PBY Catalina | Consolidated's flying boat and amphibious aircraft | World War II Seaplane | Upscaled

If I had the money for it, I’d buy a Catalina and use it as my go anywhere aircraft. If I had the sort of stupid money where I could afford to do it, I’d make a Catalina analogue with all modern tech so it could keep going as long as possible and be as eco friendly as an airplane can reasonably be.

Pb stood for patrol bomber not patrol boat, the navy b-25 was pbj the privateer was pb4y and neither of these aircraft were flying boats.

My uncle was a flight engineer/gunner with 6 Squadron RNZAF based in Fiji and then the Solomons during WW2. I recaqll he was always very careful to differentiate between amphibians and flying boats. The latter having only bolt-on trailer wheels for haulouts on the dock. Amphibians are still around because of their versatility for air shows and the like.

Thank you for the history. Did you know that through WWII there was a small town (and still is) called Lake Boga. Lake Boga is a small lake situated in Northern Victoria, Australia. Through the war Lake Boga was a secret base for servicing, repairing and maintaining the Catalina. Correct me if I am wrong but I think it looked after all Cats in the South Pacific. There is a Catalina still there housed in a museum dedicated to the Cat and the former base and the war effort.
There is also another huge roll the Cat carried out. With all communication cut between Australia and Britain there is what became known as the "Double Sunrise Flight". It was flown by civilians in a flying Catalina fuel tank, a 36 hour flight (from memory) though Jap occupied country and ocean carrying mail and at times Prime Ministers for talks with Churchill and others. These HEROES flew unarmed as they were civilians, they received little if any recognition and forget about medals. I dont have any links but there is a fantastic DVD called "RETURN OF THE CATALINA". It contains some of the history and even an interview with the last remaining crew member (sadly now deceased). I get nothing out of this apart from passing on knowledge.

Bless world war 2 and all the cool planes it invented

The wing plan looks a lot like the majority of Cessna wings. The aircraft appears to be very stable with its parasol wing position and it looks as if it was easy to fly. I wonder how balanced the controls were.

My uncle piloted black cats out of Darwin in WWII on minelaying missions after dark. He actually took my father(an Ack Ack gunner based at a nearby airfield) on a couple of non-mission supply/practice flights.
My dad told me decades later that the gorgeously unique whale-like hull of the Catalina is designed for aquaplaning. The goal of the pilot during takeoff is to reach a speed where the hull is "up on the step", that is, the cutaway section of the front underside is gliding over the water, and is not submerged. This is the same principle which operates in small sailing boats when they are "on the plane". Though a Cat's maximum speed was never high, a Cat would achieve a sudden acceleration once it started planing, which was needed for successful takeoff. The Aussie cats were usually so heavily loaded with munitions that getting the Cat up on the step was never assured; also choppy water and wind conditions could interfere with getting on the step too -- especially after putting down on the open ocean. Missions could be cancelled simply because the wind direction might not allow that minimum takeoff speed to be achieved. Apparently takeoff was the most tense moment of any flight.

A video about the 'Fairchild J2K' would be great.

Love to get a copy of the thumbnail you used for this vid.
My father is there somewhere.
He was an electrician on them during WWII in the Solomon islands.

My grandfather was a nose gunner during WW2.

Here's a toast to the host Of those who love the vastness of the sky, To a friend, we send a message of his brother men who fly. We drink to those who gave their all of old, Then down we roar to score the rainbow's pot of gold. A toast to the host of men we boast, the U.S. Air Force!
Off we go into the wild blue yonder, Climbing high into the sun; Here they come zooming to meet our thunder, At 'em, boys, Give 'er the gun! (Give 'er the gun now!) Down we dive, spouting our flame from under, Off with one helluva roar! We live in fame or go down in flame. Hey!
Nothing will stop the U.S. Air Force! Salute to the WW2 Army Aircorps!

catalina is awesome I can use it to post on facebook

My Late Father Flew PBY , Black Cat's

😊😊

My uncle flew Catalinas during WW2. He did his training at Pensacola. He lived the plane.

Steel frame?

Why Catalina name?

God, I remember going in one. The blister bubble room can fit at least 12 people on each side, and the mid section can fit one person in the wing mast, and 4 seats can be fitted surrounding the wheel wells. The front section can fit 4 seats on either side and 2 jump seats on the wall that divides the main hold from the cockpit. I never thought me, 5’8, could fit in one. But trust me, their bigger in the interior then outside. Perfect plane for me.

Navy and air force should bring them back into operation. They'll be cheaper than the osprey aircraft and further distance in flights. Saved so many airmen at sea as well as military 🪖 operations. Japan has one as of now in use.

It was a PBY that spotted the Japanese fleet at the Battle of Midway.

thank you.

In the Royal Canadian Air Force, they were called PBY-5A Canso. They were not painted ... they were metal-colored and they flew from Newfoundland, Iceland and Scotland. They escorted convoys, individual ships like the fast moving Queen Mary, dropped supplies to Norwegian resistance fighters, captured and sunk U-boats and rescued air crews and shipwreck sailors. In the last year of the war, they were equipped with radar. I know this because I have my father's log books from RCAF Sqn 162.

Many of these aircraft were converted to be water bombers and were very successful in that job. One of my first jobs was flying as a bird dog for PBY's doing forest fire bombing in British Columbia.

And there was 18,482 B24s built in WW2

Aside from its awesome history, I always thought it would make a great flying RV

Our Hamilton, Canadian Warplane Heritage Museum has one, and it flew by earlier today, Thanksgiving weekend, 2022!
I want one!!!!

In the '80s I worked with a gentleman that was a radioman/gunner on a PBY in the Aleutian islands of Alaska. He said he was shot down twice by the Japanese and no crew members were hurt. He stayed with the aircraft while the rest of the crew walked back. While the crew walked back the repair/rescue team arrived. He said he beat them back to base both times.

I went into a PBY once and I was pretty shocked at how small it was inside. Later, thinking the B-17 was much larger, I was even more surprised at how small it was inside.

My grandfather was on the first pby to fly around the world before the war

Yeah. The Allies got a lot of use out of that plane.
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I've loved this plane since I was given a 1/72 model of it in the 1970's. Still have it :) Thanks for the excellent video.

There has been one on a plinth at Lake Boga in Victoria Australia. With some government money they have built a hangar over it. The chap that gave us the talk said that they were trying to get it operational again. Considering the decades on the plinth evidently the airframe was still sound.
Lake Boga was the seaplane repair station during WW2. The area used was very large, some buildings and all the concrete are still there.

Really appreciated this video. My father was rescued by a Catalina after floating for 16 hours tied to the nose wheel of his Liberator, which had ditched in the Bay of Bengal.

There is nothing more beautiful than a vehicle that is seen as nothing but a collection of flaws, yet performs brilliantly in multiple jobs that no other vehicle can accomplish.

Always wondered how the PBY would fly with R-2800 engines with the 2000 hp, instead of the 1200 hp engines…

I was fortunate enough to see a PBY flying, landing in Long Beach, Ca harbor in the early 80's. While sailing our Cal 29 we were pretty close at times to get wonderful memories.. Boy she was a beauty and a sight to see

VERY INTERESTING

Great Documentary, but painful to listen to the narrator.

Just wondering if any of your viewers had relatives that flew out of the US Navy seaplane base located in North Sydney, Nova Scotia? I would appreciate any remembrances.

He says the PB2Y was not manufactured as an amphibian, though some were, including two in this video.

During the hunt for the Bismarck a PBY found the battleship & gave vital information to the Royal Navy. It came out, long after the War, that a USN pilot was on that PBY long before the US had entered WWII.

I always did love this aircraft! Next to the A-10 of course!

A true lady!

The letterbox ruins this film

A PBY scored the only successful American aerial torpedo hit at the Battle of Midway.

I enjoyed seeing a PBY Catalina that operated out of Berkeley Airport in SC for quite a while in the '90s or early 2000s to fight forest fires.

I know it was primarily a war plane but I find this craft absolutely romantic. Sailing over the ocean under a full moon looking out one of the blisters. Fantastic.

Always an impressive aircraft and crews.
Navigation at night!!
Wow
Did not about the Indianapolis involvement.
Why not in the movie??

In my opinion,the Catalina and the Moskito are the two most beautiful planes ever built, if I had the money I would own them both.