Which U.S. Aircraft was the Most Dangerous to Fly?

Let’s take a look at the five most deadly aircraft to fly for the US Armed Forces during WWII and why each death trap deserved a spot on this list:

5. SB2C Helldiver

Considering its late-war design and production, coming in at number 5 is a somewhat surprising addition. While many would think the Helldiver is one of the most successful late-war aircraft, that isn’t necessarily the case. When the Helldiver entered combat, pilots disliked her. Many complained about her difficult handling characteristics and that she was underpowered. Many of these complaints stemmed from the fact that she had nearly impossible shoes to fill, like the smooth and easy-to-fly SBD flying before her.

Also, according to sources, the total loss percentage of the Navy and Marines on an average mission from all aircraft during the war was 1.54%. This means that about 1 1/2 % of aircraft would not return on a usual combat sortie. The SB2C tallied in at a loss rate of 2.58%, nearly double the Navy and Marine average. On the other hand, her predecessor, the SBD Dauntless, flew more than double the combat sorties during the war and only had a loss rate of 0.65%, making her the safest aircraft to fly during the entire conflict.

4. P-38 Lightning

During the war, the USAF loss rate was substantially lower than that of the US Navy and Marines mostly because there were fewer emergency runways in the Pacific. The Army loss rate was approximately 0.91% for all fighter planes used during the war.

The P-38 Lightning, with 129,000 combat sorties flown had a loss rate of 1.35%, the highest among any army aircraft fighter during the war by a substantial margin. This high loss rate can be attributed to a few different factors such as compressibility problems and tail shaking the Lightning faced early in her career. Perhaps, the P-38’s unique tail made it more susceptible to damage. However, there’s no doubt that the Lightning was a great fighter even though she had been a little more dangerous than many of the alternatives.

3. B-29 Superfortress

The B-29 was another case of rush production and technology that was likely too far ahead of its time. It faces many design issues and testing showed just how many problems technology could create. Her custom design engines were prone to catching fire and after that, the entire aircraft would take flame and go down in just a few minutes. This is directly reflected in her loss rate in the war.

Her final percentage after 33,000 sorties flown was 1.38% losing 450 aircraft during these missions, with only 147 being due to Japanese fighters and flak. That means a vast majority of lost aircraft are likely due to engine fires or mechanical issues.

2. F4F Wildcat

The runner-up for this list was an aircraft that was thrown into a conflict in which she was truly outmatched. This would be the F4F Wildcat. The F4F in 2,628 combat sorties had a racked a staggering loss rate of 9.55%. This means that during its average mission flown, roughly 10% would not come back.

This was because the aircraft was, in most aspects, outclassed by its main adversary, the Japanese Zero. In addition, at the time it saw the greatest use in the US Navy, American Intelligence had very little information on how to best fight against the Zero. Thus, high losses were an inevitability.

1. TBD Devastator

Nearly everything about this aircraft was a disaster. Strategy, design, and bad luck all plagued the Devastator, which has by far, the worst loss rate of the war. Since it was quickly replaced by the Avenger, the TBD only flew 82 combat sorties during WWII.

Despite only flying a handful of missions, the TBD saw a staggering loss rate of 24.18%. For perspective, with a loss rate like this given a force of 100 total aircraft flying combat missions, this unit would be brought down to just six operational aircraft in 10 sorties. What makes the TBD even more of a death trap than the F4f is that by nature, torpedo bombers had to fly extremely low altitudes making successful bailouts highly unlikely.