The Helldivers are coming!

For a number of decades there has been only one airworthy Curtiss SB2C Helldiver in the world. This machine, SB2C-5 BuNo83589 flying as N92879, is part of the Commemorative Air Force in Midland (TX) since 1970.

Now, more than fifty years later, two restorers are in a race to finish their own airworthy Helldiver.

One is BuNo83393 which had crash landed in Dahlgren (VA) on 24 July 1945. This Helldiver, an SB2C-5, is being restored by the Fagen Fighters Museum of Granite Falls (MN). It has recently received its cowling and bombay doors.

The other is an earlier SBC2-1A version, BuNo75552, which is under restoration at WestPac Restorers in Colorado Springs (CO). It is destined to join the inventory of the National Museum of World War II Aviation, situated in the same town. The vertical fin has recently been fitted on the aircraft which is already standing on its ‘feet’. BuNo75552 was actually built as an A-25A Shrike land based divebomber for the USAAF with serial 42-80387. It was later diverted to the USMC and at time declared written off. 

As far as we know, neither of these Helldivers have yet been registered in the official US FAA register, so it can still take some time before we can actually see them flying!

The Curtiss SB2C was designed as a shipboard divebomber, which replaced the earlier SBD Dauntless. In total 7140 Helldivers were built, including 900 of the landbased A-25A Shrike which were used by the USAAF. 

Photos: Rich Tuttle (top) and WestPac (bottom)