TBF Avenger

TBF-1C Avenger
Country of Origin: United States
Manufacturer: Grumman
Crew: 3; 1 pilot, 1 navigator and 1 radio operator
Length: 40 ft 11.5 in (12.48 m)
Wingspan: 54 ft 2 in (16.51 m)
Height: 15 ft 5 in (4.70 m)
Weight: 10,545 lb (4,783 kg) empty, 17,893 lb (8,115 kg) combat loaded
Powerplant: 1x Turbosupercharged Wright R-2600-20 Duplex Cyclone 14 cylinder air cooled radial piston engine with 1,900 horsepower
Maximum Speed: 275 mph (442 km/h)
Service Ceiling: 30,100 ft (9,170 m)
Range: 1,000 mi (1,610 km)
Armament: 2x 12.7mm Browning M2 machineguns firing forward, 1x 12.7mm Browning M2 machinegun fitted in a power operated turret, 1x 7.62mm Browning M1919 machinegun flexibly mounted, 1x 2,000 pound Mk 13 Torpedo
Kit Maker and Scale: Accurate Miniatures, 1:48

Intended to replace the obsolescent TBD Devastator, the Avenger's first major combat action occurred on the same day as the Devastator's last and the squadrons of Avengers met the same fate as those of the Devastator; they were savagely mauled by the fighter cover screening the Japanese carrier force at the Battle of Midway. This however, was not indicative of any sort of flaw in the Avenger's design, rather it showed the inexperience of the crews that flew them into battle.

Presented to the public on December 7th, 1941 at a ceremony held Grumman's Bethpage factory in New York, the company was blissfully unaware of what was transpiring that fateful day. Later in the afternoon the company was made aware of the Japanese sneak attack and once the ceremony was over, they quietly shut the factory doors and went on a wartime lockdown until late 1944. They also had a name to give to their new machine, which until then had simply been referred to by its alphanumeric designator. They named it the Avenger, believing it to be the machine that would strike back at the Japanese for the raid at Pearl Harbor.

Optimised for the torpedo attack role, the Avenger could also be fitted outfitted for the conventional level-bomber role and ground attack. Primary armament was the 2,000 pound Mk XIII torpedo, or up to 2,000 pounds of bombs and eight 5in. rockets under the wings. Built with the same rugged durability that earned Grumman the nickname Iron Works, the Avenger was a tough, heavily armoured machine that could fight its way through enemy defenses, launch its attack then fight its way out again.

Secondary weapons consist of a pair of 12.7mm machineguns, mounted in each wing for the pilot's use in strafing ground targets, anti-aircraft gunners, and even aircraft of opportunity that managed to slip in front of the aircraft unaware. A third 12.7mm machinegun was fitted into a power operated turret built onto the Avenger's topside near the empennage. Fitted with a special motor optimsed for speed under load, the turret allowed the Avenger to effectively engage even the nimble fighters of the Japanese navy with relative ease. A 250 degree range of traverse and a 90 degree range of elevation provided a much wider field of fire than guns conventionally mounted on pintles. Lastly, a 7.62mm machinegun was fitted on the underside of the aircraft, just ahead of the tail wheel to deter sneak attacks from low 6 o'clock, a position out of view of both the pilot and the turret.

Despite its rather dubious combat debut at the Battle of Midway, the Avenger proved itself to be one of the greatest bomber aircraft available to any combatant nation in the war, both in its intended role as a torpedo bomber and as a conventional bomber. In October 1944 it gained fame when a strike group torpedoed the IJN battleship Musashi, the largest battleship ever built. 6 to 8 torpedoes found their mark, crippling the battleship and causing it to list to port. Moments later, a strike from a dozen Helldivers finished it off, sending it to the bottom of the ocean. A short while late, in early 1945, the Musashi's sister ship, the Yamato met a similar fate.

Following World War II, in late 1945, the Avenger flew into history yet again, when a group of 5 Avengers on a training mission disappeared over the mid-eastern Atlantic Ocean to add to the myths and legends of the infamous Bermuda Triangle. None of the five Avengers have ever been found, and while researchers suggest that the rough, mountainous terrain of the sea floor beneath the Triangle has consumed the aircraft and hidden them from discovery, many people believe the Avengers flew through a mysterious portal into another world, or even time traveled to a point in the distant future.


More Pics:

Cockpit:
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Torpedo bay:
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Engine:
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5 o'clock:
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Aft:
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Top Down:
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Tail Wheel and Stinger:
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Pitot and Yagi Antenna:
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Gun Turret:
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