# CURTISS AIRCRAFT SB2C HELLDIVER U.S. NAVY DIVE BOMBER INTRODUCTION FILM 23544

Made during WWII by Curtiss, this film was created to introduce U.S. Navy pilots to their new SB2C Helldiver, a carrier-based dive bomber aircraft produced for the US Navy. Due to the advent of air-to-ground rockets, the SB2C was the last purpose-built dive bomber produced. The aircraft was one of the more maligned planes to be put into production, and developed a bad reputation in early service. While manufacturers produced many similar films during the war, one has to wonder whether this particular film was part of a concerted p.r. effort by Curtiss to save their reputation. The aircraft flew successfully through the last two years of the war, but the Helldiver's reputation coupled with a scandal involving defective aircraft engines produced in 1941-43 seriously crippled Curtiss. The film begins with pilots watching as the aircraft is put through its paces and press the pilot for “the dope” on the Helldiver once he lands. At mark 01:50 we see the plane on the runway as the narrator explains how it it a multi-faceted machine that can develop torpedoes or depth bombs, and can be used on aircraft carriers or land-based squadrons. Engine specifics are discussed beginning at mark 02:04 and as the film continues we learn of its various design components from wheels to bomb bays. Start-up procedures are covered at mark 04:00 and we receive a detailed look of every switch and lever inside the cockpit, and every contingency involving fuel and oil pressure (mark 06:30 ). As the…

- Kind: Film
- Genres: Industrial and advertising
- Archive: [Internet Archive](https://archive.org/details/23544HowToFlyHelldiver)
- Licence or status: none stated by the archive
- Who can watch: Teens profiles and older (the archive gives no rating; placed by Invisible Network from its collection and subjects)

[Watch now](https://invisiblenetwork.ai/watch/archive/ia/23544HowToFlyHelldiver?play=1)