Fifty-four went to Australia, where in 1942 they had a less-than-glorious combat record flying against Japanese targets in Java and New Guinea. Navy's Douglas SBD Dauntless dive bomber, designating it as the A-24. In 1940, after the amazing success of the German Stuka dive bombers in Poland, the U.S. 50-caliber machine guns in the nose and two. Wright-Cyclone R-1820-52 RadialĪrmament: Two. The SBD was the Navy's most successful dive bomber, and was preferred by pilots over its successor, the Curtiss SB2C Helldiver. The plane was well constructed and could handle sustained dives of up to seventy degrees.īeing fairly maneuverable, the SBD was occasionally pressed into service as an anti-torpedo bomber interceptor. This meant that in combat the Dauntless pilots had to throttle back to begin an attack dive.