SBD Dauntless
Manufacturer:
Douglas
Wingspan:
41 ft. 6 in.
Length
33 ft. 11 in.
Max Speed:
255 mph
Range:
456 mi.
Service Ceiling:
25,200 ft.
Entered Production:
1941
Total Manufactured:
5,936
Armament:
(If applicable)
2 x .5 in machine guns in fuselage
2 x .30 in machine guns in flexible guns in rear cockpit
Swinging bomb cradle beneath fuselage
Bomb racks mounted under roots of outer wing sections
Summary
In 1936, the US Navy approved a contract with the Northrop Corporation to continue modification of a BT-1 to feature landing gear which could fully retract into flush wing wells. This resulted in the XBT-2, which became the immediate forerunner to the SBD Dauntless. In 1937, Douglas acquired Northrop, and took over the contract for the SBD, which entered production in June of 1940. There were six major iterations, with a select few being later modified for photoreconnaissance and earning a “P” at the end of their designation. Of the 87 SBD-2s built, only 14 were configured as an SBD-2P.
Overview
The SBD-2P on display in Hangar 37, on loan from the National Naval Aviation Museum, has a fascinating and well-traveled history. During the Battle of the Coral Sea, BuNo 2173 was assigned to the front lines with VS-5 aboard the USS Yorktown. Following combat service, it was transferred to multiple training facilities.
On February 18, 1944, during carrier landing practice exercises on Lake Michigan, the aircraft crashed into the icy waters. Fortunately, the pilot, Lt. John Lendo, survived the incident. He completed his carrier qualification training and went on to fly F6F Hellcats with VF-45 from the USS San Jacinto. On December 14, 1944, during a fighter sweep near Luzon, Lt. Lendo and fellow pilots encountered poor weather and possible anti-aircraft fire or enemy aircraft. Lt. Lendo and another pilot, Lt. Thomas McCann, never returned from that mission.
BuNo 2173 remained submerged in Lake Michigan until June 19, 2009, when it was recovered and sent to our friends at the Air Zoo Aerospace & Science Museum in Kalamazoo, Michigan. There, it underwent thousands of hours of meticulous restoration, returning the aircraft to its exact appearance on that cold February morning 65 years earlier. We were honored to receive the fully restored aircraft and, on March 4, 2022, placed it on display among fellow WWII warbirds. Today, she proudly bears Lt. Lendo’s name under the cockpit in his honor.
