US Marine VMSB-233 Douglas Dauntless SBD-4

The Douglas Dauntless was a US Navy carrier-borne scout plane/dive-bomber manufactured by the Douglas Aircraft Company at their El Segundo plant. First built in 1940 just over 5,900 SBD Dauntless were produced until the end of manufacture in July 1944.  The Dauntless was the US Navy’s key dive-bomber and although slow and somewhat out of date when it began its combat career, it was rugged and dependable, which was reflected in its performance against Japanese ships, particularly in the Pacific, where it succeeded in sinking more Japanese shipping than any other Allied aircraft in WWII.

One of its Pacific deployments was in Guadalcanal, the principal island of the Solomon Islands in the south west Pacific. SBDs – Scout Bomber Douglas - or as their pilots named them Slow But Deadly,  played a major role in the Guadalcanal Campaign, operating off both American carriers and from Henderson Field, a military airbase on the island, from where they proved lethal to enemy shipping.

Our 1:72 scale Oxford replica evokes the memory of the Douglas Dauntless in this role.  Painted in dark grey with a pale grey underbelly, the aircraft features the US Star and its 16 number on the sides of the fuselage. Additional decoration comprises the yellow bird and ‘Sister’ nose art, reputedly one of the earliest pieces of art to feature on a US Marine aircraft. Most of the underside detail is painted black, including the arrestor hook deployed in takeoff and landing on the carriers. The bomb, housed dead centre behind the wheels, is painted dark green with its bomb sling arms also depicted in black.