The A-20 was designed to meet an Army Air Corps attack
specification in 1938 but was in use by the French and
British before delivery to US squadrons. Begun as a company-
funded venture, the Havoc eventually became the
most-produced Army Air Forces attack aircraft. It was also
the one of the first US combat aircraft to have a nosewheel.
On July 4, 1942, the first Army Air Forces bomber mission
over Western Europe was flown by US crews of the 15th Bomb
Squadron operating British Bostons IIIs (the Royal Air
Force's name for most of their Havocs) against airfields in
the Netherlands. The A-20 was used in every theater of the
war and was also flown by Australia, Brazil, South Africa,
and the Netherlands. The Soviets actually received more
A-20s than the US did, but little is known about the type's
operational career there. Some of the Dutch aircraft were
captured by the Japanese and appropriated into service. The
export version of the A-20C was the first aircraft to be
ordered under a lend-lease contract. The P-70 was a modified
A-20 fitted with an airborne intercept radar and four 20-mm
cannon in a belly package as an interim night fighter until
the P-61 was available. The F-3A was the photoreconnaissance
version.
| Contractors: |
Douglas Aircraft Co. |
| Boeing Aircraft Co. |
| Locations Built: |
Santa Monica, El Segundo, and Long Beach, Calif. |
| Seattle, Wash. |
| Number Built: (USAF) |
7,478 (approx 5,310) |
| First Flight: |
October 26, 1938 |
| First Flight Model: |
Company Model 7B |
| First Flight Location: |
El Segundo, Calif. |
| First Flight Pilot: |
Johnny Cable |
| Models/Variants: |
A-20, A-20A, B, C, G, H, J, K.
P-70 |
| Powerplant: |
Two Wright R-2600-23 Cyclone
14-cylinder radials of 1,600 hp each |
| Wingspan: |
61 ft 4 in. |
| Length: |
48 ft 0 in. |
| Height: |
17 ft 7 in. |
| Weight: |
27,200 lb gross |
| Armament: |
Eight .50-cal. machine
guns (six in the nose, two in the dorsal electric
turret), one .30-cal. machine gun in the ventral
opening and 2,000 lb of bombs internally and up to
2,000 lb of bombs externally on underwing
hardpoints |
| Accommodation: |
Crew of three (pilot, navigator, and gunner). |
| Cost: |
$74,000 |
| Max. Speed: |
339 mph |
| Range: |
1,090 mi. |
| Ceiling: |
25,800 ft. |
|
