065B - Inside the SBD Dauntless

CLASS: Dive Bomber

YEAR OF DESIGN: 1940

LENGTH: 33 feet 1 inches

WINGSPAN: 41 feet 6 inches

MAX AIRSPEED:  255 MPH

CEILING: 25,530 feet

TYPICAL ARMAMENT

2 x 12.7 mm forward-mounted Machine Guns

2 x 7.62 mm Machine Gun in Rear Turret

[Usually equipped with 300 rounds each]

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[Standard Dive Bomb Arrangement]

2 x wing-mounted 500-pound bombs

1 x 1,250-pound bomb in undercarriage

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With its crew of 2 and high-powered machine guns mounted in the front cowling, the SBD Dauntless was often considered as formidable a fighter as the early versions of the F4F Wildcat; however, the SBD Dauntless was designed to be a Dive Bomber and that is where it excelled.

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The Dauntless was responsible for a great majority of the Allied air victories throughout most of 1942, including the vital Coral Sea, Midway, and Guadalcanal Campaigns. Additionally, its sturdy build kept it in flight long after its Japanese counterpart, the Aichi D3A Dive Bomber would’ve shred into pieces.

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What’s more, the Dauntless, just like the F4F Wildcat, excelled in wingman operations, using tight formations and defensive positions to create offense when attacking Japanese fighter planes offered the slightest opportunity.

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It wasn’t until the Curtiss Helldiver was formally introduced in December 1942 that the SBD Dauntless started to fall out of favor with Naval pilots and commanders. However, The Dauntless, teamed with the Corsair gull-winged fighting plane, were mainstays throughout the bloody Guadalcanal and Solomon Islands Campaigns.

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