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Aviation History
1941
1941 - 1077.PDF
MAY 8TH, 1941. 333 LATEST CURTISS DIVE-BOMBER U.S. Navy Shipboard Weapon is Fast Two- seater : Bombs Stowed Internally The Curtiss XSB2C-1 Navy dive-bomber looks well* suited for its purpose. Cooiing gills round theupper half only of the cowling, ' faired exhausts and the telescopicsight will be noticed. Bombs are carried internally. COMPLETION of a newly designed Curtiss dive-bomber for the U.S. Navy which the companyclaims transports a larger bomb load at higher speed ior greater distances than any dive-bomber ever developed in America or abroad, and which will greatly extend the striking power of the Navy's battle fleet, has been an- nounced by the Curtiss-Wright Corporation. The new dive-bomber is designated the Curtiss XSB2C-1 (SB for scout-bomber), and is a two-place, all-metal, low- mjfr-wing monoplane designed at the Buffalo factory, igned to operate from aircraft-carriers on extended scouting and bombing missions, it has a 1,700 h.p. Wright Cyclone engine which marks it as the most powerful dive- bomber ever built, and which assures it exceptional reserve of power and range. It is equipped with a three-bladed Curtiss electric airscrew of 25 deg. pitch range from 27 5 to 52.5 deg. Hydraulic Controls Details of its armament and performance have not been revealed, but it was designed in response to a request by the U.S. Navy for a dive-bomber that could carry twice as many heavy bombs as any existing dive-bomber, fly twice as far as present models to protect America and its fleet 600 miles farther than previously, remain in flight 4i hours longer, attain a maximum speed of 100 m.p.h. faster than current types, and mount double the armament. The Curtiss XSB2C-1 incorporates several desirable features, including provision for carrying the bomb load A three-bladed Curtiss electric airscrew absorbs the 1,700 h.p.from the Wright Cyclone. In the test pilot's hand is the message pad which straps to his right leg; the instrument onhis left leg is probably a sensitive altimeter. inside instead of outside the fuselage, thus elim- inating drag, wings that fold upward to better facilitate storage on board ship, wing slots that aid lateral control at the low speeds used in landing on an aircraft- carrier deck, and major controls that operate hydraulically instead of mechanically. This dive- bomber is somewhat larger than existing single-engine combat types, including the pre- sent Curtiss SBC-4 dive- bomber type used by the U.S. Navy, and is said to have a faster take-off than present-day pursuit craft. It has been designed for rapid quantity production and will be built at the Corporation's mammoth factory of
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