Douglas BTD Destroyer

The Douglas BTD Destroyer was an American carrier‑borne torpedo bomber prototype developed in the early 1940s by the Douglas Aircraft Company. Designed to replace the aging TBD Devastator, the Destroyer first flew on 4 April 1942 and featured a low‑wing, all‑metal monoplane layout with retractable landing gear and a large, enclosed cockpit for a pilot and three crew members. Powered by a Wright R-2600 Twin Cyclone radial engine delivering 1,700 hp, it could reach speeds of up to 300 mph and carry a payload of up to 2,000 pounds of torpedoes or bombs, as well as defensive .50‑caliber machine guns in dorsal and ventral positions. Despite promising performance, the program was cancelled in 1943 after only a handful of prototypes were built, largely because newer designs such as the Grumman TBF Avenger proved more suitable and production priorities shifted toward existing fighters. Although it never entered service, the BTD Destroyer contributed valuable aerodynamic and structural data that informed later carrier aircraft development, illustrating the rapid evolution of naval aviation during World II and underscoring Douglas’s role in advancing military aircraft technology.

Douglas

Douglas BTD Destroyer

Classification

Production & History

Design & Classification