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U.S. Marine Corps. Via Microworks.net
Vought SB2U-3 Vindicator
| Crew | 2 |
| Dimensions | 41'11" by
33'11.75" by 14'3" 12.78m by 10.36m by 4.34m |
| Wing area | 305 square feet 28.3 square meters |
| Weight | 5634-9763 lbs 2556-4428 kg |
| Maximum speed | 243 mph (391 km/h) at 9500 feet (2900 meters) 232 mph (373 km/h) at sea level |
| Cruise speed | 152 mph 245 km/h |
| Landing speed | 71 mph 114 km/h |
| Climb rate | 18 feet per second 5.5 meters per second |
| Service ceiling | 23,600 feet 7200 meters |
| Power plant | 1 750 hp (559 kW) Pratt & Whitney R-1535-02 Twin Wasp Junior 14-cylinder two-row radial driving a two bladed propeller. |
| Armament | 1 0.50 fixed
wing machine gun 1 0.50 flexible rear cockpit machine gun |
| External stores | 1000 lbs (454 kg) of bombs |
| Range | 1120 miles (1800 km) with bomb load 2450 miles (3940 km) as ferry |
| Fuel | 538 gallons 2037 liters |
| Production | at
Vought-Sikorsky Division of United Aircraft, East Hartford, CT: 54 –1s 58 –2s 57 –3s |
The Vindicator was a decent aircraft
when it was accepted
in 1936 as the U.S. Navy's first monoplane scout bomber. It was the
product of a call for comparative trials between a modern biplane and
modern monoplane design. The monoplane design proved much superior and
was put into production in October 1936. Deliveries began in December
1937.
A small number were ordered by the French as the V-156F, and 24 had been
delivered by May 1940. Half of these were wiped out on the first day of
the German invasion. Those
aircraft not yet delivered to the French were taken over by the
British, who ordered an additional 50 as the Chesapeake Mark I.
The Vindicator was clearly obsolete by the start of the Pacific War. A few –3s saw action with the Marines at Midway, suffering relatively light casualties but failing to get any hits. Its crews sardonically referred to it as the "Wind Indicator."
References
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