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Northrop BT-1 Dive Bomber!
1939
The Northrop BT was a two seat, single engine, monoplane, dive bomber built by the Northrop Corporation for the United States Navy. At the time Northrop was a subsidiary of the Douglas Aircraft Company.
The design of the initial version began in 1935. A 700 hp Pratt and Whitney XR-1535-66 Twin Wasp Jr. double row, radial air-cooled engine powered the aircraft. The aircraft had slotted flaps and a landing gear that partially retracted.
The next iteration of the BT, designated the XBT-1 was equipped with a 750 hp R-1535 engine. This aircraft was followed in 1936 by the BT-1 that was powered by an 825 hp Pratt and Whitney R-1535-94 engine. One of the BT-1 aircraft was modified with a fixed tricycle landing gear and was the first such aircraft to land on an aircraft carrier.
The final variant, the XBT-2, was a BT-1 aircraft modified to incorporate a fully retracting landing gear, wing slots, a redesigned canopy, and was powered by an 800 hp Wright XR-1820-32 radial air-cooled engine. The XBT-2 first flew on 25 April 1938 and after successful testing the Navy placed an order for 144 aircraft. In 1939 the aircraft designation was changed to the Douglas SBD-1 with the last 87 on order completed as SBD-2s.
The Northrop Corporation had become the El Segundo division of Douglas aircraft hence the change to Douglas.
The U.S. Navy placed an order for 54 BT-1s in 1936 with the aircraft entering service during 1938. The BT-1s served on the USS Yorktown and USS Enterprise. The type was not a success in service due to poor handling characteristics, especially at low speeds, "a fatal flaw in a carrier based aircraft." It was also prone to unexpected rolls and a number of aircraft were lost in crashes.
General characteristics: Crew: two (pilot and gunner), Length: 9.5 m (31 ft 3 in), Wingspan: 12.7 m (41 ft 6 in), Height: 3.81 m (12.5 ft), Wing area: 29.63 m² (134.5 ft²), Empty weight: 2029 kg (4464 lb), Max takeoff weight: 3209 kg (7060 lb), Powerplant: 1× Pratt & Whitney R-1535-94 Twin Wasp Jr. double row radial air-cooled engine, 615 kW (825 hp). Performance: Maximum speed: 357 km/h (222 mph), Cruise speed: 309 km/h (192 mph), Range: 1,850 km (2,979 miles), Service ceiling 7,710 m (25,300 ft. Armament:: 1 × 12.7 mm machine gun, 1 × 7.62 mm machine gun, 454 kg (1,000 lb) of bombs on external wing racks.
USN 09 René Hieronymus Scale1:72 Building time: 15 hrs.
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