TBF Avenger Mk.II JZ 490, Fleet Air Arm, Donibristle, 1944 (1:72)

The British Fleet Air Arm acquired 1,000 TBM/TBF's from the US through the Lend-Lease Act. Initially referred to as Tarpon the British eventually began to use the US designator Avenger with 334 TBM-1C's becoming Avenger II. The 402 TBF's actually built by Grumman were labeled Avenger I's and were painted in FAA approved camouflage colors while the Avenger II's (TBM-1C) were built by Eastern Aircraft a subsidiary of General Motors were left in the US equivalent colors. With a squadron flying both versions of the Avenger the only visible difference between the two was the paint scheme colors. The British manned these aircraft in a similar manner to that of the US with a 3-man crew. At first the British Avengers were assigned to escort carriers that patrolled the North Atlantic looking for submarines. It wasn't long before most Avengers were reassigned to fleet carriers where they assisted in strikes against the Tirpitz and shipping in Norwegian waters. The British Avenger was used extensively in the Indian Ocean and the Pacific and played a major role in many of the attacks on oil fields and other Japanese facilities. They operated very closely with the USN and took part in a large number of combined actions but never seem to get the attention and credit they deserve. Closer to home the Avenger was tasked with patrolling the English Channel for any U-boats or S-boats that might that might attack the D-Day invasion fleet on their way to Normandy. These aircraft also received the black and white D-Day stripes so Allied forces wouldn't misidentify them as enemy aircraft. The British continued to use the Avengers into the early 1950's when they were replaced by the Fairey Firefly.

Grumman Avenger MkII (TBM-1c) Specifications

Role - Torpedo Bomber

Crew - 3

Dimensions
Length ' 40ft (12.20m)
Height ' 16ft 5in (5.0m)
Wingspan ' 54ft 2in (16.52m)
Wing Area - 490sq ft (45.52sq m)

Weights
Empty - 10,080lbs (4,582kg)
Maximum - 15,905lbs (7,230kg)

Performance
Engine ' 1 X R-2600-8 / 1,700hp (1,268kw) Wright Cyclone (two row 14 cylinder) radial air cooled
Speed
Maximum at sea level - 242mph (390kph)
Maximum at 12,000ft - 271mph (437kph)
Cruising - 145mph (234kph)
RoC - 1,430ft/min (436m/min)
Maximum range - 1,215mi (1,959km)
Service ceiling - 22,400ft (6,830m)

Armament
2 X.0.50 machine guns, wings
1x.0.50 machine guns, dorsal turret
1x.303 flexible machine guns, ventral
Maximum bomb load - 2,000 lbs (907 kg)