The Consolidated Model 28, more commonly known as the PBY Catalina (United States Navy designation), is an American flying boat and amphibious aircraft designed by Consolidated Aircraft in the 1930s and 1940s. In U.S. Army service, it was designated as the OA-10 and in Canadian service as the Canso, and it later received the NATO reporting name Mop.Jane's All the World's Aircraft 1955-56, p. 188. It was one of the most widely used seaplanes of World War II. Catalinas served with every branch of the United States Armed Forces as well as in the air forces and navies of many other nations.
The Catalina originated in 1933 through a United States Navy (USN) requirement for a patrol bomber seaplane capable of traversing substantial distances across open ocean to disrupt enemy supply lines. Consolidated responded with the Model 28, a prototype of which being ordered as the XP3Y-1. On 21 March 1935, the XP3Y-1 made its maiden flight; service trials commenced soon thereafter. It was rebuilt with more powerful engines and a new tail unit to become the XPBY-1. Production Catalinas were first delivered to the USN in October 1936; that same year, a first of several additional production orders was received. During the late 1930s, the type became a key element of the USN's long-distance logistics across the Pacific region. In 1939, production of the Catalina was restarted by Consolidated.
Throughout World War II, Catalinas were widely used across numerous theatres, including the North Atlantic, the South Atlantic, the Mediterranean Sea, the Philippines, the Dutch East Indies, Australia, and the Pacific Ocean. In one high-profile incident on 26 May 1941, an RAF Coastal Command Catalina located the German battleship Bismarck.Popular Mechanics February 1943, pp. 19-20. On 10 December 1941, a U.S. Navy Catalina was credited with the first air-to-air "kill" of a Japanese aircraft. In June 1942, a Catalina patrol spotted the Japanese Combined Fleet approaching Midway Island, initiating the Battle of Midway. In the late 1940s, most of the flying boat models of the Catalina were withdrawn while the amphibian models would see longer service.
While considered to be obsolete during the Cold War, its role having been increasingly subsumed by a new generation of land-based aircraft, several operators elected to continue to make use of the type. In June 1952, a Swedish Air Force Catalina (Swedish designation "TP 47") was shot down by Soviet MiG 15 fighters over the Baltic Sea in what became known as the Catalina Affair. The last military-operated Catalina was withdrawn in the 1980s. Several ex-military Catalinas have been flown by civil operators, including for air racing.
Design and development Background Development of the PBY Catalina can be traced back to the early 1930s, a time in which American dominance in the Pacific Ocean began to face competition from Imperial Japan. As part of its response to a potential conflict in this theatre, the United States Navy (USN) opted to invest considerable resources towards the development of long-range flying boats, which had the advantage of being able to land in any suitable waters. Naval doctrine of the 1930s and 1940s used flying boats in a wide variety of roles that today are handled by multiple special-purpose aircraft. In 1931, the service had procured both the Consolidated P2Y and Martin P3M to perform this role, however, both aircraft were relatively underpowered and hampered by inadequate range and limited payloads.
Accordingly, in October 1933, the USN contracted Consolidated, Martin, and Douglas to build competing prototypes to meet its needs for a new patrol bomber flying boat.Cacutt 1989, pp. 187–194. These prototypes were designed to provide a relatively long operational range, which was intended to be used to locate and attack enemy transport ships across the sea to disrupt enemy supply lines. Both Consolidated and Douglas delivered single prototypes of their new designs, the XP3Y-1 and XP3D-1, respectively. The XP3Y-1 was an evolution of the company's earlier XPY-1 design, which had originally competed unsuccessfully for the P3M contract two years earlier and of the XP2Y design that the USN had authorized for a limited production run. Although the Douglas-built competitor proved to be a satisfactory design, the USN opted for Consolidated's proposal, largely due to its projected cost being only $90,000 per aircraft.
In terms of its general configuration, the XP3Y-1 (which received the internal designation of Model 28 from the company) featured a parasol wing with external bracing struts and mounted on a pylon over the fuselage. It was equipped with retractable stabilizing floats at its wingtip; when retracted in flight, these floats formed streamlined wingtips; Consolidated had licensed this feature from the British Saunders-Roe company. While its two-step hull design was broadly similar to that of the P2Y, the XP3Y-1 was provisioned with a cantilever cruciform tail unit in place of the earlier strut-braced twin tail arrangement. Furthermore, cleaner aerodynamics resulted in the XP3Y-1 possessing better performance to the firm's earlier designs. It featured all-metal construction and was covered by stressed-skin aluminum sheet, except for the ailerons and trailing edge of the wing, which were fabric covered instead.Popular Mechanics February 1943, pp. 21-22.
The XP3Y-1 was initially powered by a pair of Pratt & Whitney R-1830-54 Twin Wasp radial engines mounted on the wing's leading edge. Armament comprised four Browning AN/M2 machine guns and up to of bombs, the latter of which were carried underneath the wings.Popular Mechanics February 1943, p. 23. It was also provisioned with crew amenities, including a galley.Popular Mechanics February 1943, p. 22. Via the use of beaching gear, the type could be operated from both land and sea as required.Popular Mechanics February 1943, p. 20.
Into flight On 21 March 1935, the XP3Y-1 conducted its maiden flight.Wegg 1990, p. 70. Shortly thereafter, it was transferred to the USN for service trials. The XP3Y-1 demonstrated a significant performance improvement over previous patrol flying boats, leading to the service requesting further development to permit the prospective production aircraft to better perform the patrol bomber mission. Accordingly, in October 1935, the prototype was returned to Consolidated for modification, after which it was redesignated XPBY-1. Changes included the installation of R-1830-64 engines and the implementation of redesigned vertical tail surfaces, which resolved a problem with the tail becoming submerged on takeoff, which had made lift-off impossible under some conditions. The XPBY-1 made its maiden flight on 19 May 1936, during which a record non-stop distance flight of was achieved.
The XPBY-1 was delivered to VP-11F in October 1936. The second squadron to be equipped was VP-12, which received the first of its aircraft in early 1937. The second production order was placed on 25 July 1936. Over the next three years, the design was gradually developed further and successive models were introduced. In 1939, in spite of some assessors considering the type to be obsolete, Consolidated restarted the production line.Popular Mechanics February 1943, pp. 20-21.
PBN Nomad The Naval Aircraft Factory (NAF) performed significant modifications to the PBY design, many of which would have significantly interrupted deliveries had they been incorporated on the Consolidated production lines.Bridgeman 1946, p. 247. The resulting aircraft, officially referred to as the PBN-1 Nomad, featured several key differences from the basic PBY. The most obvious upgrades were to the bow, which was sharpened and extended by two feet, and to the tail, which was enlarged and featured a new shape. Other improvements included larger fuel tanks to increase range by 50 percent and reinforced wings that permitting a 2,000 lb (908 kg) increase in gross takeoff weight. An auxiliary power unit was also installed, along with an improved electrical system, and the weapons were upgraded with continuous-feed mechanisms.
After the NAF transferred ownership via Project Zebra (1944–1945), 138 of the 156 PBN-1s produced served with the Soviet Navy. The remaining 18 were assigned to training units at NAS Whidbey Island and the Naval Air Facility in Newport, Rhode Island. Aviation Enthusiast Corner. Retrieved: 14 November 2017. Later, improvements found in the PBN, such as the larger tail, were incorporated into the amphibious PBY-6A.
Naming and designation The aircraft eventually bore the name Catalina after Santa Catalina Island, California; the name was coined in November 1941, as the United Kingdom ordered their first 30 aircraft.Creed 1985, p. 48.
The designation "PBY" was determined in accordance with the U.S. Navy aircraft designation system of 1922; PB represented "Patrol Bomber" and Y was the code assigned to Consolidated Aircraft as its manufacturer. Catalinas built by other manufacturers for the U.S. Navy were designated according to different manufacturer codes, thus Canadian Vickers-built examples were designated PBV, Boeing Canada examples were PB2B (a Boeing PBB already existed), Consolidated Vultee examples were PB4 and NAF examples were PBN. In accordance with contemporary British naming practice of giving seaplanes service names after coastal port towns, Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) examples were named Canso, for the town of that name in Nova Scotia.Gunston 1986, p. 63. The United States Army Air Forces and later the United States Air Force used the designation OA-10. U.S. Navy Catalinas used in the Pacific against the Japanese for night operations were painted black overall; as a result, these aircraft were sometimes referred to locally as "Black Cats".
Possible revival In July 2023, a company called Catalina Aircraft, current holder of the type certificates for the Catalina, announced an intent to build the Next Generation Amphibious Aircraft (NGAA) Catalina II, a new aircraft on the basic design principles of the original Catalina, but using turboprop engines and other modern aviation tools. Deliveries were projected to commence by 2029. By 2026, the project was moving forward as the Catalina SPAR, being the overall aircraft title for multiple variants with separate names (e.g., Catalina Frigate for passenger/cargo, Catalina Kestrel for maritime patrol, and Catalina Condor for firefighting). In April 2026, the company was reportedly in the process of setting up a facility in Vero Beach, Florida to manufacture the Catalina II. Hong Kong-based company Pan American Airways System (PAAS) announced in July 2026 that they intend to order up to 46 Catalina II for luxury flights across Africa.
Operational history Pre-war activities During the late 1930s, USN Catalinas started to semi-frequently fly non-stop between San Diego and Honolulu as well as between San Diego and Coco Solo, both routes being in excess of 2,500 miles. These flights, used to ferry personnel and equipment, reportedly carried in excess of 1,200 men prior to 1 January 1940.Popular Mechanics February 1943, p. 21.
Roles in World War II
The PBY was the most numerous aircraft of its kind in the conflict, with around 3,300 examples built. During World War II, PBYs were used in anti-submarine warfare, patrol bombing, convoy escort, search-and-rescue missions (especially air-sea rescue), and cargo transport. The type operated in nearly all operational theatres of World War II. The Catalina served with distinction and played a prominent and invaluable role in the war against Japan.