The Dauntless paired precise dive bombing with docile carrier handling and unusual resilience. Perforated dive brakes stabilized steep attacks, and the type's decisive work at Midway fixed its place in naval history even as faster successors were already approaching service.
INTERACTIVE MODEL LOADS WHEN NEARBY
2016 / ModernAirframe B
F-35A Lightning II
Lockheed Martin · Conventional multirole fighter
HISTORICAL FIELD NOTE
The conventional-runway F-35A combines low-observable shaping, sensor fusion, and internal weapons carriage with the lightest airframe and largest internal fuel load of the three F-35 variants. It entered U.S. Air Force operational service in 2016 and is designed for both air-to-air and precision-strike missions.
PERFORMANCE
SPECIFICATION BREAKDOWN
METRICDouglas SBD-5 DauntlessF-35A Lightning II
Top speed
255 mphREFERENCE VALUE
Mach 1.6REFERENCE VALUE
Ceiling
25,530 ftREFERENCE VALUE
50,000 ftREFERENCE VALUE
Range
1,115 miREFERENCE VALUE
1,200+ nmiAPPROXIMATE / PUBLISHED
Archive milestone
Service entry · 1943REFERENCE VALUE
Service entry · 2016REFERENCE VALUE
Nation
United StatesDESCRIPTIVE VALUE
United StatesDESCRIPTIVE VALUE
Primary role
Carrier dive bomberDESCRIPTIVE VALUE
Conventional multirole fighterDESCRIPTIVE VALUE
Values are concise archive references and can vary by variant, payload, configuration, altitude, operating conditions, and source. Range may describe different published measures where a directly comparable figure is unavailable.
