Best flying boat of WWII?

Which was the best flying boat of WWII?

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I was always under the impression that the H8K had poor armour protection and was highly vulnerable to resultant fire risk. I've always had a soft spot for the PBM Mariner.
 
The Supermarine Walrus/ Seagull/ Sea Otter was also a welcome sight to many downed airmen.

I remember opening an Airfix Catalina box too as a kid, and my late grandfather suddenly sitting up and asking what it was. He was Merchant Navy post war and said his ship had been sunk (hit an uncleared mine if I remember correctly), and that he and his crew had been saved by 'a beautiful flying boat with huge glass blisters on the sides' - now sitting on my lap in model form.
He wasn't one for talking about himself, but told me that day that he had been VERY grateful to see that Cat that day, and never forgot it.
 
A couple of pics taken years ago of the last surviving Emily when it was at the Museum of Maritime Science in Tokyo - it's since been moved.

Very slender lady





 

A number of NEI Do 24 Aircraft arrived at Broome, Western Australia after the fall of the Dutch East Indies.
Here are some articles on the arrivals and massacre in subsquent attack by the IJN
Air Raids - Broome

http://www.cdu.edu.au/newsroom/origins/edition1-2008/battle-of-broome.pdf

Regards

Alan
 
I of course choose the Shorts Sunderland but, to be honest any Flying Boat
is beautiful in it's own right, and each has merits and bad points, just depends
on how you view those pros and cons.

To me the Sunderland is uno numero owing to the fact that I grew up on an
RNZAF Sunderland base, my Father took me on board them while in service
(and still on the water), I have seen them land/takeoff. So I guess I'm wearing
"Rose Coloured" glasses in that respect.
The WWII RNZAF also operated the PBY/PB2B-1 Catalina also, Supermarine Walrus and also for
a period the Short Singapore Mk III.
I would build a model of any of the above aircraft in the poll, simply because they are Flying Boats!

Regards

Alan
 

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Thanks! Of course, I had forgotten about those in service with the RAAF.
I can't recall off the top of my head, where those six part of the
ones that arrived at Broome or earlier/later arrivals?

Thanks

Alan
 
Dornier sold a bunch of seaplanes to foreign customers during the 1920s and 1930s. Dutch Do-24s from the East Indies wouldn't have been the only Dornier seaplanes flying with Allied nations. There would have been some Junkers transport aircraft too.
 
davebender said:
What's so unusual about the Do-24? To me it appears a well designed medium range flying boat.
Click to expand...

Geez Dave, Go have a look at what aircraft served in the RAAF during WWII. You might note that apart from three civil impressed Junkers early in the war, every other aircraft came from either America, Britain or Australia. So yes, the Dornier's were kinda an "odd man out" type of aircraft operated by the RAAF.
 
Hi Evan, if you're interested in building a model of the Emily, there was a monograph put out years ago about it with images taken of the interior and exterior when it was at the Science Museum; I can't remember the name of it, I did buy a copy but its in a box in the loft (!) but I'm sure if you look about you'll find it on the net somewhere.

As for Axis aircraft operated by the Allies, the RAF used a small number of ex-Norwegian He 115s for special ops stuff. There are next to no photos taken of the Heinkels in RAF service, but I've seen one of a couple of RAF officers on the shore whilst in the background can clearly be seen one of the Heinkels at rest. They were overhauled by Scottish Aviation and were used in the Med and I think in the North Sea too.
 
I went with the PBY. It was everywhere, flown by virtually all the allies in a variety of roles almost too lengthy to list and consequential in a number of major confrontations including the 1942 PI campaign, the Bismark chase, the IJN Indian Ocean excursion, the battle of Midway to name a few and especially the Black Cat Raiders doing interdiction of night-time IJ island resupply which was probably far more effective than many folks realize in terms of tonnage sank or numbers of ships destroyed.

Consolidated PBY Catalina - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

"from August 1943 to January 1944, Black Cats sank 112,700 tons of merchant shipping, damaged 47,000 tons, and damaged 10 Japanese warships."

By comparison, the SBD dive bomber accounted for over 300,000 tons of shipping. considering that the SBD accounted for ~130,000 tons in aircraft carriers and a cruiser at Midway alone, and another ~24,000 tons of aircraft carriers at Coral Sea and Eastern Solomons combined, it becomes clear that the anti-shipping yield of the PBY was comparable to the SBD certainly in sheer numbers if a bit less in non-major combatant tonnage.

What might it have accomplished with a better torpedo?
 
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