PBY-5A Late (France)
| This page is about the premium bomber PBY-5A Late (France). For other versions, see PBY-5 (Family). |
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Contents
Description
In the early 1940s, France placed an order for 30 PBY-5 Catalinas soon after the British placed their first production order for the aircraft. However, the delivery was never fulfilled since France capitulated before the aircraft could be delivered. France also acquired 3 PBY-5A Catalinas from the Royal Canadian Air Force to serve in the Caribbean since their islands lacked proper airfields. These PBY-5As lacked the armament of the Catalina and were used in civil roles, mainly moving passengers.
Introduced in Update "La Royale", the French PBY-5A behaves just like its American counterpart, offering a very large bomb load at the cost of speed, manoeuvrability, and survivability for its BR. It can be used with effectiveness in all gamemodes, air, ground and naval battles thanks to its versatility. Its bomb load is capable of destroying several ground targets with carpet bombing or destroying bases in air battles, meanwhile it has access to torpedoes for naval combat.
General info
Flight performance
| Characteristics | Max speed (km/h at 2,135 m) |
Max altitude (metres) |
Turn time (seconds) |
Rate of climb (metres/second) |
Take-off run (metres) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| AB | RB | AB | RB | AB | RB | |||
| Stock | 259 | 249 | 4420 | 31.0 | 31.9 | 2.6 | 2.6 | 364 |
| Upgraded | 310 | 282 | 29.1 | 30.0 | 8.7 | 5.1 | ||
Details
| Features | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Combat flaps | Take-off flaps | Landing flaps | Air brakes | Arrestor gear |
| X | X | X | X | X |
| Limits | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wings (km/h) | Gear (km/h) | Flaps (km/h) | Max Static G | |||
| Combat | Take-off | Landing | + | - | ||
| 0 | 450 | N/A | N/A | N/A | ~3 | ~3 |
| Optimal velocities (km/h) | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Ailerons | Rudder | Elevators | Radiator |
| < 220 | < 220 | < 230 | > 312 |
Survivability and armour
Much like the American, British and Soviet PBYs that came before, the PBY-5A (Late) features surprisingly good survivability, owing to the large empty spaces in the hull and armour plates behind the pilots, allowing it to soak up lots of LMG and even some weaker HMG fire. The Wing-mounted fuel tanks are a weak spot, as a number of good incendiaries in them will send you on a trip to the ground in flames.
- 9.5 mm steel plates behind pilots and in front of nose gunner
- 6.35 mm armour behind tail gunner
- 6.35 mm and 4.7 mm steel plates in wing pylon
Modifications and economy
2 × 30 / 60 / 110 % 2 × 106 / 106 / 106 % | Flight performance | Survivability | Weaponry | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
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Armaments
Suspended armament
The PBY-5A Late (France) can be outfitted with the following ordnance:
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 |  | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 100 lb AN-M30A1 bombs | 1 | 1 | 6* | 6* | 1 | 1 | |
| 500 lb AN-M64A1 bombs | 1 | 1* | 1* | 1 | |||
| 1,000 lb AN-M65A1 bombs | 1 | 1* | 1* | 1 | |||
| 2,216 lb Mk.13-6 Case torpedoes | 1 | 1 | |||||
| 2,216 lb Mk.13-6 torpedoes | 1 | 1 | |||||
| Type A Mark I mines | 1 | 1* | 1* | 1 | |||
| Maximum permissible loadout weight: 2,200 kg Maximum permissible wing load: 1,100 kg Maximum permissible weight imbalance: 800 kg | |||||||
| * Marked ordnance on hardpoints 2/5 cannot be equipped in conjunction with 100 lb bombs on hardpoints 3/4 respectively | |||||||
| Default weapon presets | |
|---|---|
| |
The PBY-5A features a massive payload: a whopping 4 x Type A Mark I mines (that function on the ground like 2,000 lb bombs). The French PBY-5A features custom payloads, meaning that you can generate your own larger (or smaller) payloads for certain scenarios (e.g. in AB, loading the maximum payload of 4 x Type A Mark Is + 12 x 100 lb bombs, although whether or not they are worth the effort is up to you, as they will slow down the already slow PBY).
Defensive armament
The PBY-5A Late (France) is defended by:
- 1 x 12.7 mm M2 Browning machine gun, 2 x beam turrets (478 rpg)
- 2 x 7.62 mm Browning machine guns, nose turret (1,050 rpg = 2,100 total)
- 1 x 7.62 mm Browning machine gun, ventral turret (500 rpg)
The armament in the PBY-5A (Late) is a significant step up. For starters, the nose gun has been switched out for a twin .30 cal turret, making the frontal arc much more well-defended. The biggest difference, however, is that the two beam turret .50 cals are now provided with late-war turret belts, which means access to the infamous M20 API-T rounds. Use of the Universal belts provides an API/I/API/API-T combination, making the turrets even more capable of shredding the biplanes and early monoplanes found at 1.7. Use manual control when enemies get up close, as you can bag a surprising number of air kills this way, even allowing you to act as an ad-hoc bomber hunter by flying alongside enemy bombers and using the .50 cals to spray them.
Usage in battles
Although the PBY-5A technically is a medium bomber, it is best to fly high, as flying low will make you an easy target for fighters and AA. The best tactic for fending off enemy fighters is to use the rudders to direct one of the side gunners towards the attacking plane. It is also smart to use the guns manually in this situation, as the AI is often very inaccurate and will refuse to fire beyond a certain distance. In the worst case scenarios, a dive can be used to greatly increase the plane's speed to get to attack a ground target before a pursuing enemy fighter shoots it down.
The plane is quite unmanageable, and its wings are very weak, being able to snap just by turning just a little too tight at higher speeds in realistic battles. It's also a huge target. Although the PBY-5A Catalina is slow and clunky, it offers a heavy payload that is sure to be a game changer if used properly.
The armament on the PBY-5 Catalina is what makes up for its clunky movement. The plane is capable of carrying a heavy payload of bombs or torpedoes and has defensive gunners on all sides. The two side gunners have .50 cal machine guns, making it more than capable of destroying enemy aircraft that stay within their range.
Pros and cons
Pros:
- Good payload
- Good rear defensive armament with a high coverage angle
- Durable
- Can capture points in naval battles
Cons:
- Very bad at climbing
- Slow top speed
History
Media
- Skins
See also
- Related development
External links
Paste links to sources and external resources, such as:
- topic on the official game forum;
- other literature.
| Consolidated Aircraft Corporation | |
|---|---|
| Bombers | PBY-5 Catalina · PBY-5A Catalina |
| PB4Y-2 | |
| B-24D-25-CO | |
| Export | ▄Catalina Mk IIIa · ▂PBY-5A Catalina · ▄PBY-5A Late · ␗PB4Y-2 · ▄PB4Y-2 |
| France bombers | |
|---|---|
| Farman | F.222.2 · N.C.223.3 |
| Latécoère | Late 298D |
| Potez | Potez 633 |
| Liore et Olivier | LeO 451 early · LeO 451 late |
| Bloch | M.B.174A-3 · M.B.162 · M.B.175T |
| American | V-156-F · Martin 167-A3 · ▄A-35B · ▄SB2C-5 · B-26C · ▄PBY-5A Late · ▄PB4Y-2 |
| British | Lancaster MR.7 |
| France premium aircraft | |
|---|---|
| Fighters | D.371 H.S.9 · Pallier's D.510 · ▄P-39Q-25 · ▄P-40F-5 Lafayette · ▄P-47D-22-RE · F-6C-10-NA |
| M.B.152C1 · ▄Yak-3 · Challe's ▄Yak-9T · NC.900 · S.O.8000 Narval | |
| Jet fighters | Milan · Mirage F1C-200 |
| Strike aircraft | ▄AD-4NA · F-84F IAF |
| Bombers | Late 298D · ▄PBY-5A Late |
| Jet bombers | Vautour IIA IDF/AF · S.O.4050 Vautour IIN |
