Comments on: Curtiss SB2C Helldiver: The Last Dive Bomber

By: Donald Schulman

Donald Schulman — Tue, 08 Sep 2009 22:04:33 +0000

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: lalpri

lalpri — Thu, 02 Jul 2009 08:13:27 +0000

Really a fabulous article.well done.

By: Gerald W. Crisman

Gerald W. Crisman — Mon, 29 Jun 2009 17:50:22 +0000

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: Gerry

Gerry — Tue, 19 May 2009 07:14:03 +0000

@ 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: Karen Bailey Gearhart

Karen Bailey Gearhart — Sat, 09 May 2009 21:47:10 +0000

That’s Beulah Park, sorry. And for the other errors missed in my speed typing … like Father, like …

By: Karen Bailey Gearhart

Karen Bailey Gearhart — Sat, 09 May 2009 21:40:20 +0000

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: david treemarcki

david treemarcki — Sat, 02 May 2009 21:25:50 +0000

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: Steve Andreason

Steve Andreason — Wed, 11 Feb 2009 04:25:56 +0000

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: Robert Folsom

Robert Folsom — Sun, 25 Jan 2009 19:21:42 +0000

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.