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| Click Here For Full Artist Print Indexes | Aviation History Archive |
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Aviation Art Prints  Countries US Aircraft Index More Aircraft Initial A to D  Avenger |
[UP] - A-7 Corsair - Airacobra - Apache - Avenger - B-10 - B2 - Bearcat - Black Hawk - Black Widow - Blackbird - Catalina - Chinook - Cobra - Condor - Coronado - Crusader - Curtiss CR-3 - Curtiss F6C-2 Hawk - Curtiss MB-2 - Curtiss NC - Curtiss R3C-2 - Dauntless - DC3 - Delta Dart - Devastator - DH4 - Dominator - DT-2 - Duck |
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| Text for the above items : |
Last Voyage of the Yamato by Stan Stokes. The 74,000 ton Yamato and the Musashi were the two largest battleships ever built, and typified the Imperial Japanese Navys attitude that their ships should be superior to anything the United States had. As a comparison the German Battleship Deutschland displaced a mere 15,500 tons. Each of these ships carried nine 18.1 inch guns, the most powerful armament available on any ship at that point in time. The Yamato participated in the attack on Midway, serving as Admiral Yamamotos flag ship, and many of the other significant sea battles in the Pacific. By the time the Allies were preparing to invade Okinawa, the Japanese had been forced to utilize Kikusui tactics which would involve mass suicide attacks and individual suicide missions. The army had made numerous sacrifices, and senior Japanese naval officers realized that the Yamato would need to be sacrificed in the defense of Okinawa, as a matter of pride. The Yamatos 350-mile trip to Okinawa without any meaningful air cover would be a suicide mission, and the ship and its escort vessels were equipped with only enough fuel for a one-way trip. On April 6, 1945 the huge vessel departed and was immediately sighted by two American submarines, the USS Threadfin and the USS Hackleback. The information was passed on to the USN task force, and on April 7 an F6F from the USS Essex spotted the Yamato and relayed its position back to the USS Indianapolis, the flag ship of Admiral Spruance. An initial attack force of 280 USN aircraft were launched from nine American carriers, followed by a second wave of aircraft from four other carriers. Knowing that the Japanese had no air cover, the F6F Hellcats carried 500 pound bombs, and were joined by Avenger torpedo bombers and Curtis SB2C dive bombers. The Americans had learned from their earlier attack on the Musashi to concentrate torpedo attacks on one side of the giant ship. The Yamato was hit with numerous torpedoes and bombs. By 13:00 the giant battleship was listing 20 degrees to port and her antiaircraft guns were inoperative. At 14:10 another torpedo hit jammed the ships rudder, and the Yamato began to circle at about 8 knots. At 14:23 the Yamato rolled over and exploded in a giant mushroom cloud and sank with the loss of nearly 2,500 men. The Grumman TBF Avenger was the first torpedo bomber produced by that company. It bore a resemblance to the F4F Wildcat, and incorporated a unique internal bomb bay capable of carrying a 2,000 lb torpedo or four 500 lb bombs. The TBF was a big aircraft with a wingspan of 54 feet, and an empty weight of 10,080 lbs. It was capable of 271-MPH with a range of 1,215 miles. The Avenger incorporated a light weight electrically driven rear ball turret. The Avenger was so successful that General Motors was also pressed into service producing the aircraft with their version designated as a TBM. |
The Element of Surprise by Robert Barbour. On 20th October 1943, Wildcat and Avenger aircraft from the Carrier US Core, on patrol north of the Azores, surprised U378, a type VIIC U-boat which had been active in that area. The element of surprise was so complete that the submarines guns remained unmanned throughout the action. |
Low Holding by Robert Taylor. On 9th June 1943, three days before his 19th birthday, George H.W. Bush was commissioned as an Ensign in the United States Naval Reserve to make him one of the youngest aviators in US Naval history. Posted to the USS San Jacinto (CVL-30), a cruiser converted during construction into a small light carrier, George Bush flew his first combat mission in a raid over Wake Island on 23 May 1944, and continued to serve with distinction until the end of hostilities against Japan. During that time the man who would later become the 41st President of the United States logged over 1,220 flying hours, made 126 deck landings, flew 58 combat missions and was awarded three Air Medals. One of those missions was almost his last; on 2nd September 1944, during an attack on Japanese radio installations at Chichi- Jima in the Bonin Islands, his aircraft was hit by intense ground fire. In spite of the flames and dense smoke filling the cockpit, George Bush pressed home the attack before guiding his stricken aircraft out over the sea and baling out. Although both his fellow crew members sadly perished, Lieutenant Bush survived in a dinghy and was rescued by the USS Finback, a submarine. For his heroism during the raid he was awarded the Navy's Distinguished Flying Cross. Low Holding Over The San Jacinto portrays a scene from August 1944 with Lieutenant (JG) George Bush as part of a four-plane formation of TBM Avengers from Torpedo Squadron 51 (VT-51) flying a low-holding pattern in preparation for landing aboard the carrier. |
Avenger |
| Top Aces for : Avenger | |
| A list of all Aces from our database who are known to have flown this aircraft. | |
| Name | Victories |
| Richard Cormier | 10.00 |
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