Consolidated PBY-5A Catalina for the B26 slot
about 1942
 
New skin by me of a 43 Squadron RAAF "Black Cat", spinning props by Captain Kurt.

TYPE: General reconnaissance flying boat 
COUNTRY OF ORIGIN: United States 
ENGINES: 2x Pratt & Whitney R-1830-92 Twin Wasp piston engines, each of 1200 hp. 
DIMENSIONS: 
SPAN: 104 ft 0 in / 31.7 m. 
LENGTH: 63 ft 10 in / 10.45 m. 
HEIGHT: 18 ft 10 in / 5.65 m. 
PERFORMANCE: 
MAX. SPEED: 170 kts / 315 kph 
RANGE CRUISE: 102 kts / 188 kph 
INITIAL CLIMB: 660 ft / 201 m. per min. 
SERVICE CEILING: 18,100 ft / 5517 m. 
MAX. RANGE; 2,694 n.m. / 4989 km. 
CREW: Normally 8. 
WEIGHTS: 
EMPTY WEIGHT: 17,526 lb / 7950 kg 
MAX. LOADED: 34,000 lb / 15,422 kg 
ARMAMENT: 2x 0.5 in. and one 0.303 in machine guns in bow turret and two waist blister positions. Up to 4,000 lb (1814 kg) of bombs, depth charges or torpedoes under wings. 
RAAF SERVICE: 1941 - 50
with 11, 20, 42 and 43 Sqns., nos. 6 and 8 Communications Units and nos. 111, 112 and 113 Air Sea Rescue Flights 
The RAAF began World War 2 with a mix of maritime reconnaissance aircraft which included the Empire flying boats, Lockheed Hudsons, Douglas DC-3s, and Avro Ansons. They ordered seven PBY-5 Catalina flying boats in June 1940, with more to follow in September. The first Cats were ferried to Australia by RAAF and Qantas airline crews. After Japan's entry into the war, the loss of ten of the first batch of 18 aircraft led to an urgent need for replacements. By the time the last Catalina was delivered in September 1945, Australia had received 168 of the type.
46 of these were PBY-5A amphibians, 29 of these being converted to flying boats by removal of their undercarriages. They were redesignated PBY-5A(M). The Cats behaved impressively. Early in their careers, the PBYs of 11 and 20 Squadrons, in New Guinea, were used as bombers, in attacks against enemy ships and installations. As the war progressed they became more involved in minelaying and air-sea rescue. Black painted Catalinas - the Black Cats - flew various special operations, and the Cat remained a contributor to harrassing raids over Japanese bases.
Catalinas continued in RAAF service post-war, but by 1948 only 11 Sqn. still operated them, mainly in courier and search and rescue roles. The Catalina was withdrawn from service in April 1950.
