https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grumman_AF_Guardian
The Grumman AF Guardian was the first purpose-built anti-submarine warfare (ASW)
carrier-based aircraft to enter service with the United States Navy.[1] It
consisted of two airframes, one for detection gear, the other for weapons. The
Guardian remained in service until August 1955, when it was replaced by the
twin-engined Grumman S-2 Tracker. The Guardian was the largest single-engine
piston-powered carrier aircraft ever to see service.
On 24 December 1945, the Navy changed the role of the aircraft from
torpedo-bomber to anti-submarine warfare. All the required equipment could not
be fitted into a single aircraft, consequently two variants would be produced,
one as a "guppy" (hunter) and another as a "scrapper" (killer). The hunter
aircraft would not carry any armament, but instead two additional crew members
and a ventral radome for APS-20 search "eyes" (radar) and Electronic
Countermeasures (ECM) "ears", consisting of an APR-98 Countermeasures Receiver
and AP-70 Bearing Indicator. This aircraft, the XTB3F-1S, first flew in November
1948. The "killer" deleted the cannon of the torpedo bomber, but retained the
bomb bay, added a third crewmember, a searchlight, and short-range radar, and
(as the XTB3F-2S) first flew in January 1949.
Role
Anti-submarine aircraft
National origin
United States
Manufacturer
Grumman
First flight
19 December 1945
Introduction
October 1950
Retired
31 August 1955
Status
Replaced by S-2 Tracker
Primary user
United States Navy
Number built
389
Redesignated as AF-2W (TB3F-1S) and AF-2S (TB3F-2S), the Guardian entered fleet
service on 27 September 1950 with three aircraft delivered to VS-24, with full
service introduction shortly after with VS-25. A total of 193 AF-2S Guardians
were built. In 1952, the AF-3S (hunter) was introduced, fitting a magnetic
anomaly detector (MAD) for the detection of submerged submarines; 40 of this
variant were built. The last Guardian was delivered to the Navy in March 1953,
with a total of 389 built.[4]
The Guardian saw service in the maritime patrol role during the Korean War,
however it proved unpopular with pilots, being underpowered and heavy on the
controls; the aircraft suffered from a severely high accident rate.[4] Shortly
after the end of the war, it began to be replaced by the Grumman S2F Tracker,[9]
the U.S. Navy first purpose-built ASW airplane to combine the hunter and killer
roles in a single airframe.[11] The last AF retired from active service on 31
August 1955,[4] but it remained in service with the US Naval Air Reserve until
1957.
Specifications (AF-2S Guardian)
General characteristics
Crew: three (four in AF-2W variant)[4]
Length: 43 ft 4 in (13.21 m)
Wingspan: 60 ft 8 in (18.49 m)
Height: 16 ft 2 in (5.08 m)
Empty weight: 14,580 lb (6,613 kg)
Max. takeoff weight: 22,640 lb (10,270 kg)
(1,790 kW)
Performance
Maximum speed: 253 mph at full throttle not to exceed 30 minutes at 15,000 ft,
gross weight 21,000 pounds (276 kn, 510 km/h)
Range: 1,500 mi (1,304 nmi, 2,415 km)
Service ceiling: 15,000 ft (4600 m)
Rate of climb: 1,850 ft/min (9.4 m/s)
Armament
Bombs: 4,000 lb (1,814 kg) of bombs, torpedoes, and depth charges
*
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