I am 92 years old now, however I flew in a SB2C in rear seat when I was in VA-79A squadron. We were stationed at NAS Willow Grove in Pennsylvania. We would practice our dive bombing techniques out off Atlantic City NJ. In a dive the pilot was on center of gravity, I 😢was about 8 feet behind him in a dive I would pass out . The wind would make a lot of noise from the dive flaps that were open to slow the plane down in the dive. One time we flew under the George Washington bridge over the Hudson River, got in trouble when we got home, someone saw our WA on the wings. Great Beast SHK
I love listening to the sound of a round engine. When I first got my A and P ticket I was fortunate enough to work for an outfit that restored aircraft like this Very nice video. Just a quick safety note, that fella was getting way to close to that turning propeller
very cool to see one in such nice condition.. my grandpa flew the SB2C in the pacific during the war and he nicked named it the Beast... it definately lives up to that name.. he wouldnt really talk about his experiences too much when i was a kid, but no doubt, he saw some really scary stuff while flying with his buddies.. Rip Lt ...
@@paulcrowshaw4232 Was going to ask the same question. My dad was a Helldiver plane captain on the Bennington. I believe her planes scored some hits on the Yamato.
@@maxmccrabb2477 He wouldn’t have been flying a Helldiver off one of the escort Carriers. They were mainly limited to FM-2 Wildcats and Avengers. The Helldivers had such a fast and hard landing speed that they were barely viable on the Essex’s. I don’t think they ever flew them off anything smaller than an Independence or the Brit carriers. They called these things Ensign Eliminators for a reason.
A lot of problems with this air plane were actually caused by the US Navy who demanded all kinds of changes as it was first built at the US Navy plant as Curtiss was tapped out trying to build P-40 s . One of the worst was that it would have to place two on a standard carrier elevator which was 40' by 40' and thus it was always too short for it's size and weight the rudder was enlarged three times and it still didn't dive well due to instability . It was also to heavy to operate off escort carriers which limited it's usefulness . this thing was first ordered in 1940 to replace the smaller lighter SBD Dauntless but didn't come out into limited operations until late 1943 and by that time the Dauntless and TBF Avengers had sunk most of Japans war ships . This thing was a waste of time and money , and led to Curtiss going out of business in 1948 .
That "waste of time and money" is the airplane that got my pop home. He would just laugh at such comments. As to Curtiss "going out of business," you may have noticed that a good many OTHER manufacturers are gone or swallowed-up in mergers as the ongoing corruption of federal military procurement gets worse and worse. Today, our carrier battle groups are facing the big red dragon WITHOUT their Tomcats - thanks to Bush 41/Cheney and their financial interests.
Yeah - but, uh - as you may have noticed, this particular video isn't about fighters. It's about a big dive bomber that actually took more Japanese shipping than any other....
Nothing sounds better than the radial engine. It has everything, it strains, it puffs, it whines, it burps, it sputters, it smokes, then it comes alive and then it roars !
@@rbilleaud Nah, it doesn't strain, it doesn't puff, it doesn't whine, it doesn't burp, it doesn't sputter, it doesn't smoke, when it comes alive it doesn't roar ! Sorry, not even close. Come to think of it, all it does do is whine but that's it !
@@palco22 I favor efficiency over all. The Corsair and the Thunderbolt - or the FW-190 for that matter - are elegant aircraft, but in combat give me the F/A-18 or F-22.
@@rbilleaud Efficiency ? So what you are saying is that Intel Corporation is better than what Alexander Graham Bell's American Telephone and Telegraph Company in 1885. OK, you won me over !
@@palco22 yes, yes, I am. Actually, I'm just kind of having fun with you. I go to airshows all the time and am quite fond of the old warbirds. I got it from my dad who took me almost before I was able to walk. Was a big fan of Corky Farnoff and his father in their Bearcats before the older gentleman was killed in an accident. I also met Merle Gustafson who flew the Corsair "Angel of Okinawa". He was a friend of my dad's. As much as I love the old Pratt and Whitney and Wright radials, I still prefer the Rolls Royce Merlin and Daimler in-lines. The fuel injection on the Daimler engines was positively brilliant, allowing inverted flight without the engine cutting out like the carbureted Merlin. I think the ultimate in-line engine would have to be the Junkers Jumo 213A fitted in the FW-190 D9, replacing the old BMW radial. Now THAT had a snarl!
The Big Tailed Beast. It possesses flying characteristics that have been described as “appalling” and nearly sunk the reputation of the Curtis Aircraft Corporation.
It’s interesting to me-the Douglas SBD Dauntless was such an outstanding aircraft, and proved itself at Midway and after. I wonder why the problematic ugly duckling Helldiver was even created-or at least not canceled. 🤔
Good questions!. I have read that the SBD had to be flown at max power settings all of the time. I also remember that the Helldiver had better numbers, on paper of course. Then figure in that command was always wanting "higher, faster, farther, with more payload". These are just a nobody's opinion though.
A lot of planes seemed like a good idea on paper. Of course, egos get involved and when some plane doesn't live up to expectations, engineers feel like they can fix any problems. The Navy already has a significant amount tied up in the project and they're unwilling to admit the project is a failure, so they go along. At some point even they have to admit the plane sucks, but usually by that point a lot of good men have died needlessly.
😄 P.W R-1860: No, Herr Benz. You are not a joke. You simply make flames and noise akin to a high-strung, high-quality violin. I, on the otherhand, sound more like a dozen and a half sledge hammers....
I've always thought that hydraulic wing-folding was stupid for WW2 aircraft, should have been operated from the outside with rattle guns instead, to save weight.
Huh? The planes need a hydraulic system anyway, and a hydraulic motor weighs next to nothing compared to a similar power electric motor. When time is an issue, during a war, no one has time to fuck about putting planes together. Fire it up, press a button, unfold, and go. It wwould be pretty silly if a ship lost its "rattle gun guy" and all these pilots are dicking around with their planes not getting into the air.
Only after taking damage from enemy weapons. There's a cam/lock type thing to where it's almost impossible for it to fail or allow the wings to fold up, once fully engaged. I'm not a expert disclaimer..lol..from Wyoming USA 🇺🇲🤠
Some people sky dive out of perfectly fine airplanes & some people like to challenge spinning props. On another note delving into the history of the Helldiver, we speculate on whether the plane was built according to our enemies specified plans. Although the Helldivers did their part, they did provide our enemies with relatively easy targets.
Why is it that it sounds like the engine is idling but the prop is barely turning or sometimes turning backwards? Is that video camera playing tricks on us?
SB2-C …Nick-named “Son of a B*itch, 2nd Class”…was not a popular plane with its crews…evidently unstable aircraft. A thing that always puzzled me was that the rear gunner seemed to have a very poor angle-range of fire…
Yeah a requirement was that 2 had to be fitted on one elevator (on aircraft carrier), so they were too short, they got bigger and bigger tails but the instability issue was never cured. Hence the apt nickname, Son Of A B'tch 2nd Class.
I am 92 years old now, however I flew in a SB2C in rear seat when I was in VA-79A squadron. We were stationed at NAS Willow Grove in Pennsylvania. We would practice our dive bombing techniques out off Atlantic City NJ. In a dive the pilot was on center of gravity, I 😢was about 8 feet behind him in a dive I would pass out . The wind would make a lot of noise from the dive flaps that were open to slow the plane down in the dive.
One time we flew under the George Washington bridge over the Hudson River, got in trouble when we got home, someone saw our WA on the wings.
Great Beast SHK
I used to assemble a helldiver model kit produced by Monogram almost 40 years ago. This video brings back a lot of memories when I was a kid.
Portuguese Navy flew them until 1955, when they were replaced by Harpoons. All when to the smelter. A Wright R-2600 with propeller still exists...
I love listening to the sound of a round engine. When I first got my A and P ticket I was fortunate enough to work for an outfit that restored aircraft like this Very nice video. Just a quick safety note, that fella was getting way to close to that turning propeller
Sweet! Love the radial engine melody. What a beefy sound it makes.
You should hear the 547 in my Drag Week car...
very cool to see one in such nice condition.. my grandpa flew the SB2C in the pacific during the war and he nicked named it the Beast... it definately lives up to that name.. he wouldnt really talk about his experiences too much when i was a kid, but no doubt, he saw some really scary stuff while flying with his buddies.. Rip Lt ...
Such a beautiful aircraft... my grandpa flew one over Leyte Gulf He was also part of the task force to sink the Yamato in the Philippines
What carrier? My father was on Hornet, catapults and arresting gear.
@@paulcrowshaw4232 he was on one of the escort carriers. I can’t remember the name of it at the moment
@@paulcrowshaw4232 Was going to ask the same question. My dad was a Helldiver plane captain on the Bennington. I believe her planes scored some hits on the Yamato.
@@maxmccrabb2477 He wouldn’t have been flying a Helldiver off one of the escort Carriers. They were mainly limited to FM-2 Wildcats and Avengers. The Helldivers had such a fast and hard landing speed that they were barely viable on the Essex’s. I don’t think they ever flew them off anything smaller than an Independence or the Brit carriers. They called these things Ensign Eliminators for a reason.
God bless your grand dad for his service to our country, Max. And God bless you. 💛🙏🏼
The fact that this is on UA-cam music is even better!!
What a monster, SB1-C “Son of a bitch First Class”. Gotta love all those names crewmen came up with. They were great in the last part of the war.
It's worse than that, the Helldiver was SB2-C, 2nd class lol
This plane used the Wright R-2600 14 cylinder " Double Cyclone." That's why it sounds like a Baker 25 with one engine cut.
Love the radial engines, a real sound
As far as I'm aware, engines of all types make real sound.
@@davelowets really ? Thought those engines might make a sound !
@@patkinder6632 Yep, they do.
What a beautiful machine
Cool, cant wait to see the engine start....
1:56....still waiting...
Such a gorgeous warbird. Thanks for making and uploading the video
A lot of problems with this air plane were actually caused by the US Navy who demanded all kinds of changes as it was first built at the US Navy plant as Curtiss was tapped out trying to build P-40 s . One of the worst was that it would have to place two on a standard carrier elevator which was 40' by 40' and thus it was always too short for it's size and weight the rudder was enlarged three times and it still didn't dive well due to instability . It was also to heavy to operate off escort carriers which limited it's usefulness . this thing was first ordered in 1940 to replace the smaller lighter SBD Dauntless but didn't come out into limited operations until late 1943 and by that time the Dauntless and TBF Avengers had sunk most of Japans war ships . This thing was a waste of time and money , and led to Curtiss going out of business in 1948 .
That "waste of time and money" is the airplane that got my pop home. He would just laugh at such comments. As to Curtiss "going out of business," you may have noticed that a good many OTHER manufacturers are gone or swallowed-up in mergers as the ongoing corruption of federal military procurement gets worse and worse. Today, our carrier battle groups are facing the big red dragon WITHOUT their Tomcats - thanks to Bush 41/Cheney and their financial interests.
So would you reckon that Curtiss' Coup de Grâce was the Commando?
Taking your remarks into account it would seem that way.
@@tomelmore8431
Helldiver was a POS.
Commando was legit though.
@@RedArrow73 - No - I figured you probably talked it to death...
My dad did not like it as it did not have flight controls in the rear seat like the sbd did.
Wow,there are so few of these that are still airworthy. Must cost a fortune to maintain.👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻
I've got a '72 El Camino that ain't cheap to operate...
@@tomelmore8431 your ElCamino is very cheap to run in comparison with ANY historic aircraft!..from Wyoming USA 🇺🇸 🤠
Dude was making me nervous throughout the whole video with how close he was getting to that propeller!
A cousin flew the SBD Dauntless. When he learned about the SB2C, he transferred to fighters! (And became an ace.)
Yeah - but, uh - as you may have noticed, this particular video isn't about fighters. It's about a big dive bomber that actually took more Japanese shipping than any other....
The Beast LIVES!!!!!!!!
The dude in white made all the difference in it starting as he walks right up to it as the prop begins to spin! Gezzzzzz
Due to the unfortunate choice of frame rate I darn near walked into that prop!!
Nothing sounds better than the radial engine. It has everything, it strains, it puffs, it whines, it burps, it sputters, it smokes, then it comes alive and then it roars !
Eh, give me a GE F404. Now that's power.
@@rbilleaud Nah, it doesn't strain, it doesn't puff, it doesn't whine, it doesn't burp, it doesn't sputter, it doesn't smoke, when it comes alive it doesn't roar ! Sorry, not even close. Come to think of it, all it does do is whine but that's it !
@@palco22 I favor efficiency over all. The Corsair and the Thunderbolt - or the FW-190 for that matter - are elegant aircraft, but in combat give me the F/A-18 or F-22.
@@rbilleaud Efficiency ? So what you are saying is that Intel Corporation is better than what Alexander Graham Bell's American Telephone and Telegraph Company in 1885. OK, you won me over !
@@palco22 yes, yes, I am. Actually, I'm just kind of having fun with you. I go to airshows all the time and am quite fond of the old warbirds. I got it from my dad who took me almost before I was able to walk. Was a big fan of Corky Farnoff and his father in their Bearcats before the older gentleman was killed in an accident. I also met Merle Gustafson who flew the Corsair "Angel of Okinawa". He was a friend of my dad's. As much as I love the old Pratt and Whitney and Wright radials, I still prefer the Rolls Royce Merlin and Daimler in-lines. The fuel injection on the Daimler engines was positively brilliant, allowing inverted flight without the engine cutting out like the carbureted Merlin. I think the ultimate in-line engine would have to be the Junkers Jumo 213A fitted in the FW-190 D9, replacing the old BMW radial. Now THAT had a snarl!
A fine looking aircraft.
Beautiful plane!
Sweet engine sound
The Big Tailed Beast. It possesses flying characteristics that have been described as “appalling” and nearly sunk the reputation of the Curtis Aircraft Corporation.
Skip, you are the man! Can’t wait to fly again with you!
*Curtiss was an airplane company that failed to transition to Jets.*
I love how camera "shutter speeds" make props look so goofy and slow moving.
Someone should tell Mister Watcher to get the hell away from the propeller.
Beautiful aircraft
That prop is in the matrix
This plane looks so much better with the lower MLG doors installed.
This is the only one in the world that still flies
i had no idea you could reverse the propeller. must have been a recip version of thrust reversers. interesting.
Just flip the blade angle?
I hope motion rc recreates that war bird
Is there any reason the pitot tube on the Helldiver is bent and not straight?
It’s interesting to me-the Douglas SBD Dauntless was such an outstanding aircraft, and proved itself at Midway and after. I wonder why the problematic ugly duckling Helldiver was even created-or at least not canceled. 🤔
Good questions!. I have read that the SBD had to be flown at max power settings all of the time. I also remember that the Helldiver had better numbers, on paper of course. Then figure in that command was always wanting "higher, faster, farther, with more payload". These are just a nobody's opinion though.
@@HiVoltish Great points. Thx Hivolt. 💛
A lot of planes seemed like a good idea on paper. Of course, egos get involved and when some plane doesn't live up to expectations, engineers feel like they can fix any problems. The Navy already has a significant amount tied up in the project and they're unwilling to admit the project is a failure, so they go along. At some point even they have to admit the plane sucks, but usually by that point a lot of good men have died needlessly.
An excellent topic for Greg's Airplanes. A wonderful YT channel that covers such topics. He's a bigger ww2 aviation nerd than I am. Lol
@@HiVoltish Thx Hivolt, I’ll check his channel. 💛🙏🏼
Tighten up the propeller, no spinning fast enough for takeoff!
Nothing, absolutely nothing can match the sound of a radial.
"Daimler-Benz DB 601", am I a joke to you?
😄
P.W R-1860: No, Herr Benz. You are not a joke. You simply make flames and noise akin to a high-strung, high-quality violin. I, on the otherhand, sound more like a dozen and a half sledge hammers....
@@LordMekanicus 🤣
I've always thought that hydraulic wing-folding was stupid for WW2 aircraft, should have been operated from the outside with rattle guns instead, to save weight.
Huh? The planes need a hydraulic system anyway, and a hydraulic motor weighs next to nothing compared to a similar power electric motor. When time is an issue, during a war, no one has time to fuck about putting planes together. Fire it up, press a button, unfold, and go. It wwould be pretty silly if a ship lost its "rattle gun guy" and all these pilots are dicking around with their planes not getting into the air.
It had so many development issues I read, that by the time it's entered service, it was nearly obsolete and had an extremely short life.
Wonder if the markings on this one are correct to this particular Helldiver?
I'm curious, were the folding wings ever a failure point?
Only after taking damage from enemy weapons. There's a cam/lock type thing to where it's almost impossible for it to fail or allow the wings to fold up, once fully engaged. I'm not a expert disclaimer..lol..from Wyoming USA 🇺🇲🤠
👍👍👍👍👍🇺🇲🇺🇲🇺🇲🇺🇲🇺🇲
How many gallons of oil are smoked at startup?!
This plane was a great dive bomber I did my research on it and found it was in the sbd 1 series the son of a bitch class
Some people sky dive out of perfectly fine airplanes & some people like to challenge spinning props. On another note delving into the history of the Helldiver, we speculate on whether the plane was built according to our enemies specified plans. Although the Helldivers did their part, they did provide our enemies with relatively easy targets.
Ah yessss....."Diogenes." Uh huh. Out with his lantern - searching through the long, dark night for something silly to say on UA-cam....
@@tomelmore8431 stick it elmorite
@@tomelmore8431 Diogenes had no lantern & was a cynical philosopher. He was not afraid to use metaphors to reveal truths.
How about JDM aircraft¿
that prop is moving very slow for a while.
Why is it that it sounds like the engine is idling but the prop is barely turning or sometimes turning backwards? Is that video camera playing tricks on us?
It’s the frame rate of the camera.
Wow look how slow the prop is moving. Stick your arm in there to check.
This plane has serious issues! The prop stopped turning then bent & started going the other way ........
I really hope you are joking…
@@twitchtheitch7805 @David Harrison - I'm dead serious, watch the video, see for yourself ......
@@montesa9136 ahaha rolling shutter effect and frame rate synchronization with the blades
Optical illusion, blades bend from thrust bending. Also they bend forward from air pressure.
🤣🤣🤣
That radial isn't billowing enough smoke, probably broken.
What that man is looking?
the go pro camera is so weird when it comes to propellers
iPhone…
Funny how, at times, you can hear the engine running but the prop isn't turning.
Frame rates are no joke. You can walk through it also, but only while you're looking at it through a camera... Try it sometime.... 😕
Ugly airplane....nice engine.
How can the engine turn over but the propeller won't rotate?
Frame rate of the camera. The prop is actually spinning at the engine speed
Where is the location ?
Ellington Field. Houston Texas
@@twitchtheitch7805 Thank you.
SB2-C …Nick-named “Son of a B*itch, 2nd Class”…was not a popular plane with its crews…evidently unstable aircraft.
A thing that always puzzled me was that the rear gunner seemed to have a very poor angle-range of fire…
Yeah a requirement was that 2 had to be fitted on one elevator (on aircraft carrier), so they were too short, they got bigger and bigger tails but the instability issue was never cured.
Hence the apt nickname, Son Of A B'tch 2nd Class.
I wouldn't get that close to a spinning prop.
Wow---that prop is barely turning.
Are you joking?
@@twitchtheitch7805 Yes David.....I understand the camera shutter and prop are in unison.
America sure gave its aircraft stupid names!
You people need to school up on starting procedures on radial engines.... And stay clear of the fucking prop!
This plane looks out of balance..note how far back the wings are in a side view, then contrast to the wing positions of other planes of the era.
That's one of the reasons for its nickname...