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Consolidated
Catalina PBY-5a
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This model depicts the PBY-5a of the RAAF
42 squadron, serial no A24-96
Northern Territory, Australia, 1944
lost off Sumba Islands, Dutch East Indies (Indonesia).
While on a mine laying mission A24-96 was forced to make an emergency sea landing on 14 January 1945 after being damaged by Japanese anti-aircraft fire, the crew was rescued the following morning by a Catalina from No. 43 Squadron, which then destroyed RK-E with machine gun fire.
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Role: |
Flying Boat |
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| Country: |
USA |
| Manufacturer: |
Consolidated Aircraft |
| Production: |
1936 - 1945 |
| No Produced: |
802* /4051** |
*pby-5a / **all variants
The PBY was originally designed to be a patrol bomber, an aircraft with a long operational range intended to locate and attack enemy transport ships at sea in order to compromise enemy supply lines. With a mind to a potential conflict in the Pacific Ocean, where troops would require resupply over great distances, the U.S. Navy in the 1930s invested millions of dollars in developing long-range flying boats for this purpose. Flying boats had the advantage of not requiring runways, in effect having the entire ocean available. Several different flying boats were adopted by the Navy, but the PBY was the most widely used and produced.
Although slow and ungainly, PBYs distinguished themselves in World War II as exceptionally reliable. Allied armed forces used them successfully in a wide variety of roles that the aircraft was never intended for. They are remembered by many veterans of the war for their role in rescuing downed airmen, in which they saved the lives of thousands of aircrew downed over water. PBY airmen called their aircraft the "cat" on combat missions and "Dumbo" in air-sea rescue service.
| Specifications: |
| crew: |
8 |
| length: |
19.46m |
| wingspan: |
31.7m |
| height: |
6.15m |
| weight (empty): |
9,485kg |
| weight (loaded): |
16,066kg |
| Performance: |
| Powerplant: |
2 x Pratt & Whitney R-1830-92 twin wasp radial engines, 895kW each |
| Max Speed: |
314km/h |
| Range: |
4030km |
| Service Ceiling: |
4,000m |
| Armament: |
| Guns: |
3 x 7.62mm machine guns (2 in the nose turret, 1 in ventral hatch at tail) |
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2 x 12.7mm machine guns (1 in each waist blister) |
| Bombs: |
1,814kg of bombs or depth charges |
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