Grumman TBF Avenger
TBF/TBM Avenger | |
---|---|
General Motors TBM-3E Avenger warbird, 2014 | |
Role | Torpedo bomber |
National origin | United States |
Manufacturer | Grumman |
Built by | General Motors |
First flight | 7 August 1941 |
Introduction | 1942 |
Retired | 1960s |
Status | Retired |
Primary users | United States Navy Royal Navy Royal Canadian Navy Royal New Zealand Air Force |
Number built | 9,839 |
The Grumman TBF Avenger (designated TBM[1] for aircraft manufactured by General Motors) is an American World War II-era torpedo bomber developed initially for the United States Navy and Marine Corps, and eventually used by several air and naval aviation services around the world.
The Avenger entered U.S. service in 1942, and first saw action during the
Design and development
The Douglas TBD Devastator, the U.S. Navy's main torpedo bomber introduced in 1935, was obsolete by 1939. Bids were accepted from several companies, but Grumman's TBF design was selected as the replacement for the TBD and in April 1940 two prototypes were ordered by the Navy. Designed by Leroy Grumman, the first prototype was called the XTBF-1.[4] It was first flown on 7 August 1941. Although one of the first two prototypes crashed near Brentwood, New York, rapid production continued.
To ease carrier storage concerns, simultaneously with the
There were three crew members: pilot, turret gunner and radioman/bombardier/ventral gunner. A single synchronized .30 caliber (7.62 mm) machine gun was mounted in the nose, a .50 caliber (12.7 mm) gun was mounted right next to the turret gunner's head in a rear-facing electrically powered turret, and a single 0.30 caliber (7.62 mm) hand-fired machine gun flexibly-mounted ventrally (under the tail), which was used to defend against enemy fighters attacking from below and to the rear. This gun was fired by the radioman/bombardier while standing up and bending over in the belly of the tail section, though he usually sat on a folding bench facing forward to operate the radio and to sight in bombing runs. Later models of the TBF/TBM omitted the cowl-mount synchronized 0.30 caliber (7.62 mm) gun, and replaced it with twin Browning AN/M2 0.50 caliber (12.7 mm) light-barrel guns, one in each wing outboard of the propeller arc, per pilots' requests for better forward firepower and increased strafing ability. There was only one set of controls on the aircraft, and no direct access to the pilot's position existed from the rest of the aircraft's interior. The radio equipment was massive, especially by today's standards, and filled the length of the well-framed "greenhouse" canopy to the rear of the pilot. The radios were accessible for repair through a "tunnel" along the right hand side. Any Avengers that are still flying today usually have an additional rear-mounted seat in place of the radios, allowing for a fourth passenger.
The Avenger had a large bomb bay, allowing for one
Escort carrier sailors referred to the TBF as the "turkey" because of its size and maneuverability in comparison to the F4F Wildcat fighters in same airgroups.[6]
Operational history
On the afternoon of 7 December 1941, Grumman held a ceremony to open a new manufacturing plant and display the new TBF to the public. Coincidentally, on that day, the Imperial Japanese Navy attacked Pearl Harbor, as Grumman soon found out. After the ceremony was over, the plant was quickly sealed off to guard against possible sabotage. By early June 1942, a shipment of more than 100 aircraft was sent to the Navy, arriving only a few hours after the three carriers quickly departed from Pearl Harbor, so most of them were too late to participate in the pivotal Battle of Midway.
Six TBF-1s were present on Midway Island – as part of VT-8 (Torpedo Squadron 8) – while the rest of the squadron flew Devastators from the aircraft carrier Hornet. Both types of torpedo bombers suffered heavy casualties. Out of the six Avengers, five were shot down and the other returned heavily damaged with one of its gunners killed, and the other gunner and the pilot wounded.[7]
Author Gordon Prange posited in Miracle at Midway that the outdated Devastators (and lack of new aircraft) contributed somewhat to the lack of a complete victory at Midway (the four Japanese fleet carriers were sunk directly by dive bombers instead). Others pointed out that the inexperienced American pilots and lack of fighter cover were responsible for poor showing of US torpedo bombers, regardless of type.[8] Later in the war, with growing American air superiority, better attack coordination and more veteran pilots, Avengers were able to play vital roles in the subsequent battles against Japanese surface forces.[9]
On 24 August 1942, the next major naval aircraft carrier battle occurred at the Eastern Solomons. Based on the carriers Saratoga and Enterprise, the 24 TBFs present were able to sink the Japanese light carrier Ryūjō and claim one dive bomber, at the cost of seven aircraft.
The first major "prize" for the TBFs (which had been assigned the name "Avenger" in October 1941,[10][11] before the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor) was at the Naval Battle of Guadalcanal in November 1942, when Marine Corps and Navy Avengers helped sink the Japanese battleship Hiei, which had already been crippled the night before.
After hundreds of the original TBF-1 models were built, the TBF-1C began production. The allotment of space for specialized internal and wing-mounted fuel tanks doubled the Avenger's range. By 1943, Grumman began to slowly phase out production of the Avenger to produce F6F Hellcat fighters, and the Eastern Aircraft Division of General Motors took over production, with these aircraft being designated TBM. The Eastern Aircraft plant was located in Ewing, New Jersey. Grumman delivered a TBF-1, held together with sheet metal screws, so that the automotive engineers could disassemble it, one part at a time, and redesign the aircraft for automotive-style production. This aircraft was known as the "P-K Avenger" ("P-K" being an abbreviation for Parker-Kalon, manufacturer of sheet metal screws). Starting in mid-1944, the TBM-3 began production (with a more powerful powerplant and wing hardpoints for drop tanks and rockets). The dash-3 was the most numerous of the Avengers (with about 4,600 produced). However, most of the Avengers in service were dash-1s until near the end of the war in 1945.
Besides the traditional surface role (torpedoing surface ships), Avengers claimed about 30 submarine kills, including the cargo submarine I-52. They were one of the most effective sub-killers in the Pacific theater, as well as in the Atlantic, when escort carriers were finally available to escort Allied convoys. There, the Avengers contributed to the warding off of German U-boats while providing air cover for the convoys.
After the "Marianas Turkey Shoot", in which more than 250 Japanese aircraft were downed, Admiral Marc Mitscher ordered a 220-aircraft mission to find the Japanese task force. Fighting 300 nmi (560 km) away from the fleet at the extreme end of their range, the group of Hellcats, TBF/TBMs, and dive bombers took many casualties. However, Avengers from the Independence-class aircraft carrier USS Belleau Wood sank the light carrier Hiyō as their only major prize. Mitscher's gamble did not pay off as well as he had hoped.
In June 1943, shortly before his 19th birthday, future-president,
Another famous Avenger aviator was
The Avenger was the type of torpedo bomber used during the sinking of the two Japanese "super battleships", with the US Navy having complete air superiority in both engagements: Musashi and Yamato.[9][15]
The postwar disappearance on 5 December 1945 of a flight of five American Avengers, known as Flight 19, was later added to the Bermuda Triangle legend, first written about by Edward Van Winkle Jones in an Associated Press article published in September 1950.[16]
During World War II, the US aeronautical research arm
The Avenger was also used by the
One hundred USN TBM-3Es were supplied to the Fleet Air Arm in 1953 under the US
Royal New Zealand Air Force
The only other operator in World War II was the Royal New Zealand Air Force which used the type primarily as a bomber, equipping Nos. 30 and 31 Squadrons, with both operating from South Pacific island bases during 1944 in support of the Bougainville campaign. Some of the Avengers were later transferred to the British Pacific Fleet.
In 1945, Avengers were involved in pioneering trials of aerial topdressing in New Zealand that led to the establishment of an industry which markedly increased food production and efficiency in farming worldwide. Pilots of the Royal New Zealand Air Force's No. 42 Squadron spread fertilizer from Avengers beside runways at Ohakea Air Base and provided a demonstration for farmers at Hood Aerodrome, Masterton, New Zealand.[21][page needed]
One of the primary postwar users of the Avenger was the
Camouflage research
TBM Avengers were used in wartime research into counter-illumination camouflage. The torpedo bombers were fitted with Yehudi lights, a set of forward-pointing lights automatically adjusted to match the brightness of the sky. The planes therefore appeared as bright as the sky, rather than as dark shapes. The technology, a development of the Canadian navy's diffused lighting camouflage research, allowed an Avenger to advance to within 3,000 yards (2,700 m) before being seen.[23]
Civilian use
Many Avengers have survived into the 21st century working as spray-applicators and water-bombers throughout North America, particularly in the Canadian province of New Brunswick.
Forest Protection Limited (FPL) of
There are several other Avengers, usually flying as warbirds in private collections around the world today.[30] They are a popular airshow fixture in both flying and static displays.[31]
As of 2020,[update] the Commemorative Air Force (CAF) flies three TBM Avengers[32] with one based with the Rocky Mountain Wing in Grand Junction, Colorado; another with the Missouri Wing at St Charles Smartt Field; and their newest with the Capital Wing in Culpeper, Virginia. Each of these allow non-CAF members to ride in the aircraft for a Living History Flight Experience.[33][34][35]
Variants
TBF
- XTBF-1
- Prototypes each powered by a 1,700 hp (1,300 kW) R-2600-8 engine, second aircraft introduced the large dorsal fin. (2 built)
- TBF-1
- Initial production model based on the second prototype. (1,526 built)
- TBF-1C
- TBF-1 with provision for two 0.5 in (12.7 mm) wing guns and fuel capacity increased to 726 US gal (2,748 L). (765 built)
- TBF-1B
- Paper designation for the Avenger I for the Royal Navy.
- TBF-1D
- TBF-1 conversions with centimetric radar in radome on right wing leading edge.
- TBF-1CD
- TBF-1C conversions with centimetric radar in radome on right wing leading edge.
- TBF-1E
- TBF-1 conversions with additional electronic equipment.
- TBF-1J
- TBF-1 equipped for bad weather operations
- TBF-1L
- TBF-1 equipped with retractable searchlight in bomb bay.
- TBF-1P
- TBF-1 conversion for photo-reconnaissance
- TBF-1CP
- TBF-1C conversion for photo-reconnaissance
- XTBF-2
- TBF-1 re-engined with a 1,900 hp (1,400 kW) XR-2600-10 engine.
- XTBF-3
- TBF-1 re-engined with 1,900 hp (1,400 kW) R-2600-20 engines.
- TBF-3
- Planned production version of the XTBF-3, cancelled
TBM
- TBM-1
- as TBF-1. (550 built)
- TBM-1C
- as TBF-1C. (2336 built)
- TBM-1D
- TBM-1 conversions with centimetric radar in radome on right wing leading edge.
- TBM-1E
- TBM-1 conversions with additional electronic equipment.
- TBM-1J
- TBM-1 equipped for all weather operations
- TBM-1L
- TBM-1 equipped with retractable searchlight in bomb bay.
- TBM-1P
- TBM-1 conversion for photo-reconnaissance
- TBM-1CP
- TBM-1C conversion for photo-reconnaissance
- TBM-2
- One TBM-1 re-engined with a 1,900 hp (1,400 kW) XR-2600-10 engine.
- XTBM-3
- Four TBM-1C aircraft with 1,900 hp (1,400 kW) R-2600-20 engines.
- TBM-3
- as TBM-1C, double cooling intakes, engine upgrade, minor changes. (4,011 built)
- TBM-3D
- TBM-3 conversion with centimetric radar in radome on right wing leading edge.
- TBM-3E
- as TBM-3, stronger airframe, search radar, ventral gun deleted. (646 built).
- TBM-3H
- TBM-3 conversion with surface search radar.
- TBM-3J
- TBM-3 equipped for all weather operations
- TBM-3L
- TBM-3 equipped with retractable searchlight in bomb bay.
- TBM-3M
- TBM-3 conversion as a Tiny Tim rocketlauncher.
- TBM-3N
- TBM-3 conversion for night attack.
- TBM-3P
- TBM-3 conversion for photo-reconnaissance.
- TBM-3Q
- TBM-3 conversion for electronic countermeasures, retained gun turret.[36]
- TBM-3R
- TBM-3 conversions as seven-passenger, Carrier onboard delivery transport.
- TBM-3S
- TBM-3 conversion as an anti-submarine strike version.
- TBM-3U
- TBM-3 conversion as a general utility and target version.
- TBM-3W
- TBM-3 conversion as the first ship based airborne early warning control and relay platform with AN/APS-20 radar in ventral radome.
- XTBM-4
- Prototypes based on TBM-3E with modified wing incorporating a reinforced center section and a different folding mechanism. (3 built)[37]
- TBM-4
- Production version of XTBM-4, 2,141 on order were cancelled.
- Tarpon GR.I
- RN designation of the TBF-1, 400 delivered.
- Avenger Mk.II
- RN designation of the TBM-1/TBM-1C, 334 delivered.
- Avenger Mk.III
- RN designation of the TBM-3, 222 delivered
- Avenger Mk.IV
- RN designation of the TBM-3S, 70 cancelled
- Avenger AS4
- RN designation of the TBM-3E, delivered postwar with minimum modifications
- Avenger AS5
- RN designation of the TBM-3S, delivered postwar & fitted with British equipment
- Avenger AS6
- RN designation of the TBM-3S, fitted with British equipment including a centerline radome. A total of one hundred TBM-3E & TBM-3S were delivered to the Royal Navy in 1953.[38]
- Avenger AS3
- Modified by RCN for anti-submarine duty, dorsal gun turret removed, 98 built
- Avenger AS3M
- AS3 with magnetic anomaly detector boom added to rear fuselage
- Avenger Mk.3W2
- Similar to TBM-3W, with large ventral radome. 8 operated.
Operators
- Brazilian Navy operated three Avengers in the 1950s for deck crew training aboard the carrier Minas Gerais (A-11).
- Royal Canadian Navy operated Avengers until replaced by the CS2F Tracker in 1960.
- Cuban Navyreceived 7 TBM-3S2 in 1956; however, they were out of service by 1960.
- France
- Aéronavaleoperated Avengers in the 1950s.
- Japan
- Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force operated Hunter-Killer Avengers groups in the 1950s and 1960s.
- Dutch Naval Aviation Serviceoperated Avengers during the 1950s.
- United Kingdom
- Royal Navy – Fleet Air Arm
- 700 Naval Air Squadron
- 703 Naval Air Squadron
- 706 Naval Air Squadron
- 711 Naval Air Squadron
- 733 Naval Air Squadron
- 736 Naval Air Squadron
- 738 Naval Air Squadron
- 744 Naval Air Squadron
- 751 Naval Air Squadron
- 756 Naval Air Squadron
- 763 Naval Air Squadron
- 764 Naval Air Squadron
- 768 Naval Air Squadron
- 774 Naval Air Squadron
- 778 Naval Air Squadron
- 782 Naval Air Squadron
- 783 Naval Air Squadron
- 785 Naval Air Squadron
- 787 Naval Air Squadron
- 797 Naval Air Squadron
- 798 Naval Air Squadron
- 820 Naval Air Squadron
- 828 Naval Air Squadron
- 832 Naval Air Squadron
- 845 Naval Air Squadron
- 846 Naval Air Squadron
- 848 Naval Air Squadron
- 849 Naval Air Squadron
- 850 Naval Air Squadron
- 851 Naval Air Squadron
- 852 Naval Air Squadron
- 853 Naval Air Squadron
- 854 Naval Air Squadron
- 855 Naval Air Squadron
- 856 Naval Air Squadron
- 857 Naval Air Squadron
- United States
- Uruguayan Navyoperated 16 TBF Avengers in the 1949 to 1963.
Notable incidents
- A famous incident involving the TBM / TBF Avenger aircraft was the disappearance of Flight 19, a training flight of five Avengers that originated from Naval Air Station Fort Lauderdale and was lost in December 1945 over the Bermuda Triangle.
- During an airshow on 17 April 2021, TBM #91188 made a successful forced-landing south of Cocoa Beach, Florida near Patrick Space Force Base, in shallow surf.[39] Valiant Air Command, the group that owns the plane, recovered the TBM for transport to Titusville, Florida, for extensive repairs.[40]
Surviving aircraft
Specifications (TBF Avenger)
Data from Jane's Fighting aircraft of World War II[41] Armament data from Flight Journal.com[42]
General characteristics
- Crew: 3
- Length: 40 ft 1⁄8 in (12.195 m)
- Wingspan: 54 ft 2 in (16.51 m)
- Width: 19 ft (5.8 m) folded
- Height: 16 ft 5 in (5.00 m)
- Wing area: 490 sq ft (46 m2)
- Airfoil: root: NACA 23015; tip: NACA 23009[43]
- Gross weight: 15,536 lb (7,047 kg)
- Fuel capacity: Fuel 330 US gal (275 imp gal; 1,249 L) in three center-section integral tanks + 2x 58 US gal (48 imp gal; 220 L) droppable slipper tanks under outer wings, with provision for a jettisonable 275 US gal (229 imp gal; 1,041 L) bomb-bay ferry tank.; Oil 32 US gal (27 imp gal; 121 L)
- Powerplant: 1 × Wright R-2600-8 Twin Cyclone14-cylinder air-cooled radial piston engine, 1,700 hp (1,300 kW)
- Propellers: 3-bladed Hamilton Standard constant-speed propeller
Performance
- Maximum speed: 278 mph (447 km/h, 242 kn)
- Cruise speed: 215 mph (346 km/h, 187 kn)
- Range: 905 mi (1,456 km, 786 nmi) at cruise speed
- Service ceiling: 22,600 ft (6,900 m)
- Rate of climb: 1,075 ft/min (5.46 m/s)
- Power/mass: 0.11 hp/lb (0.18 kW/kg)[citation needed]
Armament
- Guns:
- 1 × 0.30 in (7.62 mm) nose-mounted M2 Browning machine guns
- 1 × 0.50 in (12.7 mm) dorsal-mounted M2 Browning machine gun
- 1 × 0.30 in (7.62 mm) ventral-mounted M1919 Browning machine gun
- 1 × 0.30 in (7.62 mm) nose-mounted
- Rockets:
- up to eight High Velocity Aerial Rockets
- up to eight
- Bombs:
- Up to 2,000 lb (907 kg) of bombs or
- 1 × 2,000 lb (907 kg) Mark 13 torpedo or Mark 24 mine (Fido) acoustic homing torpedo
See also
Aircraft of comparable role, configuration, and era
- Aichi B7A Ryusei
- Consolidated TBY Sea Wolf
- Douglas TBD Devastator
- Douglas XTB2D Skypirate
- Fairey Barracuda
- Fairey Spearfish
- Nakajima B5N
- Nakajima B6N Tenzan
- Saab 17
Related lists
- List of aircraft of World War II
- List of United States Navy aircraft designations (pre-1962)
- List of military aircraft of the United States
References
Notes
- ^ Under the 1922 United States Navy aircraft designation system in use at the time, the TB in the designation refers to its role as a torpedo bomber, F was assigned to aircraft built by Grumman, and M to those built by General Motors, G having already been assigned to the Great Lakes Aircraft Company previously.
- ^ "The Grumman TBF Avenger: The Bomber That Changed the War". Pearl Harbor Visitors Bureau. Archived from the original on 5 March 2021. Retrieved 27 October 2020.
- ^ Wheeler 1992, p. 53.
- ^ Tillman 1999, p. 6.
- Sto-Wing. The Sto-Wing used a novel approach using a compound angle folding-wing that was unique to Grumman ... It was a successful design that was later used on the F6F Hellcat and TBF Avenger.
- ^ O'Rourke, G. G. (July 1968). "Of Hosenoses, Stoofs, and Lefthanded Spads". Proceedings. Vol. 94, no. 7. United States Naval Institute. p. 56.
- ^ Combat Intelligence Branch (1943). "Midway's Attack on the Enemy Carriers". Combat Narrative: The Battle of Midway, June 3–6 1942 (Report). U.S. Navy, Office of Naval Intelligence. p. 17. Retrieved 13 May 2021 – via HyperWar Foundation.
- ^ Shepherd, Joel (2006). "1942 – Battle of Midway". USS Enterprise CV-6. Retrieved 27 October 2020.
- ^ a b "Sinking the Supership". Nova. Season 33. Episode 3212. 4 October 2005. PBS. Retrieved 27 October 2011.
- ^ Associated Press. "Fighting Names Given to Planes by the Navy". The New York Times. Vol. XCI No. 30,567, 2 October 1941, p. 17.
- ^ "New Plane Names". Flying and Popular Aviation (Chicago: Ziff-Davis Publishing Company), Vol. 30 [sic], No. 1, January 1942, p. 232.
- ^ Hove 2003, p. 178.
- OL 668535M.
- ^ Hackett, Bob; Kingsepp, Sander (2017). "IJN Battleship Musashi: Tabular Record of Movement". CombinedFleet. Retrieved 27 October 2020.
- ^ E. V. W. Jones (17 September 1950). "Sea's Puzzles Still Baffle Men In Pushbutton Age". Miami Herald. Associated Press. p. 6F. Retrieved 27 October 2020 – via course material, "The Scientific Method - Critical and Creative Thinking", SMU Department of Physics.
- ^ "History of Langley Research Center." NASA. Retrieved: 22 July 2011.
- ^ "List of all Telegraphist Air Gunners (TAGs) receiving honours and awards whilst serving with front line squadrons, 1939–1945". Fleet Air Arm Archive. Archived from the original on 24 September 2015.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link) - ISBN 9780230768192.
- ISBN 978-1-84425-588-7.
- ^ Geelen 1983
- ^ "Aircraft History: Grumman Avenger". Shearwater Aviation Museum. Archived from the original on 20 February 2008. Retrieved 27 October 2020.
- ^ Hambling, David. "Cloak of Light Makes Drone Invisible?" Wired, 9 May 2008. Retrieved: 17 June 2012.
- ^ a b "History: Timeline." Archived 2005-03-12 at archive.today forestprotectionlimited.com. Retrieved: 17 November 2012.
- ^ "Woods Museum: Avenger." Archived 2008-04-13 at the Wayback Machine Central New Brunswick Woodsmen's Museum. Retrieved: 22 July 2011.
- ^ "Avenger On Display." Canadian Aviation and Space Museum. Retrieved: 22 July 2011.
- ^ "New Brunswick, June 2007." Insects. Retrieved: 22 July 2011.
- ^ "Land and Sea: NB Firefighters." CBC Television, 9 December 2009.
- ^ "N.B. WWII plane lands at Shearwater museum." CBC News, 26 July 2012.
- ^ "Avenger." Archived 2006-06-28 at the Wayback Machine Area 51 Aviation. Retrieved: 22 July 2011.
- ^ "Air Cache: TBF/TBM Avenger". Archived from the original on 14 March 2013. Retrieved 7 August 2012.
- ^ "Collection / CAF Fleet". Commemorative Air Force. Retrieved 27 October 2020.
- ^ "Living History Flight Experience in a WWII TBM Torpedo Bomber". Rocky Mountain Wing of the Commemorative Air Force. Retrieved 27 October 2020.
- ^ "Fly With US: TBM3E "Avenger"". Missouri Wing of the Commemorative Air Force. Retrieved 27 October 2020.
- ^ "Warbird Rides". Capital Wing of the Commemorative Air Force. Retrieved 27 October 2020.
- ^ Morgan, Rick. "The Enigmatic TBM-3Q". Rick Morgan Books. Retrieved 21 May 2020.
- ^ Rickard, J. "Eastern XTBM-4 Avenger". Military History Encyclopedia on the Web. Retrieved 18 August 2023.
- ISBN 0-85177-835-6.
- ^ Perkins, Chris (19 April 2021). "World War II-era plane lands in the ocean during air show at Cocoa Beach". South Florida Sun Sentinel. Retrieved 20 April 2021.
- ^ Gallop, J. D. (19 April 2021). "Plane that made emergency soft water landing in ocean on the move to Titusville for repairs". Florida Today. Retrieved 20 April 2021.
- ISBN 0517679647.
- ^ Flight journal.com Grumman TBF Avenger
- ^ Lednicer, David (15 August 2010). "The Incomplete Guide to Airfoil Usage". UIUC Airfoil Data Site. UIUC Applied Aerodynamics Group. Retrieved 27 October 2020.
Bibliography
- Drendel, Lou (2001). TBF/TBM Avenger Walk Around. Carrollton, Texas: Squadron/Signal Publications. ISBN 0-89747-424-4.
- Drendel, Lou (1987). "Grumman TBF/TBM Avenger". U.S. Navy Carrier Bombers of World War II. Carrollton, Texas: Squadron/Signal Publications. pp. 89–120. ISBN 0-89747-195-4.
- Fletcher, R. G. (1995). Front Line Avenger Squadrons of the FAA. Bury St. Edmunds, Suffolk, UK: R.G. Fletcher. ISBN 0-9518877-1-8.
- Francillon, René (1970). Grumman (Eastern) TBF (TBM) Avenger. Aircraft in Profile. Vol. 214. London: Profile Publications.
- Geelen, Janic (1983). The Topdressers. Auckland: NZ Aviation Press. ISBN 0-9597642-0-8.
- Hove, Duane (2003). American Warriors: Five Presidents in the Pacific Theater of World War II. Shippensburg, Pennsylvania: Burd Street Press. ISBN 1-57249-260-0.
- Jackson, B. R.; Doll, Thomas E. (1970). Grumman TBF/TBM "Avenger". Aero Series. Vol. 21. Fallbrook, California: Aero Publishers. ISBN 0-8168-0580-6.
- Jackson, B. R.; Doll, Thomas E. (1970). Supplement to Grumman TBF/TBM "Avenger". Fallbrook, California: Aero Publishers. ISBN 0-8168-0582-2.
- Kinzey, Bert (1997). TBF & TBM Avenger in Detail & Scale. Carrollton, Texas: Squadron/Signal Publications. ISBN 1-888974-06-0.
- Pelletier, Alain (1981). Grumman TBF/TBM Avenger (in French). Paris: Editions Ouest-France. ISBN 2-85882-311-1.
- Prange, Gordon William; et al. (Goldstein, Donald M.; Dillon, Katherine V.) (1983). Miracle at Midway. New York: Viking. ISBN 0-14-006814-7.
- Scrivner, Charles L. (1987). TBF/TBM Avenger in Action. Carrollton, Texas: Squadron/Signal Publications. ISBN 0-89747-197-0.
- Skulski, Przemyslaw (1997). Grumman Avenger. Seria Pod Lupa (in Polish). Vol. 5. Wrocław, Poland: Ace Publications. ISBN 83-86153-40-7.
- Thetford, Owen (1991). British Naval Aircraft since 1912. ISBN 0-85177-849-6.
- Tillman, Barrett (1979). Avenger at War. London: Ian Allan. ISBN 0-7110-0957-0.
- Tillman, Barrett (1999). TBF/TBM Avenger Units of World War 2. Botley, UK: Osprey Publishing. ISBN 1-85532-902-6.
- Treadwell, Terry C. (2001). Grumman TBF/TBM Avenger. Mount Pleasant, South Carolina: Arcadia Publishing. ISBN 0-7524-2007-0.
- Wheeler, Barry C. (1992). The Hamlyn Guide to Military Aircraft Markings. London: Chancellor Press. ISBN 1-85152-582-3.
External links
- "Flying the Grumman TBF "Avenger" (1944)" on YouTube