Brewster SB2A

Brewster SB2A Buccaneer
A US Navy SB2A-4, 1942
Type:	Dive bombers
Design country:	United States
Manufacturer:	Brewster Aeronautical Corporation
First flight:	June 17, 1941
Commissioning:	1942
Production time:	1942 to 1944
Number of pieces:	771

The Brewster SB2A Buccaneer was a single-engine fighter aircraft of the Second World War from US production, which was mainly used in the US Navy . It represented the attempt by the manufacturer Brewster Aeronautical Corporation to develop a more effective reconnaissance / bomber from the previous Brewster SBA model. The new aircraft should be more powerful and heavily armed. Despite numerous production orders from the USA, Great Britain and the Netherlands, the Brewster SB2A Buccaneer could not fulfill the hopes placed in it.

development

The Brewster SB2A Buccaneer was designed as a two-seat reconnaissance / bomber for land and aircraft carrier use. In general, the construction followed the construction of the Brewster SBA. However, the objective of the new design required a larger airframe and a more powerful engine. Furthermore, the bomb bay was enlarged and the main landing gear was relocated so that it could be pulled into the underside of the wing and no longer into the fuselage.

The first flight of the prototype took place on June 17, 1941. At the same time, orders had already been placed for 140 copies for the US Navy , 162 for the Netherlands and 750 for the Royal Air Force . The United States Army Air Forces (USAAF) also ordered 468 SB2A-2s designated as A-34s , but these were delivered to Great Britain under the Loan and Lease Act . At the RAF the machines were called Bermuda Mk.1 . Australia had also ordered 243 “Bermudas”, but after the weaknesses of the type and the delivery delays became known in the other orders, this was abandoned and replaced by an order from Vultee Vengeance .

commitment

A Royal Air Force Bermuda

In use, the Brewster SB2A Buccaneer did not perform as expected . Especially after the installation of a heavier armament, the model lacked the desired maneuverability. In general, the operators rated the performance as completely inadequate for combat missions.

Nevertheless, the US Navy continued to order small numbers of different variants for use in the second line and for training purposes.

In the British Royal Air Force, the type known as Bermuda was mostly converted into a target tow plane. As far as is known, none of the aircraft were used at the front.

variants

The XSB2A-1 prototype in 1941

The only surviving SB2A in the National Museum of Naval Aviation

XSB2A-1

Prototype, one was built.

SB2A-1

Series version with back tower (not built).

SB2A-2

Variant without folding wings with changed armament, 80 copies were built.

SB2A-3

Variant for the carrier insert with folding wings and catch hook, 60 copies were built.

SB2A-4

Originally intended for the Netherlands , the machines were handed over to the US Navy and the US Marine Corps as training aircraft. 162 copies were built.

A-34

USAAF designation for the SB2A-2 built for Great Britain under the Lending and Lease Act. 468 aircraft were built.

Bermuda Mk.1

Royal Air Force designation for the SB2A-2 / A-34.

Acceptance of the Brewster Buccaneer / Bermuda by the USAAF:

Type	1942	1943	1944	TOTAL
Brewster 340	168	568	35	771

Technical specifications

Three-sided tear

Parameter	Data
Type	two-seat scout / bomber
Engine	Radial engine Wright R-2600 -8 Cyclone with 1700 PS (1268 kW)
Top speed	441 km / h at an altitude of 3660 m
Service ceiling	7590 m
Range	2696 km
Empty mass	4501 kg
Max. Takeoff mass	6481 kg
span	14.33 m
length	11.94 m
height	4.70 m
Armament	2 × 12.7 mm machine guns 4 × 7.62 mm machine guns maximum 454 kg bombs (variant SB2A-2)

literature

• F. Gemeinhardt, J. Lucabaugh, R. Martin: The Bellicose Brewster. In: Airplane Monthly, January 1990, pp. 18-23.
• Bowers, Peter M .: United States Navy Aircraft since 1911 . Naval Institute Press, Annapolis (Maryland) 1990. pp. 88 f. ISBN 0-87021-792-5 .
• AERO, issue 40. Marshall Cavendish International Ltd., London 1984.

Web links

Commons : Brewster SB2A  - Collection of Images, Videos and Audio Files

• Description of A-34 of the USAF Museum (in English)
• http://www.aviastar.org/air/usa/brewster_buccaneer.php
• http://www.daveswarbirds.com/usplanes/aircraft/buccaner.htm

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Brewster Bermuda: "Almost in Australian Service"
2. ↑ Statistical Digest of the USAF 1946 , p. 100 ff.