Douglas XTB2D Skypirate

The Douglas XTB2D Skypirate, also known as the Devastator II, was a torpedo bomber intended for the Navy Midway- and Essex-class aircraft carriers, being too large for earlier decks. Douglas designers Ed Heinemann and Bob Donovan began work in 1939 on a proposal to replace the TBD Devastator, and in October 1943 Douglas received a contract for two prototypes. The aircraft was to be powered by a Pratt and Whitney R-4360 Wasp Major driving contra-rotating propellers and would have been the largest carrierborne aircraft at the time, carrying four times the weapon load of the Grumman TBF Avenger. The first prototype flew on 13 March 1945, but with the end of the war the type was deemed unnecessary and cancelled after two prototypes were completed.