I think I first saw the Ghost
Squadron’s Curtiss SB2C Helldiver while attending the Breckenridge,
Texas air show in 1985. It was still in pieces and in the process of
being rebuilt by Nelson Ezell’s crew, with money being raised by the
West Texas Wing of the CAF. When the Helldiver returned to service in
1988, I had a chance to fly both the FM-2 Wildcat and A6M2 Zero in shows
with the SB2C, and I must admit that as a one-of-a-kind, the SB2C was
always a bit special to me.
The "Beast" was usually flown by Cols Mike Wells, Howard
Pardue or Nelson Ezell after its restoration, but by 1995, the West
Texas Wing was often faced with too many commitments and not enough
pilots, and I was asked to help campaign the Helldiver. Naturally, the
first show that I was to fly was only a couple of weeks away, so the
paper began to flow between the Wing, CAF Headquarters and the FAA’s
Lubbock offices.
The Helldiver falls into the category of an aircraft with more than
800 horsepower registered as an experimental aircraft, the type never
having qualified for a commercial registration in civil service. Thus,
the pilot must possess a document called a Letter Of Authorization (LOA)
stating that he is qualified to fly that specific make and model of
aircraft. Having already obtained LOAs in the Wildcat and Zero, I
obtained the appropriate letters of recommendation for the SB2C, and Col
Mike Wells conducted a ground school and full systems and cockpit
checkout. On September 7, 1995, with a temporary LOA for training in my
pocket, I strapped into the Helldiver’s cockpit and took off for my
first flight in the Beast.
Lifting off from Graham, Texas, where the SB2C is based with the
Cactus Squadron, I verified my earlier impression – the Beast is a
big, heavy plane. While the Wildcat, Zero and even the AT-6/SNJ Texan
trainer seem eager to fly by about 60-65 knots, the Helldiver needed
almost 80 knots before it lifted off. During the takeoff roll,
acceleration seemed slow, until the throttle was advanced the last five
inches of manifold pressure, to 45 inches, when the Beast seemed to
gather itself up and really get serious about getting into the air. Once
in the air and climbing, the gear was raised, power reduced to 35 inches
and 2300 rpm, cowl flaps and oil cooler doors adjusted, and course was
set for nearby Breckenridge, where I planned to practice landings and
takeoffs, after a bit of air work.
After finding that the Beast didn’t really like to be slowed much
below 80 knots without sinking rapidly, I made my first approach for
landing at 95-100 knots, having slowed to about 130 knots and lowered
the gear on downwind. The landing checklist included the usual: fuel on
fullest tank, boost pump on, tail wheel locked, prop set to 2300 rpm and
flaps as needed. Holding about 90 knots over the approach end of the
runway with full flaps, the Beast touched down on the mains with little
tendency to bounce. Several more landings, including some three-point,
proved that the Helldiver could operate out of as little as about 3000
feet, although a longer runway prevents undue wear and tear on the
brakes and the pilot’s nerves.
The Beast has probably one of the most complicated hydraulic systems
of any single-engine World War II plane. The system operates the landing
gear, flaps, dive brakes, cowl flaps, oil cooler doors, bomb bay doors
and wing fold mechanism, and has a primary and secondary circuit, and
valves designed to help isolate combat damage. The landing flaps and
dive brakes take some getting used to, as they are operated by the same
lever – moved back for flaps and forward for dive brakes.
To extend the dive brakes, the lever is moved forward until it stops,
and one waits for the dive brake warning light to illuminate on the
instrument panel. Once the light is on, the lever can be move further
forward, causing the dive brakes to extend above and below the trailing
edge of the wing. If pushed forward quickly, the result is about like
running into a brick wall, and it is no problem to loose 30-40 knots in
a few seconds. The dive brakes are great when rapidly closing to join up
with a flight and also make rapid descents from cooler cruising altitude
down to hotter pattern heights easy on the engine and the crew.
With the basic familiarization training flights completed, the next
day I flew to Lubbock, Texas, where John Boatright of the FAA tested my
knowledge of the SB2C’s systems and operation and then climbed into
the gunner’s seat for a check ride. I should note that the rear
cockpit does not have any flight controls, but John just asked if the
intercom worked and rode calmly through the stalls, balked landings and
takeoffs as if he road in the back of a Helldiver everyday.
With training completed and paperwork in hand, the Beast and I
departed the same day for our first air show in Wichita, Kansas,
stopping in Fort Worth to pick up Col Ted Short, West Texas Wing
Operations Officer and back seater for this mission. The plane was a hit
in Wichita, especially when we folded the wings to taxi into a tight
parking space. Letting no grass grow under the new pilot, we were off to
Smyrna, Tenn. for another show the next weekend. With normal cruise
power of 28 inches and 1900 rpm, the Beast indicated about 155-160 knots
air speed while burning 70 gallons of fuel an hour. With 355 gallons in
three tanks, flights of over 4 hours are possible with VFR reserves.
In the past three years, the Beast has carried me to air shows as far
away as Frederick, Maryland, in addition to numerous appearances closer
to its base in Graham, Texas. Checking in with Air Traffic Control while
flying back East was interesting as they often came back with "Say
again your aircraft type!" After about the third reply of Curtiss
SB2C, one controller replied "You are not in my computer!"
When I told him it was the only one still flying, he noted that could
explain the lack of an entry, and proceeded to visit for a couple of
minutes about the plane’s history. Not all controllers are as
friendly, as I was once accused of being in a washing machine by a
Baltimore controller, who had no idea how noisy a Wright R-2600’s
1,900 horsepower could be, just a few feet in front of the cockpit.
Back in Texas, on a mission to a Helldiver squadron reunion in
Fredrickberg, Texas at the Nimitz Museum, I had a passenger, Mr. Jerry
Crisman, who had been a gunner in SB2Cs during WWII. Imagine my surprise
when Jerry calmly asked me over the intercom if he had told me about
landing an SB2C on a carrier from the back cockpit! It is a fascinating
tale and is included as a sidebar to this article.
So, what is the Beast really like to fly? Actually, it is a pleasant
and enjoyable plane, once it gets up to speed, with much lighter
controls than one would think looking at its size and weight. The
numerous systems keep you busy during takeoff and landing, and the Beast
requires constant adjustment of the rudder trim with changes in speeds.
Duster turns and photo passes at shows require keeping the power and
speed up and pulling a few Gs, and the Beast tends to run away from the
other U.S. carrier bomber, the Grumman Avenger, if you aren’t careful.
Where the real work starts is once we land at an air show.
"Say mister – is this the plane that President Bush flew?
Helldiver? Never heard of that one!" These are just a few of the
comments from air show visitors when they see the Beast. When told that
it is the only one still flying in the world, they often want to tour
the plane. So, in addition to handling the West Texas Wing PX carried in
the bomb bay, the two man crew, with any assistance we can get, also
handles tours up and over the wing of the Beast, letting folks look into
the cockpit and gunner’s compartment of the last one flying. Sometimes
I think the real rating is Beast pilot, historian and tour guide.
Flying the Helldiver is a rare privilege and one that really drives
home to me the motto of the Confederate Air Force – Keep ‘em
flying!
