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Curtiss SB2C Helldiver: The Last Dive BomberAviation History | Single Page | 10 comments | Print This Post | Email This Post The name was pure hyperbole that originated with the Navy and Marine pilots who first developed the dive-bombing technique, which they demonstrated at airshows throughout the country during the 1930s. German World War I ace Ernst Udet was so impressed by one of those public dive-bombing demonstrations that in 1934 he persuaded the German air ministry to purchase two Curtiss Hawk II fighter-dive bombers for evaluation by the Luftwaffe. The eventual result was the development of the infamous Junkers Ju-87 Stuka. To the American public, the term 'helldiver' was associated with breathtaking power dives and dazzling displays of airmanship. Curtiss thought it only fitting that the name be applied to its purpose-built dive bomber, although it was not officially used by the Navy. Subscribe Today
The first of an eventual 25 F8C-4s entered service with fighter squadron VF-1B aboard the carrier Saratoga in 1930. By then, however, they were already slower than the single-seat fighters they were intended to accompany into combat, and the first Helldiver was out of naval service by the end of 1931. Land-based F8C-5s used by the Marines were redesignated as O2C-1 observation aircraft and assigned to squadrons VO-6M at Quantico, Va., and VO-7M in Nicaragua–where they saw some use as dive bombers against Augusto César Sandino's rebels until February 1933. Adapted from fighters and scouting planes, the early dive bombers were not well-suited to their roles. As a result, the Navy and Marines developed a series of specialized aircraft during the 1930s that had no counterparts in the Army Air Corps. Since the dive bombers were required to perform the secondary function of reconnaissance, the Navy referred to them as scout bombers and gave them the designation SB. Dive bombers had two features that distinguished them from other combat aircraft. One was the provision for dive brakes, usually in the form of split flaps, to retard the plane's diving speed, giving the pilot more time to aim his bomb. The dive brakes also reduced stress on the airplane when it pulled out of its steep dive. The other unique feature was a special hinged bomb rack, or crutch, mounted under the fuselage, which swung the bomb clear of the propeller arc after it was released. Curtiss' second Helldiver evolved from the XF12C, a parasol monoplane two-seat fighter with enclosed cockpits and retractable landing gear. Designed under the direction of Raymond C. Blaylock, the XF12C-1 first flew in early 1933, but by the end of the year the Navy had selected the Grumman FF-1 and FF-2 biplanes for the two-seat fighter role. Curtiss redesignated the plane XS4C-1 and then XSBC-1, in hopes of having it accepted as a scout bomber. After the XSBC-1 crashed in September 1934 due to a failure in the wing-folding joint, the Navy contracted Curtiss to rebuild the prototype as a biplane. Curtiss did so and also redesigned the fuselage and tail surfaces to produce the XSBC-2. When the plane's Wright Twin Whirlwind engine proved unreliable, the Navy ordered it replaced with a Pratt & Whitney R1535-82 Twin Wasp Jr., driving a Hamilton-Standard three-blade propeller. Tested in March 1936, the re-engined XSBC-3 had a maximum speed of 220 mph at 9,500 feet, a range of 635 miles carrying a 500-pound bomb, and a range of 1,190 miles after substituting a 45-gallon auxiliary fuel tank to use the plane in a scouting role. The new dive bomber was accepted for production on August 29, and the first SBC-3s–given the resurrected name of Helldiver by Curtiss, although once again the Navy did not officially refer to them as such–began entering service with VS-5 aboard the carrier Yorktown, VS-3 on Saratoga and VS-6 on Enterprise in late 1937. After completing its 83-plane contract for the SBC-3, Curtiss introduced an improved version with a 950-hp Wright Cyclone R-1820-34 nine-cylinder radial engine in 1938, the extra power allowing the plane to carry a 1,000-pound bomb. The Navy bought 124 of that variant, the SBC-4, but in that same year Curtiss began designing a replacement. By that time, the conservative Naval Bureau of Aeronautics was finally coming to realize that the biplane's days were numbered. In any event, the SBC was the last U.S. combat biplane. When the Navy ordered the first prototype of the SB2C monoplane on May 15, 1939, the plane was expected to represent a quantum leap in dive-bomber technology. Pages: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7Help HistoryNet by bookmarking to
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10 Comments to “Curtiss SB2C Helldiver: The Last Dive Bomber”
I was a radio/gunner aboard SB2Cs. If ever a hack job can be done on an aircraft you did it on this is one. In fact you even castigate the manufacturer. You provided no evidence, only innuendo and hearsay. You said that the F6-F and The F4-U carried the same weight of bombs as the SB2C. – Fat chance.
The SB2C sank more Japanese shipping that any other aircarft during the war. I take it you were not around when this all happened.
I'm sick and tired of these writers all jumping on the beat down the Helldiver movement. It always got me home.
By Robert Folsom on Jan 25, 2009 at 3:21 pm
My father LCDR Raymond R Andreason was a pilot who flew with Carrier Air Group 12 aboard the USS Randolph CV-15. He received 2 air medals and 3 battle stars for action during the invasion of Iwo Jima, Okinawa, and carrier strikes against mainland Japan. He always spoke highly of the SB2C Helldiver. He said it was an exacting plane to fly but he would not speak ill of it. The latter versions had the major bugs worked out of it.
In 1950 the French Navy bought 110 SB2C-5 Helldivers to replace the obsolete SBD-5 that had been flying in combat in Viet Nam. The French considered the Helldiver an obviously good choice to replace the SBD. The French flew the Helldiver from 1951 to 1958.
By Steve Andreason on Feb 11, 2009 at 12:25 am
Well done article about the SB2c. I did not realize how many were lost during the strike on Ozawa's carriers in the battle of the Phillepines sea. 42 out of 51 aircraft is a horrendous 84 % loss rate, but it still wasn't the worst. On June 4th, 1942 three US carriers launched 44 TBD Douglas Devestator torpedo bombers and 38 planes, or 86 % were shot down.
By david treemarcki on May 2, 2009 at 5:25 pm
Nice article. I found it after rereading a newspaper clipping from my father's things, headlined, "Army Pilot Lands Plane on Track at Beauah Park," the first paragraph: "Spectators at Beaulah Park racing oval, near Coumbus, got an unexpected speed exhibition Monday, which topped anything the horses did." Then,
"Flying a signle engined A-25 dive bomber from Patterson Field, near Dayton, Ohio, Capt. R. F. Bailey, a US Army pilot, ran low on gasoline. He lookedd for a possible landing field and saw the race track. Captain Bailey swung his plane into the wind, came over the fence at 90 miles an hour, and landed in the home stretch of the race track. He set his brakes, skidded to a stop in front of the grandstand. The finish wire damaged a wingtip and the propeller, but no one was hurt. Captain Bailey arrived at teh Youngstown Municipal Airport Sunday afternoon. He remained here overnight."
Too funny. This is from the Youngstown Vindicator and though not dated, I would presume it is from the early 40's, prior to Patterson Field merging and becoming Wright-Patterson. Dad was a test pilot in the Army Air Corps and then flew B-17s and P-51s overseas during the War. He retired as an AF command pilot in 1971. I've just always loved this story. Guess we'll never know if he was really low on gasoline … Cheers!
By Karen Bailey Gearhart on May 9, 2009 at 5:40 pm
That's Beulah Park, sorry. And for the other errors missed in my speed typing … like Father, like …
By Karen Bailey Gearhart on May 9, 2009 at 5:47 pm
@ Robert Folsom, I believe you sir, maybe the criticisms that the helldiver received was when the prototypes were surfacing such as the Xsb2c-1…. but when the sb2c 3s started wreaking havoc, all changed. I'm a big fan of the helldiver, and wish i could fly the last one alive today….
By Gerry on May 19, 2009 at 3:14 am
I am the author of 'TWO AND A HALF MISSIONS, MAX'. I flew in S2Cs in the Atlantic in 1945. The story I wrote is factual and is logged in the history of the USS Guadalcanal, CVE 60. On my first bombing mission, we blew up a tanker headed for Germany from Argentina. My brother was in the Field Artilery in Germany. I hoped the fuel we stopped from getting to Germany would help close that war off and my brother would come home safe. The SB2C was a hydraulic nightmare to begin with but ended up the biggest winner in the Pacific.
I flew in the last remaing SB2C from Midland Texas to Fredricksburg Texas to our reunion in 1996. Thanks to Ted Short , of the Confederate (Now Consolidated) Airforce.
By Gerald W. Crisman on Jun 29, 2009 at 1:50 pm
Really a fabulous article.well done.
By lalpri on Jul 2, 2009 at 4:13 am
I flew in SB2C-4's and -5's from 1944 to 1950 (from 1946 to 1950 in the"Weekend Warriors" U.S.Navy Reserves.) I'm still around to tell you that the the Helldiver got me home alive and in one piece every time. Yeah, a few scratches and a few bruises. You know, band-aid stuff.
By the way, the Confederate Air Force did change it's name, but not to the "Consolidated" Air Force. The name was changed to the "Commemorative" Air Force, and that's the name it uses to this day. It's a great organization. It owns the only flyable SB2C in the world, based in Midland, Texas.
By Donald Schulman on Sep 8, 2009 at 6:04 pm
I am one of just an extremely few who actually fly in the last remaining SB2C-5 today. I love the plane and while I was not around to stand up for freedom at the time of the Helldivers height of use, but being a retired disabled combat veteran (US Navy Combat Photographer) I have seen my share of combat in moder aircraft and helicopters that I can tell you a good solid machine when I see one and fly in one. I am a crewmember on the Helldiver today and Col in the CAF, the Helldiver is part of the West Texas Wing of the Commemorative airforce and is hangered in Houston Texas. It is a beautiful aircraft and a prime example and reminder of the courage and dedication given to us by the greatest generation of our time.
By Chet Falkenhainer on Dec 11, 2009 at 3:50 pm