An Often Forgotten Oddity That Served The US Navy | Grumman J2F Duck [Aircraft Overview #40]
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- Опубліковано 28 бер 2022
- The Grumman JF and J2F were a series of amphibious utility aircraft that were operated by the US Navy, Marines, and Coast Guard. Though slightly odd in appearance, they were very successful in their assigned tasks and were looked upon fondly by the downed pilots they rescued during World War 2.
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Producing these videos is a hobby of mine. I have a passion for history, and personally own a large collection of books, journals and other texts, and endeavor to do as much research as possible. However if there are any mistakes, please don't hesitate to reach out and correct anything :)
Sources:
Hosek.T (1996) Grumman JF Duck. Mini in action.
Francillon. R. J (1989). Grumman Aircraft Since 1929 - Наука та технологія
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F.A.Q Section
Q: Do you take aircraft requests?
A: I have a list of aircraft I plan to cover, but feel free to add to it with suggestions:)
Q: Why do you use imperial measurements for some videos, and metric for others?
A: I do this based on country of manufacture. Imperial measurements for Britain and the U.S, metric for the rest of the world, but I include text in my videos that convert it for both.
Q: Will you include video footage in your videos, or just photos?
A: Video footage is very expensive to licence, if I can find footage in the public domain I will try to use it, but a lot of it is hoarded by licencing studies (British Pathe, Periscope films etc). In the future I may be able to afford clips :)
Q: Why do you sometimes feature images/screenshots from flight simulators?
A: Sometimes there are not a lot of photos available for certain aircraft, so I substitute this with digital images that are as accurate as possible.
Feel free to leave you questions below - I may not be able to answer all of them, but I will keep my eyes open :)
question, what plane engine is the frist intro sound tingy? or is it just a random sound
I love the floatplane content any chance we will see the bv 138 and bv222 in the future? They are some of my favorite floatplanes and both are fascinating from a design prospective I think 🙂 keep up the good work!!
3 requests (one of which you're probably sick of hearing from me): Can you cover the Corsair in RAF service, Westland Wizard and planes/the airship carrier from Crimson Skies?
The Republic Seabee is one of my favorite amphibians… I’m not sure if it’s episode worthy
@@thekak2627 Griffon Spitfire :)
The book “Frozen in Time” details the rescue of a downed air crew during WW2. A B17 crashed in Greenland and a “Duck” was used a part of the rescue effort. A fascinating story of survival under terrible conditions. The “Duck” was also lost and the story of its attempted recovery is also detailed. A great read.
That book is actually on my "to-buy" list. Looks like a fascinating read!
Sounds like a must read. Thanks
My wife’s grandfather was the bombardier on that B-17!
Frozen in Time was indeed a great read. Thanks for the suggestion.
fun fact: that Grumman Duck was the first aircraft to ever land on an ice shelf in Greenland
Leroy Grumman, from founding the Firm & working out the Grumman Duck, was still alive for years after the F14 Tomcat first flew . . . - that's one helluva engineering life.
There's a soft spot in my heart always for aircraft like the Duck that soldiered on doing their job without any fanfare. Thanks for doing this one.
"I feel the need! For moderate speed!"
No fancy technology or legendary tales, just a downright practical aircraft. Another part of the backbone of Allied efforts in WW2 that has been forgotten by time.
The Grumman Duck ranks along with the Rufe and Curtiss Kingfisher as my favourite float Planes , the internal passenger accom was Genius this Aircraft was a welcome sight for downed Pilots ..luv'd it in the Film Murphys War with Peter O Toole..great vid Rex..
*Sad Mitsubishi F1M noices*
@@martijn9568 sad shiun noises
burning24: don't forget the lovely and rather successful-but often forgotten- British SUPERMARINE "WALRUS". She has a similar loveable character as the Duck.
I just watched "Murphy's War" a few months ago. Nice to see that the movie still holds up to my nostalgia, which isn't the case with many other movies from my youth.
@@45CaliberCure Got to admit its still a great Film though..
I love the Grumman duck and you narrated the history and development perfectly. (Thanks for the constantly amazing videos as well)
Great video as always! However, I'm not sure if this was pointed out already or if it has been corrected, but Carlos Romulo did not become President of the Philippines. He was an army officer during World War 2 and after the war he served various public positions, including as Secretary of Foreign Affairs and the Philippine representative to the UN. He is also famous for insulting the Russian representative, Andrey Vyshinsky, at the UN. After being told by the Vyshinsky to not get involved in the topic being discussed because: "You are just a little man from a little country." Romulo replied by saying: "You are just a little man from a little country." In return, Romulo replied, "It is the duty of the little Davids of this world to fling the pebbles of truth in the eyes of the blustering Goliaths and force them to behave!" This resulted in Vyshinsky to stay silent and sit down. However, he did become President of the UN General Assembly.
I always admired the Grumman Duck from the first time I saw it on an episode of Baa Baa Black Sheep as a kid back in the 70's. I thought the compartment in the float was a cool feature.
Always loved the Duck. I built a plastic model of the plane in the mid 1960’s and still have it today. Always has been one of my favorite models.
That airplane looks to be standing quite high up when landed on land. I can imagine it wasn't the easiest airplane to land on land.
But that single main float just looks soo gorgeous😍
I liked the hanger picture with all the Ducks in a row.
in the then unused airship hanger at one of the Naval air stations…
Anyone who saw Murphy's War and Murphy teaching himself to fly should remember it well.
That is a great movie. I think it stared Peter O'toole?
I thought I recognised it - the hull shape is very distinctive !
Please keep it up with the flying boats and seaplanes. They are particularly fascinating.
*Walrus!*
(I rather like the Walrus. It may show at times).
@@Farweasel Hi mate-I'm a huge fan of the Walrus too. She has as much personality as the Duck and they could be sisters.
A Grumman Duck was famously used in the 1971 film "Murphy's War", with Peter O'Toole. I believe that the aircraft in the story was supposed to have been a Supermarine Walrus since it was supposed to have been British. However, apparently the producers could not obtain a Walrus, so a Duck was painted in British markings and used instead, even though the British never used any Docks. In many ways, the Duck was the U.S. Navy's equivalent to the British Walrus. Despite the Duck's unusual appearance it actually was a very good aircraft and lasted a remarkably long time in service.
I remember spectating a airshow display of Frank Tallman performing his Duck at the Canadian National Airshow in Toronto Canada in the late '70s-early 80s.
He landed in the water and a tailwind wouldn't Frank to turn around to takeoff and he went 'CRUMP' on to the breakwater. After 5 minutes he was able to dislodge himself and he did a 2 minute hop over to the Toronto Island Airport. When we returned to our friend's Cardinal (CF-POL) at Toronto Island, Frank's Duck was parked beside us. You barely saw any scratches on the hull pontoon.
A tribute to the Grumman Iron Works.
I’m pretty sure Tallman did the flying in “Murphy’s War”
Looking at the duck, it seems that practical design simplicity was the key to it's success. My brother used to have a plastic model of this aircraft - oh, 150 years ago, it feels like - and I was always curious about it.
If you want to see a Grumman Duck in action, the 1971 movie "Murphy's War", starring Peter O'Toole, features the J2F. Good movie, too! :)
..or just Kermit W
This bird is no oddity; it was a norm that has since been unmatched by jet a/c: 'Phib, CV- capable, patrol bomber, jarhead-acceptable, utility, SAR, VIP transport/air yacht? Get a Phantom 2 do all that.
Plus, she is Beautiful 💜💜💜.
Get me some pontoons and an S-3...
@@joshuabessire9169 That's the spirit!
Murphy's war!!!!!
Thank you so much for covering this plane.
I was a kid when I first saw it in Murphy's War, and eventually I got to see that very J2F6 Duck used in the movie at the National Museum of the United States Air Force at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base in Dayton, Ohio.
Always liked the design, very interesting to hear how big of a success it was.
I love that airplane - as well as the entire AF Museum!
Just a super movie. What a scene when Peter O'Toole first got it airborne. Like they say..they don't make them like that anymore
My partner and I owned a Grumman Duck (briefly). It was great in the air, but was rough on takeoff even in a light chop and a nightmare to land. Our Duck had a tendency to grab the waves and lurch us forward despite the pronounced prow of the boat hull. I almost lost it five times and stressed over every landing. We sold it soon after our worst landing. I swear the Duck was trying to kill us. Now we fly safe boring aircraft and I have come to miss the Duck.
quack quack!
Evil Duck !
poor duck....it was the sea/waves that actually tried to kill you..
As an aircraft modeler I believe the Duck is one of the most interesting. In spite of its odd configuration it achieves artistic symmetry and is, in my opinion, beautiful.
The Duck saved more sailors and airmen than any other single engine aircraft ever!👍🖖✌️🇺🇸😂 USCG AIR retired. Semper Paratus!
G'day,
Ah, if you were only squeaking of US Aircraft, and the Pacific Theatre of Operations then you might have a point.
But the Supermarine Walrus fished a hell of a lot more people out of the English Channel, Atlantic, North Sea, Bay of Biscay, Mediterranean Sea, and SouthWest Pacific, with British Imperial Forces, than the Ducks did with the Yanquis.
No B-17, B-24, C-47, P-38, P47, or P-51 Crews were ever rescued from the Englishness of the Channel by Duckies, because the Walrusses and Seagulls got them instead.
Just(ifiably ?) sayin',
Such is life,
Have a good one...
Stay safe.
;-p
Ciao !
@@WarblesOnALot the Duck was never stationed in the channel though…it was stationed on the US coast and in and around the US Navy, so he meant that. and FYI: it was only in that role for a short period, before being superseded by larger amphibious planes with better range and capacity
@@bostonrailfan2427 Not the point .. the dude made an inaccurate statement and was corrected. We all know the info you shared , the original commenter is obviously the one you should be telling the facts to .. not anyone else.
@@WarblesOnALot correct
@@bostonrailfan2427
G'day,
Well, regardless of what you thought he Probably MEANT to say, in fact he was absolutely totally bloody-well WRONG.
So, respect you the FACTS, and stop flogging a dead Horse.
The Grumman Duck had a small and more or less successful Operational History in WW-2, but the Kingfisher saw more Combat and the Walrus rescued more Aircrew.
So, the US Coastguard operated Ducks, and the Coasties give themselves a Thrill by exagerating the Combat Histories of the obsolete Biplanes the CG were stuck with.
Feelgood Waaauugh(!) stories which are Bullshit should ALWAYS be shot down, on sight.
Such is life,
Have a good one...
Stay safe.
;-p
Ciao !
Like others in the comments section, I am glad to see some attention given to this fine product of the "Grumman Iron Works." :-)
I think my first time seeing a Duck was it's use in the _'Baa, Baa Black Sheep/Black Sheep Squadron'_ television show (The name changed between seasons as I recall) and have always liked it.
Just as I also have a fondness for it's "design cousin" the Kingfisher.
"Black Sheep Squadron" was the name given the series when it went into syndication. The Duck that you saw in the series was owned by Tallmantz Aviation, flown by famed stunt pilot Frank Tallman, who considered it his favorite plane to fly.
Same for me; I remember seeing it first in Baa Baa Black Sheep and always liked it.
Another great forgotten classic.
Doing a great job.
I love your choice of planes. They are almost always planes that I've been fasicinated with since I was a kid. Since that was. long time ago, they are often planes I either saw or built models of. Thanks for this channel.
Great content. To me, flying boats of any kind seem like the best way to go through World War 2 as an American pilot. They seem luxurious compared to all other aircraft, durable, reliable, and can go anywhere with water. I think they're pretty amazing technology and I'm surprised they aren't in greater use.
great for the Pacific…but in Europe not so much.
and why they went out of style is simple: helicopters could do exactly the same without heeding a catapult and crane and could be in and out without touching the water. they lasted a long time with the USCG but eventually midair refueling made them far too versatile
I'm not. The chief advantage of seaplanes was that they could land on any body of water, and didn't require long concrete runways, which was especially valuable in the Pacific and other sparsely populated areas. During WWII, the U.S. army and navy built runways all over the Pacific. That advantage was largely negated by this, and seaplanes have two key disadvantages. 1) They are more complicated to operate, as pilots have to be trained to master both land and water landings; landplane pilots only have to master one. 2) Seaplanes require more maintenance. The stress of the water landings will, over time, eventually spring open even the most tightly riveted seams and start letting water in. So periodically, the planes have to be taken out and have the seams in the hull/fuselage resealed and re-riveted. They also have to be periodically sprayed down with fresh water to combat saltwater corrosion -- and aluminum _can_ corrode under certain circumstances, though of course it doesn't rust.
So, simpler operation in flying, and simpler maintenance meant that once there were runways all over the world, landplanes, being cheaper to operate, pushed seaplanes out.
Very interesting video. These planes always looked so cumbersome to me. But the late R.H. Bob Hoover would perform aerobatics in the Duck that I never thought would be possible. It was remarkable what that plane would do. There were two Ducks assigned to the U.S.S. Arizona, but at the time of the attack they had been replaced by Vought Kingfishers. Thank you.
From a todays perspective that wasn't engineering that was straight art.
I just was wondering if you had ever made a video about a certain plane that was wandering in my memory but which I couldn’t really remember the name of.
…….
And in a couple off days, bam, there it is!
Great info again.
My dad was in the Navy in WWII and got me a model Duck to build when I was 11. I read all about it and loved it even more when I saw Murphy’s War (he shouldn’t have died at the end!) My mom gave my models away when I left home. I’m sure the brat she gave it to never appreciated it like I did.
You should have given your mom away.
I remember having built an Airfix model of one of those a very long time ago. Thanks for the video.
Huge Fan of the Duck.
Think about how it must've felt for downed pilots ... Then Duck lands down next to ya 4 the save!
awesome dude
I'm glad you mentioned the Duck used to escape the Philippines. That story was one of the first I read concerning the USN in the Pacific in WW II. If I recall correctly, it was in 1959 or 1960 when I was in high school. I actually met Carlos Romulo in the early 1970's when I was in the service and was stationed in Manila. He was a genuinely nice man, and I later found out that he was related to the wife of author Forrest Bryant Johnson, author of the book about the Cabanatuan Raid. It has a personal touch for me as one of my uncles was Mrs. Johnson's godfather in the Philippines soon after she was born. He had been involved in the clearing of Manila in 1944. I had been invited to their wedding in Chicago, but I was stationed in Germany at the time and couldn't get leave in time.
My father was the radioman on a Grumman Duck in North Africa in 1941. He said that they bombed and sunk a Nazi Sub. On another site (Kermit - Fantasy of flight) a post I made about this resulted in another individual informing me of a book that detailed the incident. I've ordered the book. But it seems that my father's story told to me when I was a boy was true and logged. Ducks in the Mediterranian!
My grandpa flew in a Duck and a Catalina and I always thought the Duck was such a beautiful plane, he said it was one of the 3 planes he crashed in.
Loving the channel and its easy to see the passion for the subject.
Thank you for putting these out!
Rex, thank you much for creating these videos. They make my days a little better to cope with. I've been a huge fan of military history, and I have studied military aircraft extensively. Keep going, my friend!
I honestly didn't know a lot about the aircraft you go over on your channel and for teaching me I thank you
Thank you for helping us remember these important and obscure aircraft.
Nicely done. I've been curious about this plane, and you provided plenty of relevant detail.
Man I love your videos. They're concise but highly detailed in a fantastic mix. Even when it's aircraft I already know, there's always a bunch included I'd never heard before.
Great episode with lots of information. Thank You.
12:14 Ah yes. I could hardly forget the prominent role the Duck played in several episodes of "Baa Baa Blacksheep" (1976-1978)
I had a model of this when I was a kid. It's been a while but I think it was the admirals barge version. So having a chance to get reacquainted with the aircraft has been very enjoyable. Thanks
I've seen several Ducks in real life and I have always found it to be a handsome aircraft and more useful than expected by most. Nice vid, Rex!
Another quality video and representation of pre and post war Golden Age of Aircraft.
Excellent video mate.
Always a treat to watch. Fine work, ma man ! 😀👍 It goes excellent with any meal. 👌😎 Way better than anything on TV.
Excellent. Cheers buddy.
Thank You.
Great information
Great Little Video... Thanks for Sharing
I remember the duck in the movie Murphy’s War.
Thanks for a very thorough video! Not only the story of a true yeoman aircraft, but you slipped in the origin of the famous Iron Works! A good avenue to explore is Grumman's lucrative (and legendary) amphibious aircraft stable
One of my all time favorites!
Great video. Love the clear diction. A strange looking machine but in its own way beautiful
Great narrative and graphics. Loved it.
Looking forward to this this was one of my favorite planes when I was a child
Excellent as ever
Fascinating aircraft. Thanks for the interesting video.
It’s almost surreal that these were still being built when Grumman was designing and testing the Hellcats and Avengers. This is such an obscure aircraft - and while I definitely consider myself a WWII aviation buff, I had no clue these were being operated (much less produced!) into the ‘40s.
Very cool. Especially the cutaway crew stations scene.
I never knew of the Loening connection with the founding of Grumman. Thank you.
I think I now know where the term "odd looking duck" comes from. Very informative - many thanks for this. Grumman Goose is my fave MSFS plane.
The first time i saw a duck was on the tv show ba ba blacksheep. It was shown in at least two episodes that i can remember off the top of my head.
Exasperated? Exacerbated. 😁 My brother had an Airfix kit of the Duck when I was in grade school. And there was one in an old movie I watched on television one night - something to do with Howard Hughes, I think.
Thank you great work
Interesting that this should have been one of your most recent uploadings since I've been looking around at some stuff to do with the IMAM Ro 43 just lately, which was an (almost) exact Italian equivalent of this aircraft. A very well put-together video, Rex! I'm not sure if you've ever done anything on the Ro 43, but it might be a useful 'compare and contrast' in the near future.
Great video. Floatplanes and seaplanes have always held a fascination for me. The Japanese had some impressive machines as well. The Mitsubishi F1M is a nice looking floatplane.
Great vid Rex! The Duck is very interesting floatplane.
37 seconds after publishing.. could be my new record lol. Keep up the great work 💪🏻
Nice 1 m8, love Ducks, J2F featured in Peter O'Tooles movie Murphy's War. Rippa movie! One of my favorites. Thanks m8, doin well.
great stuff! the video equivalent of the old wings/airpower magazine.
Its so beautiful!
My late father served on the "Lady Lex" (CV-2) 1933-6. He was awed, as a former country boy, as to the ungainly looking J1F, while he occupied his flight deck position as a young pharmacist mate. Thank you. Narragansett Bay
Wonderful another Rex video
Something special about early seaplanes like the Duck.
The Goose is my favorite, but no doubt the duck was a work horse.
Thank you for a very well illustrated video … Without a talking head !
First to say thank you Rex’s Hanger for these seaplane episodes …!
Thanks!
Great production effort! Now that I have found my Grumman J2F-2 Duck plastic model kit by Glencoe. I plan to repeate view your video with greater interest. I would like to request a video look back at the american built Curtiss SC-1 Seahawk. This design was similar to the Japanese Rufe. The SC-1 being a capable seaplane, was late in being deployed in WWII. In numbers of only a few not allowing the plane to make any sizable impact in the Pacific theater before the war ended. Thank you for consideration of this obscure USA aircraft in our past history. Keith
Nice!
Now I finally know what aircraft was used in Peter O'Tooles movie Murphy's War
Frank Tallman did an awesome Duck acro display at the Reno races in the 70s.
This particular plane the duck was also used in several episodes of the TV series the Black sheep squadron.....
The Grumman Widgeon is about due for a review.
Great aircraft. Grumman was a Great aircraft company. Always built very sturdy stuff that just worked.
Always loved the Duck. Perfect name.
Thank you
Ah, Rex, we who love humble yet stout hearted planes salute you.
Good video. I built a model of the Duck way back in the mid 80s.
I have always loved the Duck. 'Though I never could quite say why. When War Thunder first started launching floaters from ships, I went through the lot looking for it. Sadly there are none. I found a Supermarine Walrus though. Love that one too. Can I request a vid on it?
He won't make it, it's not interwar plane
@@loveofmangos001 yes it is…last I checked, 1933/35 is very much interwar!
@@loveofmangos001 It's literally used in the war.
It wasn't a US Navy catapult plane like the Kingfisher or Seagull or Seamew.
nice ...thank you🎉
Hi, many of these facts where not readily known by me. Excellent video.👍🏿👍🏿👍🏿👍🏿👍🏿👍🏿
At 2:54 it looks like there are stick and rudder linkages so the rear gunner could also fly the plane.
One of those unsung heros that have to do all the vital grunt work.
Excellent as always, Rex! Wonderful narration without stupid musical underscoring. One observation: it’s “exacerbated”, not “exasperated” (although aircraft development has always been exasperating! 😂)
Can we also give a massive credit to Grumman for building the best canoes ever made in the world. Aluminium, of course. Brilliant beyond measure. Attach one to each side of a DeHavilland Beaver (float struts) and go boating. Just heaven on earth.