Us navy seawolf series#

That said, there is a proposed expedition to recover the remains of seven Devastators from the wreckage of the aircraft carrier USS Lexington, which currently lies in her watery grave roughly two miles below the surface of the Coral Sea, more than 500 miles off the eastern coast of Australia. The closest thing that my fellow history museum enthusiasts will find is a near full-sized replica that was originally built for the 2019 motion picture Midway and later generously donated by Lionsgate to the USS Midway Museum in San Diego, California. To compound the tragic tale of the TBDs at Midway, there are no bona fide surviving airframes out of the 130 total built. The TBD would soon be replaced by the Grumman TBF Avenger.

Prange in his bestselling 1982 book Miracle at Midway, co-authored by Donlad M. They kept Japanese sailors and aviators distracted long enough for Douglas Dauntless crews to avenge their shipmates by swooping in and lay waste to the IJN carriers Akagi, Kaga, and Sōryū - Hiryū would be sunk later on in the engagement - thus turning the tide of the Pacific war.Ī harrowingly detailed recounting of the Devastator crews’ ordeal is provided by the late historian Gordon W. was the sole survivor of VT-8.īut the TBD crews’ sacrifices were not in vain. Especially grievous was the example of the USS Hornet’s Torpedo Squadron Eight (VT-8), which lost every single one of its Devastators. The TBD crews scored nary a single hit on any enemy warships while losing 35 out of 41 of their number.

The same plane that had been state-of-the-art at her inception was now slow and lumbering, easy prey for IJN Mitsubishi Zero fighters and triple-A guns during the torpedo bombers’ ill-fated attack on the Japanese carriers. 30 caliber machine gun in the rear cockpit.īattle of Midway: the Tragic Tale of VT-8Īlas, barely a month later, the Battle of Midway would show that the Devastator’s moment of glory was fleeting indeed. Armament consisted of a single MK 13 torpedo, along with a forward-firing. Max airspeed was 206 miles per hour, with a cruise speed of 128 mph.

Specifications included a three-man crew (pilot, navigator/torpedo officer, and radioman/gunner), a fuselage length of 35 feet, a wingspan of 50 feet, a height of 15 feet 1 inch, an empty weight of 5,600 pounds, and a maximum takeoff weight of 9,289 lbs. Tragically, this lofty status didn’t last long. 3, 1937. At the time of her acceptance by the Navy, the Devastator was the most advanced naval aircraft in the world. The TBD Devastator made her maiden flight on April 15, 1935, and officially entered into operational service with the U.S. The subject at hand right here is the ill-fated Douglas TBD Devastator torpedo bomber.ĭouglas TBD Devastator Early History and Specifications In a separate piece I will tell the story of the Brewster Buffalo fighter plane. Well, 81 is not a nice round number like 80, so for this go-around, we will have to settle for a two-parter.

Us navy seawolf series#

Last year, I penned a three-part series for 19FortyFive to celebrate the 80th anniversary of that epic air-sea battle, including one titled “The Warplanes That Won The Battle Of Midway.” Accordingly, this reporter will continue a tradition started last year by attending the superb Battle of Midway Commemoration Dinner at the posh Army-Navy Country Club in Arlington, Virginia. As I type these words, the 81st anniversary of the Battle of Midway is tomorrow.