Martin T4M

Last updated
T4M
TG
Martin T4m 01.jpg
Martin T4M
Role Torpedo bomber
Manufacturer Glenn L. Martin Company/Great Lakes Aircraft Company
First flight1927
Introduction1928
Retired1938
Primary user United States Navy
Number built155
Developed from Martin T3M

The Martin T4M was an American torpedo bomber of the 1920s. A development by the Glenn L. Martin Company of their earlier Martin T3M, and, like it a single-engined biplane, the T4M served as the standard torpedo bomber aboard the aircraft carriers of the United States Navy through much of the 1930s.

Contents

Development and design

The Martin Model 74 was designed and developed by the Glenn L. Martin Company as a result of testing of the experimental radial-engined developments of the Martin T3M, the XT3M-3 and XT3M-4. The resulting prototype, designated XT4M-1, first flew in April 1927, [1] and was purchased by the U.S. Navy for further evaluation. [2]

The XT4M-1 had new single-bay fabric-covered metal wings of shorter span than the wooden wings of the T3M. [3] It was powered by a Pratt & Whitney Hornet, (as used by the XT3M-3), and was fitted with a revised rudder. The fuselage was similar to that of the T3M-2, and like the earlier aircraft, could be fitted with either a wheeled undercarriage or floats.

As a result of the successful trials, the U.S. Navy ordered 102 similar production aircraft from Martin as the T4M-1 on June 30, 1927. [2] Martin sold their Cleveland factory, which had built the T4M, to the Great Lakes Aircraft Company in October 1928, which resulted in Great Lakes receiving an order for 18 aircraft with slightly modified undercarriages as the TG-1. [4] On 2 July 1930, the U.S. Navy placed an order for 32 aircraft, powered by a more powerful Wright Cyclone radial engines with the Detroit Aircraft Corporation, as the TE-1. [2] Detroit, however, passed the order to Great Lakes, which by this time was a subsidiary, and the aircraft were built as TG-2s. [2]

Operational history

T4M Martin T4M-1 of VT-2B flying over USS Saratoga (CV-3), in 1929.jpg
T4M

Deliveries of the T4M to the U.S. Navy started in August 1928, replacing T3M-2s aboard the aircraft carriers USS Saratoga and USS Lexington. [4] Deliveries continued until 1931. [2]

While its predecessor, the T3M, spent much of its time operating from floats, by the time the T4M and TG entered service, the U.S. Navy had realised the greater versatility of the aircraft carrier, and the T4Ms and TGs were mainly operated with wheeled undercarriages from the decks of carriers. [4] The capability of carrier-based air power was demonstrated in fleet exercises in January 1929, when aircraft from Saratoga, including T4Ms, carried out mock attacks on the Panama Canal. Despite a defending force including Lexington and shore-based Navy and Army aircraft, the strike force was judged to have "destroyed" the canal locks as well as airfields. The exercise was described as "the most brilliantly conceived and most effectively executed naval operation in our history" by Admiral William V Pratt, who later became Commander-in-Chief of the U.S. Fleet. [5]

The T4M was unusual in that its slab-sided fuselage was large enough to allow flight crews to get up and move around between positions. It was so spacious that a man could nearly stand up within it. Of its flying qualities, one pilot was quoted as saying "It takes off, cruises, and lands at 65 knots". [6]

The T4M and TG proved difficult to replace, with both the XT6M and XT3D being evaluated but failing to demonstrate sufficient improvement to justify purchase. [7] They remained in service until 1938, [2] being eventually replaced by the TBD Devastator and becoming the last biplane torpedo bomber of the U.S. Navy. [8]

Variants

Great Lakes Commercial photo from Aero Digest April 1929 Great Lakes Commercial Aero Digest April 1929.jpg
Great Lakes Commercial photo from Aero Digest April 1929
XT4M-1
Prototype. Powered by 525 hp (392 kW) Pratt & Whitney R-1690-24 engine. One built.
T4M-1
Initial production version by Martin, powered by R-1690-24 engine. 102 built.
TG-1
Version with slightly modified undercarriage, powered by 525 hp (392 kW) Pratt & Whitney R-1690-28 engine. 18 built by Great Lakes.
TG-1 Commercial
Civil version of TG-1. Two built. [9]
TG-2
Version powered by 620 hp (463 kW) Wright R-1820-86 Cyclone. 32 built by Great Lakes (originally ordered as TE-1).

Operators

Flag of the United States (23px).png  United States

Specifications (T4M-1)

Data from United States Navy Aircraft since 1911 [8]

General characteristics

Performance

Armament

See also

Related development

Aircraft of comparable role, configuration, and era

Related lists

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Seversky P-35</span> 1935 fighter aircraft series by Seversky

The Seversky P-35 is an American fighter aircraft built by the Seversky Aircraft Company in the late 1930s. A contemporary of the Hawker Hurricane and Messerschmitt Bf 109, the P-35 was the first single-seat fighter in United States Army Air Corps to feature all-metal construction, retractable landing gear, and an enclosed cockpit.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Grumman F2F</span> US Navy biplane

The Grumman F2F was a single-engine, biplane fighter aircraft with retractable undercarriage, serving as the standard fighter for the United States Navy between 1936 and 1940. It was designed for both carrier- and land-based operations.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Naval Aircraft Factory SBN</span>

The Naval Aircraft Factory SBN was a United States three-seat mid-wing monoplane scout bomber/torpedo aircraft designed by the Brewster Aeronautical Corporation and built under license by the Naval Aircraft Factory in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The landing gear was similar to that on the Brewster F2A Buffalo fighter aircraft. The SBN had non-folding wings with perforated flaps.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Curtiss SOC Seagull</span> Scout seaplane in the US Navy

The Curtiss SOC Seagull was an American single-engined scout observation seaplane, designed by Alexander Solla of the Curtiss-Wright Corporation for the United States Navy. The aircraft served on battleships and cruisers in a seaplane configuration, being launched by catapult and recovered from a sea landing. The wings folded back against the fuselage for storage aboard ship. When based ashore or on carriers the single float was replaced by fixed wheeled landing gear.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Grumman FF</span> US Navy biplane

The Grumman FF "Fifi" is an American biplane fighter aircraft operated by the United States Navy during the 1930s. It was the first carrier aircraft with retractable landing gear. It was produced under licence in Canada and known as the Goblin in Canadian service and Delfín in Spanish service.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Vought SBU Corsair</span>

The Vought SBU-1 Corsair was a two-seat, all-metal biplane dive bomber built by Vought Aircraft Company of Dallas, Texas for the US Navy. Its design was based upon the F3U-1 two-seat fighter that was abandoned when the Navy decided not to obtain any more two-seat fighters.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Northrop BT</span> 1935 bomber aircraft family

The Northrop BT was an American two-seat, single-engine monoplane dive bomber built by the Northrop Corporation for the United States Navy. At the time, Northrop was a subsidiary of the Douglas Aircraft Company. While unsuccessful in its own right, the BT was subsequently redesigned into the Douglas SBD Dauntless, which would form the backbone of the Navy's dive bomber force.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Grumman AF Guardian</span> Anti-submarine aircraft family by Grumman

The Grumman AF Guardian is the first purpose-built anti-submarine warfare (ASW) carrier-based aircraft to enter service with the United States Navy. It consisted of two airframe variants, one for detection gear, the other for weapons. The Guardian remained in service until August 1955, when it was replaced by the twin-engined Grumman S-2 Tracker. The Guardian was the largest single-engine piston-powered carrier aircraft ever to see service.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Boeing Model 15</span> American fighter aircraft

The Boeing Model 15 is a United States single-seat open-cockpit biplane fighter aircraft of the 1920s, manufactured by the Boeing company. The Model 15 saw service with the United States Army Air Service and with the United States Navy as a carrier-based fighter.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Boeing F3B</span> Fighter aircraft family by Boeing

The Boeing F3B was a biplane fighter and fighter bomber that served with the United States Navy from 1928 into the early 1930s.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Curtiss F6C Hawk</span>

The Curtiss F6C Hawk is a late 1920s American naval biplane fighter aircraft. It was part of the long line of Curtiss Hawk airplanes built by the Curtiss Aeroplane and Motor Company for the American military.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Naval Aircraft Factory PN</span> Type of aircraft

The Naval Aircraft Factory PN was a series of open cockpit American flying boats of the 1920s and 1930s. A development of the Felixstowe F5L flying boat of the World War I, variants of the PN were built for the United States Navy by Douglas, Keystone and Martin.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Curtiss CS</span> Type of aircraft

The Curtiss CS was a reconnaissance and torpedo bomber aircraft used by the United States Navy during the 1920s. It was a large single-engine biplane with single-bay unstaggered wings, the design conventional in all respects other than that the lower wing was of greater span than the upper. The CS was built to allow its undercarriage to be quickly and easily interchangeable between wheeled, tailskid undercarriage, and twin pontoons for operation from water. Provision for the carriage of a torpedo was semi-recessed into the underside of the fuselage, blended in behind an aerodynamic fairing. The pilot and gunner sat in tandem open cockpits, while accommodation inside the fuselage was provided for a third crewmember who served as bombardier and radio operator. This station was also provided with a dorsal hatch aft of the gunner's position, and a ventral blister aft of the torpedo recess, which was used for aiming bombs or torpedoes.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Vought XSB3U</span>

The Vought XSB3U was an American biplane scout bomber developed by Vought-Sikorsky for the United States Navy during the 1930s. Developed as an alternative to the SB2U Vindicator monoplane, the aircraft proved unsatisfactory to the Navy in comparison, and development was not pursued.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Martin BM</span> Type of aircraft

The Martin BM was a 1930s American torpedo bomber built by the Glenn L. Martin Company for the United States Navy.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Great Lakes BG</span> US carrier-based dive bomber

The Great Lakes BG was an American carrier-based dive bomber of the 1930s. Designed and built by the Great Lakes Aircraft Company of Cleveland, Ohio, 61 were used by the United States Navy and United States Marine Corps from 1934 to 1940.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Martin T3M</span> Type of aircraft

The Martin T3M was an American torpedo bomber of the 1920s. A single-engined three-seat biplane, it became a standard torpedo bomber of the U.S. Navy, operating from both land bases and from aircraft carriers from 1926 to 1932.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Northrop XFT</span> Type of aircraft

The Northrop XFT was an American prototype fighter aircraft of the 1930s. A single engined low-winged monoplane, it was designed and built to meet a United States Navy order for an advanced carrier based fighter. It exhibited poor handling, and was rejected by the Navy, the single prototype being lost in a crash. A variant, the Northrop 3A, also was unsuccessful.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Douglas XP3D</span> Type of aircraft

The Douglas XP3D was a prototype American patrol flying boat of the 1930s. A twin-engined high-winged monoplane, the P3D was produced by the Douglas Aircraft Company to equip the US Navy's Patrol squadrons, but despite meeting the Navy's requirements, the rival Consolidated PBY was preferred owing to a lower price.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Consolidated XB2Y</span> Type of aircraft

The Consolidated XB2Y was an American prototype single-engined dive bomber of the 1930s. It was intended to meet a United States Navy requirement for a carrier-based dive bomber, but was unsuccessful, only a single example being built.

References

Citations
  1. Swanborough and Bowers 1976, p.311
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Grossnick 1995, p.508.
  3. Taylor 1981, p.93.
  4. 1 2 3 Swanborough and Bowers 1976, p.312
  5. Polmar 2004, p41-43
  6. Melton USNR, Lt. Comdr. Dick. the Forty Year Hitch. Wyandotte, Michigan: Publishers Consulting Services, 1970
  7. Johnson 2014, p. 30
  8. 1 2 Swanborough and Bowers 1976, p.313
  9. Great Lakes Aerofiles. Retrieved 27 March 2008.
  10. Johnson 1977, p.96
  11. Johnson 1977, p.107.
  12. Range carrying torpedo. When used in reconnaissance role, range "almost 700 mi" (610 nmi, 1,100 km) - Polmar 2005, p.41
Bibliography