Types of Warplanes

Dive Bombers

Dive Bomber aircraft are types of warplanes that approach targets at diving angles at around 70 degrees or more. Famous dive bombers consist of the Junkers Stuka, SBD Dauntless and Japanese VAL. Throughout the war, dive bombers were mainly used as carrier based aircraft due to their size and ability to have their wings folded. Dive bombers are famous for their precision and agility when it comes to scoring hits on targets, a main reason they were used as carrier borne aircraft, that they could easily score hits on moving targets, ideal for warships. However, although dive bombers were highly precise, they were notorious for the fact that if a pilot did not pull out of their dive in time, they would have a blackout due to the sucking of all the blood in their body to their head. The bomb that dive bombers would carry would weigh around 50 to 100 lbs.

Torpedo Bomber

The torpedo bomber was a favorite naval aircraft used during World War 2 used mainly to strike against ships. Torpedo bombers were agile and light - weight aircraft, again making them ideal for carriers. A torpedo bomber pilot would come in in sight of the ships at a low altitude drop their torpedo, a sort of underwater missile that would travel at high speeds hitting the ship and causing extensive damage to sub-waterline instruments and also causing flooding, 8 yards from the target. Famous examples of a torpedo bomber were the Grumman TBF Avenger, KATE Nakajima and Douglas TBD Devastator. Torpedo bombers were famous for their weight and agility but were infamous for their high levels of inaccuracy and the fact that some torpedoes didn't even explode upon contact with their target.

Fighters

Fighters were aircraft in World War 2, also still used a lot today, that would be largely used to protect bombers during certain runs or be used to do patrols. One famous such event was during the battle of Britain campaign when fighters would take off from certain airbases in England to protect her from high range bombers from Germany. Famous fighters consist of the Supermarine MK1 Spitfire, Corsair Vought 4FU, Messerschmitt BF-109 and the Mitsubishi A6M Zero. The approximate weight of a fighter in World War 2 was around 2700 kg. Fighters were also used largely for providing convoys with air support during the war. Fighters were agile, swift and highly resistant making them perfect to be carrier borne aviation, some fighters such as the P-38 Lightning, a famous heavy fighter notorious for the shooting of Japanese Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto, were restricted to ground duty only due to their weight and size.

Reconnaissance

Reconnaissance planes, also known as spotter planes, were aircraft that were mostly found aboard battleships and cruisers. They were widely used to find enemy ships, they would take off from a ship with a catapult that would put the plane at takeoff speed within a second. After planes had finished their search, they would land in the water next to the ships and would be brought back aboard with a crane. Famous spotter planes were the Vought OS2 Kingfisher, the Aichi E13A and the PBY Catalina, a long range spotter that wasn't based on a ship. Reconnaissance planes were famous for their ability to land on water, fly for long hours with long range and were also able to have their wings folded, which again, made them very ideal for being based on ships.

Bombers - Land Based

Land based bombers, also known as heavy bombers, were aircraft used during world war 2 that would drop bombs on mainly land based targets. They were used quite a lot during the end of the second world war when the USSAF would base bombers in Italy and the UK to target German industrial centres. A bomber would have a 7 to 10 man crew that would operate different parts of the bombers defence. Famous land based bombers were the Heinkel - 111, the Mitsubishi "Betty" G4M, Bristol Beaufighter, the B-17 Flying Fortress and the B-25 Mitchell. bombers had high range, could fly at high altitudes and had amazing resistance making them ideal for high level bombardment and striking stationery targets. However, they were not agile, had extremely poor defence and had to rely on fighter escorts to support them throughout most of their runs, they were not carrier based and were really really big. Nevertheless, bombers were still very precise and the A-Bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki were both dropped from bombers ( B29 Stratofortress )