PV VENTURA/HARPOON UNITS OF WORLD WAR 2 (Combat Aircraft No. 34)

Alan Carey

Osprey, 2002.

A development of the successful Lockheed family of 'medium twins' from the late 1930s, the PV Ventura/Harpoon patrol bomber saw widespread service with the US Navy, as well as with a handful of squadrons in the RAF's No 2 Group and Commonwealth units in the RAAF, RNZAF, and SAAF. The USAAF also made brief use of requisitioned Venturas that had originally been ordered by the RAF in the bomber training and coastal patrol roles. Built following a request by the British for an improved Hudson, the Ventura proved less than successful as a daylight bomber on the Channel front in 1942-43. However, its long range and impressive armament made it popular with the US Navy, which used it both as a bomber and as an anti-submarine platform. The final variant in the PV family was the larger PV-2 Harpoon, which entered service in the Pacific in early 1945. This volume details the aircraft's service with all wartime operators, and includes numerous first-hand accounts, 30 color profiles,scale drawings, and more than 100 black and white photographs of the Ventura and Harpoonin combat. 96 pages.