| PBY-5a Catalina | |
|---|---|
| |
| Note: Base stats only (no upgrade installed) | |
| Rank | I (1) |
| Battle Rating | 2.0 |
| Type | Flying Boat / Medium Bomber / Torpedo Bomber |
| Maximum Speed on height | 214 km/h |
| Maximum Altitude | 4400 m |
| Turn Time | 36.4 seconds |
| Rate of Climb | 5 m/s |
| Takeoff Run | 498 m |
| Armament | 1x Turret: 1x 7.62 mm Browning machine gun (1000 rds) 3x Turret: 1x 12.7 mm Browning machine gun (1300 rds) 16x 100 lbs bombs |
The Consolidated PBY-5a Catalina is an American flying boat bomber in the U.S. Navy. The PBY-5a currently sits at Rank 1 in the American line with an upfront cost of 5,000 
. It is also available in the Russian line as a Tier 3 Premium Plane with a cost of 880 
.
Design, Development & Operational History[]
There were two firms competing for the naval patrol bomber supply contract: Consolidated and Douglas. Although both prototypes met the US Navy's demands, on Just 29th, 1935, the contract was awarded to Consolidated due to lower production costs. (Consolidated projected the cost to be $90,000, while their colleagues from Douglas quoted $20,000 more).
Manufacturing orders for PBY-2 and PBY-3 were concluded before the delivery of the first production aircraft from the previous series (PBY-1 and PBY-2, accordingly). However, when the order for the PBY-4 was signed toward the end of 1937, which consisted of just 33 boat planes (this was the smallest of the PBY series), by the time production began, the model was already considered outdated and likely to be the last of the series. When the PBY-5 was commissioned, the development of the next series of hydroplanes intended to replace the PBY was already underway.
That's exactly what would've happened had the Germans not attacked Poland on Sept. 1st, 1939. This attack greatly increased the demand for patrol aircraft. Great
A Soviet PBY-5a Catalina
Britain immediately ordered 106 units of PBY-5 (given the name Catalina I), while England ordered 200 units of PBY-5 (Which were officially dubbed Catalina as well). Other countries to place orders included Australia, Canada, Holland, and France.
The PBY-5a variant had a hydraulically actuated, retractable tricycle landing gear, with main gear design for amphibious operation, a tail gun position, had replaced the bow single gun position with a bow "eyeball" turret equipped with twin .30 machine guns (some later units), improved armor, self-sealing fuel tanks, and more speed.
Skins[]
Sea camouflage 1940 with 1942 insignia: Destroy 90 ground units
Sea camouflage 1940
Tips From Pilots[]
- This aircraft operates best at higher altitudes. If you go lower than 2000 ft then you will die, because you are a bullet magnet. Occasionally you will actually manage to shoot down an attacking fighter before your wing gets sheared off.
- Beware of AAA fire even when at high altitudes. If you continue in a straight line over enemy territory then they can and will shoot your wings off given the time.
- The Catalina can actually take enough punishment to buy the time to go down to 500 ft and bomb some tanks.
- If you dive to a low altitude when you spawn, don't even think about trying to climb back to 3000 ft, the PBY-5a has a terrible rate of climb (especially with the heavier bombs). You're not going to get back up before the game ends.
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