrating on the Pittsburgh area, and spanning an era stretching from the later days of steam to the Penn Central - there's even a little bit of early Conrail! Pittsburgh was home to many railroad operations in its industrial heyday, and in this book we are treated to steam and diesel action from the Pennsylvania Railroad, the Pittsburgh & Lake Erie, Union Railroad, Baltimore & Ohio, and the New York Central. Residents of the "Burgh" will no doubt be interested in many of the scenes from Pittsburgh's past that are no more. And there is coverage of areas that, although not in the immediate Pittsburgh vicinity, are certain to be familiar to any Eastern railfan, such as Horseshoe Curve, electric action in the east, the East Broad Top, and the Strasburg RR.

Superior Publishing Company 192 pages hardcover

by John F. White, Jr. ISBN 0-8018-5714-7

An extremely thorough technical look at the engineering history of locomotives at the dawn of railroading. There are an immense number of highly detailed reproduction drawings that will be of certain use for the modeler, supplemented period photographs and illustrations. Much attention is paid to the oft-neglected materials and components that made up a steam locomotive.

Notable representative locomotives covered include:

The Stourbridge Lion, including a photo of the derived Agenoria.

The John Bull

Baldwin's Lancaster

The Norris Brothers' 4-4-0 Copiapo of 1850; included is a photo of the similar Beaver for the Pittsburgh, Fort Wayne and Chicago.

The Philadelphia and Reading's camelback Susquehanna.

William Mason's Phantom for the Toledo and Illinois Railroad.

The first true supersonic fighter of purely British origin, English Electric’s Lightning was also the last such type, as the UK subsequently turned to international projects for its fighter programs.

Variants:

F.1: First Lightning to see operational use, the F.1, like all members of the family, was short-legged and intended as a short-range interceptor, capable of rapidly climbing to meet incoming Soviet bombers. Basic armament was a pair of 30mm Adens, but a fuselage pack could carry an additional pair of cannon, or two DH Firestreak AAMs.

F.3: First of the second-generation Lightnings, the F.3 was easily distinguishable by virtue of its larger, square-topped vertical tail, which had been tested on P.1Bs. The F.3 was quite a bit more powerful than its predecessors, with Avon 301s and the more sophisticated Mk.23B AIRPASS radar. The more effective Red Top IR-guided AAM was also fitted. A pair of airframes started as F.2s were finished to the new standard, these flying in 1962, with production aircraft arriving with No.74 Squadron in the spring of 1964.

F.3A: Revised kinked leading edge that both improved high altitude maneuverability and accommodated more fuel; fixed 680-gallon ventral tank.

F.6: Last new-build version for the RAF; based on the F.3A but with the capability to carry a pair of overwing tanks. The ventral tank was later retrofitted to carry a pair of Adens, albeit at the loss of some fuel.

Advanced Proposals

As the basic P.1 was still taking shape, the RAF was looking forward to the day when speeds in excess of Mach 2 would be necessary to deal with Soviet supersonic bombers, and English Electric put forth a number of proposals under the P.6 designation to meet the ER.134T specification for a Mach 2 research aircraft, with several of these being influenced by the P.1. The P.6/1 would have mated a Lightning type tail and wings to a fuselage with a single Rolls-Royce RB.106R engine, while the P.6/2 would have a pair of Sapphire SA.7s stacked in the style of the Lightning. Neither of these were to be built, but the Lightning would again form the basis for a similar aircraft to meet the F.155T requirement for an operational, AAM-armed fighter to counter fast, high altitude threats; the P.8 would have been an enlarged single seater, powered by a pair of RB.126s.

Even into the early 1960s, developed versions of the Lightning were looked at, including a much redesigned naval version with T.5 style side by side seating, variable geometry outer wings, a solid radar nose, and lateral fuselage intakes.

Bibliography:

3-view profile: English Electric P.1A (2nd prototype) Flight 7 October 1955 p.582

Photo: P.1B XA847 in flight Aviation Week September 23, 1957 front cover

“Making the P.1 Wing” Flight 10 January 1958 Includes a two-page P.1 cutaway drawing.

Photos of F.1 XG329 and T.4 XL628 Flight 2 September 1960 p.337

Pictures (2): “Wing, Belly Tank Modified for Lightning Mk.3 AW&ST September 7, 1964 p.30

“Lightning Punch! Unsurpassed ’round the clock’ air defense for Britain” Royal Air Force Flying Review May 1961 Includes a 4-view and a colorized photo of XM140 and XM155 in flight.

Photo: T.55 55-410 for Kuwait Air Pictorial August 1968 p.276

Photo: close-in color shot of a beautiful F.6 on the strength of No.11 Squadron Meccano Magazine May 1970 front cover

Photo: Lightning T.5 XS422 of the Empire Test Pilot School. Air International October 1983 p.177

Photo: close-up of a pair of Lightnings armed with Firestreaks and Red Tops, respectively. Air International February 1987 p.76

Paul Jackson “Lament for the Lightning” Air International June 1988. A look back at the RAF’s last all-British fighter, at the twilight of its career. Includes three-views of the F. Mk.2 and Mk.6, side views of the F Mk.3, T Mk.4 and T Mk.5 trainers, and a large cutaway of the F.6.

Dennis J. Calvert “From Frontline to Warbird” Warbirds International July/August 1989. The final days of the Lightning in RAF service.

"Lightnings to fly in the USA!" FlyPast February 1998 p.11 Photo of T.5 XS422

Hugh Trevor “Lightning Cockpit” FlyPast December 1998 Restoration of XS932’s cockpit and a list of other preserved forward fuselages.

Photos: Frontal shot of T.4 XL628, P.1B XA847 with modified tail, XG310, F.2 XN723, F.3 XP697, F.3 XN725 with overwing tanks Aeroplane Monthly December 1998

“Lightning Refurbished” F.3 XR713 FlyPast January 1999 p.11

Photo: walk-around detail shots of F.1 XM135 and F.6 XS925 Scale Aviation Modeller June 1999

F.6 scale 3-view plans Aero Magazine October 2003

“Another Lightning Flies” Aeroplane October 2006 p.8 F.6 XP693/ZU-BEY

Paul Lucas “Going Grey Part 3” Airfix Model World #15 An excellent article depicting the camo schemes applied to Lightnings in the last years of their service.

Peter Johnson “Twin Tub” Airfix Model World #16 The 1/72 Lightning T.4 from Whirlykits as aircraft XM971 of 226 OCU/145 Squadron markings.

Review: Revell 1/72 Lightning F Mk 6 Scale Aviation Modeller April 2008

Review: Lightning F.2A/F.6 in 1/72 from Trumpeter Skymodel 21/09 p.66

“Lightning roll-out” FlyPast February 2012 p.6 F.6 XS897

Hans Pennick "Lightning Strikes" Airfix Model World February 2011 Building a 1/48 camouflaged Saudi F.53

Mark Davies “Small Scale Skyrocket” Military Illustrated Modeller March 2014 p.56-57 Preview of the Airfix 1/72 Lightning F.2A

John "Tigger" Wilkes "Doubling Up" Converting Trumpeter's 1/32 Lightning to a T.5 AIR Modeller 28

Not possessed of outstanding performance, and retained in production long after it was technically obsolete, thanks to prolonged problems with the SB2C, the Douglas Dauntless was nevertheless one of the pivotal aircraft of World War II, thanks to the actions of six SBD squadrons on one afternoon in June 1942, off Midway.

The SBD's design actually predated the "old" Northrop firm becoming the Douglas El Segundo Division, and stemmed from Northrop's BT-1 dive bomber.

Variants SBD-1: Initial production Dauntless version, deliveries of which to USMC squadrons began in 1939.

SBD-2: Extra fuel, self-sealing tanks, carrier-capable.

SBD-3: The -3 model originated from an export order from France; as the French had been learning from early combat over the continent, they specified self-sealing tanks, armor, and two-gun aft station. France fell before the order could be delivered, but these first really combat-ready Dauntlesses found a ready home with the USN.

SBD-3A: A-24 for the USAAF

SBD-4: As the -3, but with a 24-volt electric system.

SBD-4A: A-24A for the USAAF

SBD-5: Tulsa-built aircraft with R-1820-60; 2,409 built.

SBD-5A: A-24B for the USAAF

SBD-6: 451 aircraft with R-1820-66

Dauntless Bibliography: Review: Walk Around: SBD Dauntless by Richard S. Dann, 2004 Includes scrap view drawings of the Mk III and Mk VIII gun sights, AN-N4 gun camera, a large 3-view drawing of the SBD-3; color profiles include SBD-1 1741 of VMB-2, SBD-2 2108 of VB-2, an SBD-3 Coral Sea veteran of VS-5, RNZAF SBD-3 NZ5003, a VC-22 SBD-4, and an SBD-5 in the Atlantic ASW scheme

Paul Eden, Soph Moeing Aircraft Anatomy of World War II: Technical Drawing of Key Aircraft 1939-1945 p.44-47: SBD-3 cutaway, large color artwork of a Marine SBD-1 of VMB-1 in prewar high-visibility colors

Ad for Pesco, with color artwork showing an SBD attacking a Japanese battleship Aviation February 1943 p.213

"Coming in on a wing...and Douglas Dependability" Aviation December 1943 p.298 Douglas Aircraft ad - artwork shows a damaged SBD on a carrier deck

Dauntless cutaway drawing Flying May 1944 p.63

Gaither Littrell "The Dauntless" includes photos of the XBT-1, BT-1 with tricycle gear, and the XBT-2 Flying January 1945

"Carrier Classic" Scale Modeler May 1969 building Monogram's 1/48 Dauntless kit - includes a large color profile of an SBD-3 from Scouting Two at Coral Sea

Peter Smith "The Pensacola Eight" FlyPast February 1998 Details SBDs recovered from Lake Michigan for the NMNA.

Steve A. Evans "Dependable Dive-bomber" Scale Aviation Modeller International December 2004 building the 1/48 Dauntless kit from Hasegawa. Also included is a walk around photo article.

Color profiles, including an SBD-1 from VMSB-232, an SBD-3 from VS-6, Chilean and Mexican A-24s, and a RNZAF SBD-5 Scale Aviation Modeller January 2005

Jay Laverty "Undaunted" Model Airplane International September 2006 Build article on Trumpeter's 1/32 scale Dauntless kit

Peter Straka "Sixty years After the War" Scale Aviation Modeller International June 2009 Building Hasegawa's -1 Dauntless as a submerged wreck

Robert Macri "Slow But Deadly" Skymodel 20/09 p.14-19 building the Accurate Miniatures 1/48 SBD-3 kit

Philip Gore "Detail a Dauntless" FineScale Modeler March 2015 p.47-51 building the Merit 1/18 SBD-3 as a Coral Sea aircraft

Don Robson "Quickbuild - Douglas Dauntless" Scale Aviation Modeller international January 2017 The 1/48 Eduard SBD-5 kit as a RNZAF aircraft.

David Mondey The Hamlyn Concise Guide to American Aircraft of World War II p.125-127: Color profiles include a VMSB-232 SBD-1, VS-41 SBD-3 during Operation Torch, a VSB-6 SBD-3, VMSB-243 SBD-4, RNZAF SBD-5, 312th BG (Dive) A-24B, French A-24B, and SBD-5s of the French Aeronavale and Mexican Air Force.

David Donald, editor American Airplanes of World War II ISBN 0-7607-2274-9 p.118-121: SBD-3 cutaway illustration, color profile of a VMSB-243 SBD-4, color 3-view of a VS-41 SBD-3 with Operation Torch markings.

Phil Butler Air Arsenal North America: Aircraft for the Allies 1938-1945 - Purchases and Lend-Lease p.126 picture of a Mexican Air Force RA-24B; p.200-201 photos of aFleet Air Arm SBD-3 and an RNZAF A-24, serial number data for Lend-Lease aircraft.

Dana Bell Air Force Colors Vol.1 1926-1942 p.87 photo: Formation of 27th BG A-24s.

Barrett Tillman SBD Dauntless Units of World War 2 includes a 1/72 scale SBD-3 5-view drawing

Robert Lawson, Barrett Tillman Carrier Air War in Original WWII Color p.22: color photo of an SBD-1 of VMB-2

Walter A. Musciano Warbirds of the Sea p.156: scale 3-view of a VS-2 SBD-3

Aircraft Anatomy of World War II: Technical Drawings of Key Aircraft 1939-1945 Paul Eden, Soph Moeing, editors p.44-47: SBD-3 cutaway, large color artwork of a prewar VMB-1 Dauntless

Contrary to what some modern schoolchildren might think (if they think about it all, sad to say) World War II was not fought in black and white. Color photography in one form or another existed decades before the war, although it was not till the mid to late 1930s that Kodak's Kodachrome allowed more photographers to shoot in that format. Robert Lawson and Barrett Tillman have done a masterful job in assembling a wide variety of rare color photos depicting all facets of wartime US Naval Aviation, from flying boats to carrier action. The first chapter alone has such gems as an SBU-1 from USS Ranger, an F4F-3 of VMF-121, Curtiss O2C, Kingfishers in landplane configuration, R3D-2 (DC-5) transports, and a natural metal PBM Mariner. Basically, there is something for everyone here. There are also numerous shots of the carriers themselves, including Yorktown (CV-10) transiting the Panama Canal, an overhead shot of Wasp (CV-7), and Santee (ACV-29) showing her camouflage scheme very well.

The Avenger resulted from a late 1930s Navy requirement for a replacement for the Douglas TBD Devastator. Although the Devastator had only entered service in 1937, it was already apparent that the type was too slow and short-ranged to hold the line for long. Among the specifications for the new aircraft, the Navy stipulated internal carriage of a torpedo or 3 bombs, a power-operated turret, and a top speed of 300mph.

In 1940, Grumman and Vought were contracted to build torpedo bomber prototypes under the designations XTBF and XTBU, respectively. Grumman's design owed much to the company's work on the F4F, although the TBF was of course much larger than the Wildcat.

Grumman built a pair of XTBF-1 prototypes, the first of which flew in August 1941. Save for some detail differences, all the production model Avengers would closely follow the design of the prototypes, Grumman having gotten things "right" from the start. Additionally, there was an urgency to field the type in numbers as quickly as possible, as the US looked increasingly likely to enter the war in the near term. Indeed, the second aircraft's rollout had to be curtailed, as it coincided with the attack on Pearl Harbor.

TBF/TBM-1: Initial production model, with the first example flying on 3 January 1942. A total of 1,525 were built by Grumman, with the second source line at GM's Eastern Aircraft Division turning out 550 TBM-1s.

TBF-1E: Special electronic mission equipment fitted.

TBF-1P: Solitary aircraft fitted for photo recon.

TBF-1L: Night attack model with searchlight in the bomb bay.

TBF/TBM-1C: Four .50-cal wing guns in place of the .30-cal cowl guns of the -1 model.

TBF/TBM-1D: Night attack conversions with ASD-1 radar carried in a pod faired into the starboard wing.

The Avenger's initial combat debut would be in marked contrast to its later successes. VT-8 was still converting over from the Devastator in the summer of 1942, but was able to send a half-dozen aircraft and crews westbound as the USN prepared for the Battle of Midway. the Avengers missed getting aboard the USS Hornet at Pearl Harbor to join VT-8 Devastators on the ship, and so were sent to the atoll to supplement the aircraft there. Together with four Army B-26s, the Avengers sortied on 4 June, but were shot to pieces without scoring any hits. Only one aircraft made it back to Midway, crash landing on one gear.

The major Avenger production model was the TBM-3, produced under license by General Motors to free up Grumman for fighter production, and descended from the Grumman-built XTBF-3 prototypes with the uprated R-2600-20 engine.

The torpedo bomber mission faded quickly postwar, as the USN concentrated on multipurpose attack aircraft such as the Skyraider. However, this by no means meant an end to Navy use of the Avenger, as TBMs would continue in service in secondary roles well into the 1950s. Much less glamorous than their combat counterparts but still important were the TBM-3R COD transports, with the weapons bay converted over to cargo space; seven passengers could also be carried. The CODs provided support to carriers operating off Korea, and were also used to transport the cores of nuclear weapons to CVs embarking heavy attack AJ Savage bombers. The type remained in service long enough to be one of the first aircraft to trap aboard the first supercarrier, the USS Forrestal.

Bibliography:

"TBM Carries Rescue Gear" Naval Aviation News November 1945 p.20 Conversion of TBM-3s at NAS Kaneohe for SAR missions.

Photos: TBM-3 with APS-20 radar as radar picket/AEW aircraft; 1 overall, 2 closeup. Naval Aviation News April 1946 p.1

Photo: surplus TBM crash into a barrier as part of a crash harness test. Naval Aviation News December 1946 p.7

Photo: Avenger making 22,000th landing aboard FDR. Naval Aviation News November 1949 p.23

"Pilot Makes Like Monkey" TBM-3S acident aboard escort carrier USS Palau Naval Aviation News May 1950 p.23

Photo: TBM-3S modified bomb bay carrying twelve sonobuoys rather than the previous standard of six. Naval Aviation News May 1950 p.33

"Turkeys now Transports" Naval Aviation News July 1951 p.25 3 photos.

"Bunyan's Bug Bombers" Covers the operation to create artificial watering holes for Caribou in Minnesota by dropping bombs from USNR aircraft based at NAS Minneapolis. Includes a photo showing a TBM being loaded with a 2,000lb bomb. Naval Aviation News September 1951 p.29

Photo: Hulk of TBM HP-267 of Aeroquimica. Air Pictorial May 1970 p.164

Frank A. Tinker "Old Warbirds Fight On" Air Classics May 1973 Includes several photos of Avengers used as retardant bombers, including aircraft N7849C.

Alan W. Hall "Re-arranging the Avenger: Conversions for the Airfix kit" Airfix Magazine May 1975 Includes 1/72 scale TBM-3 drawing.

Photo: TBM N9564Z hulk Air Classics March 1979 p.14

Photo: TBM N6827C Air Classics March 1979 p.16

Photo Sequence: Loss of TBM-3E BuNo 91556 aboard USS Tarawa. Air Classics June 1979 p.24

Howard Levy "Bush's Baby" Aeroplane Monthly August 1989 p.482-484. Covers the restoration of a TBM-3E to VT-51 markings. Includes photos of the aircraft as borate bomber N90787

Photo: TBM-3Es N9590Z and N9927Z as fire bombers in red/white paint. Warbirds International May 2000 p.54-55

Photo: TBM-3 N4172A Warbirds International May 2000 p.56

"Cavanaugh Avenger" Restored TBM-3E BuNo 86280/N7219C Warbirds International September 2000

Craig Justo "Warbird Reborn! A TBM Metamorphosis" Classic Wings issue 56

Photo: large color side-view of TBM-3U N3967A as a spray aircraft Warbirds International June 2014 p.62-63

Scale Models "Navy Avenger" Scale Modeler July 1981 p.44-49+ Building the Combat Models 1/32 scale vacuform kit.

"Workbench Reviews: Trumpeter's 1/32 scale Avenger" FineScale Modeler May 2005 p.58-59. A review of the 1/32 TBF-1C kit.

"Rejuvenating an Old Frog - Gary Hatcher Breathes New Life into a Grumman Avenger" Scale Aviation Modeller International December 2006

Frank Cuden "Keeping an Avenger in reserve" FineScale Modeler October 2015 p.41-43 The Hasegawa TBM-3S as a New York-based reserve aircraft

Books: American Warplanes of World War II" Edited by David Donald. p.147-154 includes a color profile of a/c 8-T-1 of VT-8, a cutaway drawing of a TBM-1C, and a large color 3-view of a TBF-1.

"The American Bomber Plane" by Ted & Amy Williams. Includes a TBM-1C 3-view, and a good view of the wing fold mechanism.

Edited by Allan Burney Covers the Vietnam service of:

The AH-1, CH-21, CH-47 Chinook, CH-54 Tarhe, OH-13, OH-6A, OH-58A Kiowa, UH-1 Huey, OV-1 Mohawk. (US Army)

A-1 Skyraider, A-3 Skywarrior, A-4 Skyhawk, A-6 Intruder, A-7 Corsair II, E-1 Tracer, E-2 Hawkeye, EA-6B, F-8 Crusader, F-4 Phantom II, OV-10 Bronco, P-2 Neptune, P-3 Orion, RA-5 Vigilante, SP-5 Marlin, UH-2 Seasprite, SH-3 Sea King, UH-1 Huey, UH-46 Sea Knight. (USN)

A-4 Skyhawk, A-6 Intruder, EF-10B Skyknight, F-4B Phantom II, F-8 Crusader, TF-9J Cougar, KC-130F Hercules, AH-1J Seacobra, CH-53 Sea Stallion, CH-46 Sea Knight, UH-34D, UH-1E Huey. (USMC)

Plenty of photographs and color profiles; cover painting of a VF-114 F-4J launching a Sparrow. ISBN: 978-1-913295-25-7

The last gasp of the Airacomet design was the XP-83, first flown in February 1945. A principal problem with the early jets was their lack of endurance, a fault attributable to the great thirst of the early turbojets. Bell attempted to remedy this in the XP-83 by designing what amounted to a much-scaled up Airacomet, with sufficient internal room to carry over a thousand gallons of fuel. This came at a toll, as although the -83's J35 engines were much more powerful than the Airacomet's J31s, the XP-83 was heavier empty than the P-59B was loaded. Performance inevitably suffered, and only two XP-83s were built.

The initial prototype was lost in September 1946; the aircraft had been refitted to test ramjet engines underwing, and on this occasion one of the engines caught fire, forcing the pilot and test engineer to bail out. The second aircraft had a larger tail to counter stability problems, but after a short life this example was scrapped.

Armament options for production aircraft would have been 6x.50-cal M2s, an equal number of .60-cal T17E3s, a quartet of 20mm Hispanos, or a single 30mm cannon.