The Grumman F2F was a single-engine,

biplane A biplane is a fixed-wing aircraft with two main wings stacked one above the other. The first powered, controlled aeroplane to fly, the Wright Flyer, used a biplane wing arrangement, as did many aircraft in the early years of aviation. While ...

fighter aircraft Fighter aircraft (early on also ''pursuit aircraft'') are military aircraft designed primarily for air-to-air combat. In military conflict, the role of fighter aircraft is to establish air supremacy, air superiority of the battlespace. Domina ...

with retractable undercarriage, serving as the standard fighter for the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the naval warfare, maritime military branch, service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is the world's most powerful navy with the largest Displacement (ship), displacement, at 4.5 millio ...

between 1936 and 1940. It was designed for both carrier- and land-based operations.

Design and development

Grumman's success with the two-seat FF-1, which was significantly faster than even the single-seat fighters of its time, resulted in a contract for the single-seat XF2F-1. Armed with two machine guns above the cowl, the new design also incorporated watertight compartments to reduce weight and improve survivability in the event of a water landing.Cacutt 1989, pp. 155–162. The prototype first flew on 18 October 1933, equipped with the experimental XR-1534-44 Twin Wasp Junior

radial engine The radial engine is a reciprocating engine, reciprocating type internal combustion engine, internal combustion engine configuration in which the cylinder (engine), cylinders "radiate" outward from a central crankcase like the spokes of a wheel. ...

, and reached a top speed of at – faster than the FF-1 at the same altitude. Maneuverability also proved superior to the earlier two-seat aircraft. F2F-1s VF-2 NAN11-80

Operational history

The Navy ordered 54 F2F-1 fighters on 17 May 1934, with the first aircraft delivered 19 January 1935. One additional aircraft (BuNo 9997) was ordered to replace one which crashed on 16 March 1935, bringing the total to 55, with the final F2F-1 delivered on 2 August 1935. The F2F-1 had a relatively long service life for the time, serving in front-line squadrons from 1935 to late

1939 This year also marks the start of the World War II, Second World War, the largest and deadliest conflict in human history. Events Events related to World War II have a "WWII" prefix. January * January 1 ** Coming into effect in Nazi Ger ...

, when squadrons began to receive the F3F-3 as a replacement. By September 1940, the F2F had been completely replaced in fighter squadrons and was relegated to training and utility duties. The last F2F-1s were stricken from the list of naval aircraft in early 1943.

Variants

;XF2F-1 :United States Navy designation for the Grumman Model G-8 prototype with a XR-1534-44 Twin Wasp Junior

, one built ;F2F-1 :Production variant with a R-1535-72 Twin Wasp Junior radial engine, 55 built

Operators

; *

VF-2B Fighting Squadron 6 or VF-6 was an aviation unit of the United States Navy. Originally established as Combat Squadron 4 on 23 September 1921, it was redesignated VF-2 on 1 July 1922, redesignated VF-2B on 19 March 1923, redesignated VF-6B on 1 Jan ...

** VF-3B ** VF-5B ** VB-5B **

VF-2 VF-2 could refer to one of a following US Navy squadrons that carried the designation: * VF-2 (1927–1942) * VF-2 (1943–1945) *VFA-2 Strike Fighter Squadron 2 (VFA-2) also known as the "Bounty Hunters" is a United States Navy F/A-18F Super H ...

** VF-5 ** VF-7 ** NAS Seattle ** NAS Coco Solo **

NAS Alameda Naval Air Station Alameda (NAS Alameda) was a United States Navy Naval Air Station mostly in Alameda, California, with a slight portion of it within San Francisco proper, on San Francisco Bay. NAS Alameda had two runways: 13–31 measuring and ...

** NAS Pearl Harbor *

United States Marine Corps The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines or simply the Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is responsible for conducting expeditionar ...

** VF-4M ** VMF-2

Specifications (Grumman F2F-1)

References

Citations

Bibliography

* Cacutt, Len, ed. “Grumman Single-Seat Biplane Fighters.” ''Great Aircraft of the World''. London: Marshall Cavendish, 1989. . * * *

External links

{{Grumman aircraft F02F 1930s United States fighter aircraft Single-engined tractor aircraft Biplanes Carrier-based aircraft Aircraft first flown in 1933 Aircraft with retractable conventional landing gear Single-engined piston aircraft