USS Intrepid
Grumman/Eastern Aircraft TBM-3E Avenger
AvengersFirst flown in 1941 and introduced operationally in June 1942, the Avenger became the U.S. Navy’s standard torpedo bomber throughout World War II, with more than 9,836 constructed. Designed and built by Grumman Aircraft Engineering Coporation, they were affectionately nicknamed “turkeys” for their somewhat ungainly appearance.
Avengers flew off the Intrepid throughout her World War II career. In the Pacific theater, Avengers participated in the sinking of some of the most powerful warships in the Japanese fleet including the battleships Yamato and Musashi.
Perhaps the most famous Avenger pilot was President George H. W. Bush who in 1944, despite aircraft damage and the loss of his crew, successfully piloted his Avenger in an attack on a Japanese radio station on Chichi Jima, an island south of Japan.
USS Intrepid
Grumman/Eastern Aircraft TBM-3E Avenger
AvengersFirst flown in 1941 and introduced operationally in June 1942, the Avenger became the U.S. Navy’s standard torpedo bomber throughout World War II, with more than 9,836 constructed. Designed and built by Grumman Aircraft Engineering Coporation, they were affectionately nicknamed “turkeys” for their somewhat ungainly appearance.
Avengers flew off the Intrepid throughout her World War II career. In the Pacific theater, Avengers participated in the sinking of some of the most powerful warships in the Japanese fleet including the battleships Yamato and Musashi.
Perhaps the most famous Avenger pilot was President George H. W. Bush who in 1944, despite aircraft damage and the loss of his crew, successfully piloted his Avenger in an attack on a Japanese radio station on Chichi Jima, an island south of Japan.