The Douglas TBD Devastator was a torpedo bomber of
the United States Navy, ordered in 1934, first flying in 1935 and entering service in 1937. At that point, it was the most advanced aircraft flying for the USN and possibly for any navy in the world. However, the fast pace of aircraft development caught up with it, and by the time of the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor the TBD was already outdated. It performed well in some early battles, but in the Battle of Midway the Devastators launched against the Japanese fleet were almost totally wiped out. The type was immediately withdrawn from front line service, replaced by the Grumman TBF Avenger.
TBD Devastator in Days of Infamy[]
When the Empire of Japan invaded the United States territory of Hawaii in 1941, the Devastator was used in a strike against the Japanese fleet. Painfully slow, their one major advantage was that they could take a lot of punishment. Although all were shot down, they managed to hit Akagi, but their weapons were useless.
They were used again during the first attempt to retake Hawaii. However, not only were all of the bombers shot down, but they failed to do any damage due to poor torpedoes. They were withdrawn from service after that.
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