The Chance Vought Kingfisher was designed by Rex Beisel who later designed the F4-U Corsair navy fighter, it was primarily designed as a float plane but could also be fitted with a fixed wheeled undercarriage. The Kingfisher first flew in 1938 and entered service with the USN, initially the Kingfishers main role was providing over the horizon gun-fire spotting and search capability, it was Catapult-launched from battleships and cruisers and until the introduction of radar was highly valued in this role. In later years the Chance Vought Kingfisher was utilized as an observation and air-sea rescue plane. Although the Chance Vought Kingfisher was primarily used by the United States Navy a significant number of the 1,519 aircraft produced were used by the Royal Navy, Royal Australian Air Force and the Soviet Navy. It is of note that the last military use of the Kingfisher was by Cuba in 1959. Chance Vought Kingfisher OS2U-3 Specifications: Crew: Pilot and observer Length: 33 ft 10 in (10.31 m) Wingspan: 35 ft 11 in (10.95 m) Height: 15 ft 1.5 in (4.61 m) Empty weight: 4,123 lb (1,870 kg) Max takeoff weight: 6,000 lb (2,721 kg) Engine: Single 450 hp (336 kW) Pratt & Whitney R-985-AN-2 radial engine Maximum speed: 164 mph (264 km/h) Range: 805 mi (1,296 km) Service ceiling: 13,000 ft (3,960 m)
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