Grumman XSBF

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title: "Grumman XSBF" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["grumman-aircraft", "1930s-united-states-attack-aircraft", "single-engined-tractor-aircraft", "biplanes", "carrier-based-aircraft", "aircraft-first-flown-in-1936", "aircraft-with-retractable-conventional-landing-gear", "single-engined-piston-aircraft"] description: "1936 US scout bomber prototype biplane" topic_path: "geography/united-states" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grumman_XSBF" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0

::summary 1936 US scout bomber prototype biplane ::

::data[format=table title="Infobox aircraft"]

Field	Value
name	XSBF-1
image	Grumman XSBF-1.jpg
type	Scout bomber
manufacturer	Grumman
first_flight	18 February 1936
primary_user	United States Navy
number_built	1
developed_from	Grumman SF
military_serial	9996
fate	Crashed, 25 May 1939
::

|name =XSBF-1 |image = Grumman XSBF-1.jpg |caption = |type =Scout bomber |manufacturer =Grumman |designer = |first_flight =18 February 1936 |introduction = |retired = |primary_user =United States Navy |more_users = |produced = |number_built = 1 |developed_from= Grumman SF |variants = |developed_into = |military_serial = 9996 |fate = Crashed, 25 May 1939

The Grumman XSBF, also known by the company designation G-14, was an American biplane scout bomber developed by Grumman Aircraft for the United States Navy during the 1930s. Derived from Grumman's successful "Fifi" fighter, the aircraft was developed at a time when the biplane was giving way to the monoplane. In competition against other aircraft it proved to possess inferior performance in its intended role, and did not enter production. The sole prototype went on to serve as a liaison aircraft, as well as being used in experiments by NACA, before being destroyed in a crash in 1939.

Design and development

In late 1934, the U.S. Navy's Bureau of Aeronautics (BuAer) issued a specification for new scout bomber and torpedo bomber designs. Eight companies submitted 10 designs in response, evenly split between monoplanes and biplanes. Grumman, having successfully provided the FF and F2F fighters to the Navy, along with the SF scout, submitted an advanced development of the SF-2 in response to the specification's request for a 5000 lb aircraft capable of carrying a 500 lb bomb. Given the model number G-14 by Grumman, the aircraft received the official designation XSBF-1 by the Navy, and a contract for a single prototype was issued in March 1935.

The XSBF-1 was a two-seat biplane, featuring an enclosed cockpit, a fuselage of all-metal construction, and wings covered largely with fabric. Power was provided by a 650 hpPratt & Whitney R-1535 Twin Wasp Junior air-cooled radial engine driving with a variable-pitch propeller. Armament was planned to be two .30 in forward-firing M1919 Browning machine guns, one of which could be replaced by a .50 in M2 Browning; the prototype carried only a single gun. A single .30 in weapon was fitted in the rear cockpit for defense, and one 500 lb bomb to be carried in a launching cradle under the fuselage. The arrestor hook was carried in a fully enclosed position, while flotation bags were fitted in the wings in case the aircraft was forced to ditch. The landing gear of the XSBF-1 was similar to that of the F3F fighter.

Operational history

The XSBF-1—piloted by test pilot Bud Gillies—flew for the first time on December 24, 1935. Following initial testing, which found the aircraft to be reasonably faultless, the XSBF-1 was delivered to the U.S. Navy for evaluation in competition with two other biplanes submitted to the 1934 specification, the Great Lakes XB2G and the Curtiss XSBC-3. Unusually for biplanes, all three types possessed retractable landing gear. The evaluation showed that the design from Curtiss was superior to the Grumman and Great Lakes designs, and an order was placed for the Curtiss type, designated SBC-3 Helldiver in service, in August 1936.

With the competition lost, the development of the XSBF-1 came to an end; the sole prototype was assigned to Naval Air Station Anacostia, where it had been tested, for use as a liaison aircraft and hack. In addition, the XSBF was used by the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics' Langley Research Laboratory as part of the facility's work on aeronautical research. During its time at Anacostia, the aircraft was involved in two accidents, one on 5 September 1938 and the other on 25 May 1939. The second mishap—on May 25, 1939—resulted in the strike damage to the aircraft; the XSBF-1 was no longer considered worth returning to flight status, and the aircraft was officially stricken from the Navy inventory in July 1939.

The SBF-1 designation, unusually, was re-used by the Navy during World War II, assigned to SB2C Helldivers produced under license by Fairchild Aircraft.

Operators

;

• United States Navy

Specifications (XSBF-1)

|ref= |prime units?=imp |crew=2 (pilot and observer) |length m= |length ft=25 |length in=9 |upper span m= |upper span ft=34 |upper span in=6 |lower span m= |lower span ft=31 |lower span in=6 |height m= |height ft=11 |height in=3 |wing area sqm= |wing area sqft=310 |aspect ratio= |airfoil=Clark CHY |empty weight kg= |empty weight lb=3395 |gross weight kg= |gross weight lb=5002 |max takeoff weight kg= |max takeoff weight lb= |fuel capacity=130 USgal |eng1 number=1 |eng1 name=Pratt & Whitney R-1535-72 Twin Wasp Junior |eng1 type=radial engine |eng1 kw= |eng1 hp=650 |power original= |prop blade number=2 |prop name=Hamilton Standard variable-pitch |prop dia m= |prop dia ft= |prop dia in= |max speed kmh= |max speed mph=215 |max speed kts= |cruise speed kmh= |cruise speed mph= |cruise speed kts= |stall speed kmh= |stall speed mph=67 |stall speed kts= |never exceed speed kmh= |never exceed speed mph= |never exceed speed kts= |range km= |range miles=525 |range nmi= |combat range km= |combat range miles=688 |combat range nmi= |ferry range km= |ferry range miles= |ferry range nmi= |ceiling m= |ceiling ft=26000 |climb rate ms= |climb rate ftmin= |time to altitude= |wing loading kg/m2= |wing loading lb/sqft= |fuel consumption kg/km= |fuel consumption lb/mi= |power/mass= |guns=

• 1 × .30 in (7.62 mm) machine gun in cowling
• 1 × .30 in machine gun in rear cockpit |bombs=Up to 500 lb |avionics=

References

Notes

Citations

Bibliography

References

1. Dann 1996, p.20.
2. Doll 1992, p.4.
3. Smith 1982, p.38.
4. Friedman 1981, p.44.
5. Andrade 1979, p.222.
6. Heyman and Parsch 2004
7. Johnson 2008, p.304.
8. Friedman 1981, p.43.
9. Hansen 1987, p.488.
10. Bowers 1979, p.430.
11. Johnson 2008, p.302
12. Wagner 1968
13. [http://www.aerofiles.com/_grum.html Grumman], Aerofiles. Accessed 2011-01-18
14. Lednicer 2010

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