Yokosuka D4Y Type 2 Suisei “Judy”
In 1938 Japan acquired one of the prototype Heinkel He 118 dive bombers that the Luftwaffe had rejected in favour of the Junkers Ju 87. Although this aircraft crashed during trials, its overall performance had […]
dive bomber
Vought SB2U Vindicator
In 1934 the US Navy invited bids for a new carrier-based scout bomber, and received no less than six competing designs. Four of these would be ordered into production – Curtiss’ upgraded SBC-3 biplane, the […]
Douglas SBD Dauntless
In 1934 the US Navy ran several design competitions for new aircraft, among them one for a two-seat scout bomber. The entrants were the Brewster XSBA, the Vought XSB2U and the Northrop XBT, which eventually […]
Aichi D3A Type 99 “Val”
The Imperial Japanese Navy’s 11-Shi requirements for new aircraft, issued in 1936, included a request for a monoplane dive bomber to replace the biplane D1A. Both Nakajima and Aichi produced designs but it was the […]
Aichi D1A Type 94/96 “Susie”
The IJN had watched the development of British and American dive-bombers during the interwar period with some interest. Determined to procure their own aircraft of this type, the navy approached the Aichi aircraft company, who […]