Consolidated
PBY Catalina
Was the Navy's
famous and versatile flying boat. It served in a variety of roles
from torpedo bomber, patrol and air/sea rescue. Famous were the
black painted "Black
Cats". Also, the type flew with many other Allied nation's Air
Forces.
The most famous Allied flying boat of WWII, the
PBY Catalina was built in large numbers, and some are still in
use today. While it was slow by contemporary standards, the PBY
more than made up for it's lack of speed with its reliability
and great range, as well as the fact that as a flying boat it
could land on the water for rescue missions. It's long range made
it an excellent reconnaissance aircraft over the world's oceans.
It could be used as a bomber when other aircraft were unavailable,
and Catalinas attacked targets at sea with bombs, depth charges,
and even torpedoes.
OA-10 Catalina
PBY-5A/-6A amphibians for use
in by the USAAF for search and rescue duties. This series was
redesignated A-10 in 1948.
PB2B Version
A version of the PBY built by Boeing of Canada.
PBV Canso
Canadian built version
Other designations of the Catalina were:
A-10, PBN, PBV, PB3Y, P3Y