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#1183

Douglas SBD Dauntless

🇺🇸 United States ·first flew 1940· dive bomber, scout plane

🎖️ military piston retired
10 photos from Wikimedia Commons · credits & licences
  1. 1. Douglas SBD-5 Dauntless Feb1944: U.S. Navy· Public domain
  2. 2. Air Zoo December 2019 086 (Douglas SBD-3 Dauntless): Michael Barera· CC BY-SA 4.0
  3. 3. Douglas SBD-3 Dauntless of VB-6 after landing aboard USS Yorktown (CV-5), 4 June 1942 (NH 100740): Wikimedia Commons· Public domain
  4. 4. Douglas SBD Dauntless balanced on nose cph.3a45218: U.S. Navy· Public domain
  5. 5. NX670AM Douglas SBD-5 Dauntless Bu No 28536 Planes of Fame Air Museum (centered): Tomás Del Coro· CC BY-SA 2.5
  6. 6. Aviation ordnancemen load bomb on underside of SBD Dauntless. (49991342677): Signal Corps Archive from Ireland and United States· Public domain
  7. 7. Aviation Ordnancemen loading a bomb on a Douglas SBD-5 Dauntless, circa 1943-1944 (80-G-K-15951): Wikimedia Commons· Public domain
  8. 8. Douglas SBD Dauntless landing aboard USS Cowpens (CVL-25), circa in mid-1943 (80-G-K-1075): Wikimedia Commons· Public domain
  9. 9. Douglas SBD Dauntless of VB-41 taking off from USS Ranger (CV-4), in 1943: U.S. Navy· Public domain
  10. 10. Douglas SBD Dauntless prepare to take off from USS Ranger (CV-4), circa in June 1942 (80-G-K-740): Wikimedia Commons· Public domain
Read about it on Wikipedia ↗
Douglas SBD Dauntless, photo 1 of 10
1/10 U.S. Navy· Public domain

what is it?

The Douglas SBD Dauntless is a World War II American naval scout plane and dive bomber that was manufactured by Douglas Aircraft from 1940 through 1944. The SBD ("Scout Bomber Douglas") was the United States Navy's main carrier-based scout/dive bomber from mid-1940 through mid-1944. The SBD was also flown by the United States Marine Corps, both from land air bases and aircraft carriers.

How to recognise it: 1 piston engine with propeller · retractable tailwheel (taildragger) · 12.7 m wingspan

base stats

  • speed 410 km/htop speed
  • range 1,795 kmwithout refuelling
  • size 4,854 kgmax take-off weight
  • built 5,936made in total

Bars compare against all aircraft: 3,500 km/h, 20,000 km, 850 seats; size and number built on a log scale up to 640 t (An-225) and 45,000 built (Cessna 172).

fun facts

  • First flew 86 years ago, in 1940.
  • Top speed is 3.2× a car on the Dutch motorway (130 km/h).
  • Wingspan of 12.7 m: about 3 cars parked nose to tail.
  • Range of 1,795 km: 10× Amsterdam to Brussels.

piston: A car-like piston engine turning a propeller: simple and cheap, the classic small plane.

spec sheet

first flight
1940-05-01
introduced
1940
retired
1959
status
retired
number built
5,936
role
dive bomber, scout plane
origin
🇺🇸 United States
makers
Douglas
engines
1× Wright R-1820-60 Cyclone
crew
2
length
10.1 m
wingspan
12.7 m
height
4.1 m
max take-off weight
4,854 kg
top speed
410 km/h
cruise speed
298 km/h
range
1,795 km
ceiling
7,782 m
landing gear
retractable conventional landing gear

Specs are for the version in the Wikipedia article's specification section. Blank means the sources don't say.

Sources: Wikidata Q118070, Wikipedia: Douglas SBD Dauntless (CC BY-SA 4.0).Updated 2026-10-24.

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