Stripes Today

Sunken Devastator torpedo bomber from WWII may become first of its kind in a museum

A wrecked, World War II-era military propeller plane sits on the ocean floor covered in sand and barnacles.

The largely intact wreck of Devastator torpedo bomber BuNo 1515, ditched by its crew on Feb. 1, 1942, lies on the floor of a Marshall Islands lagoon in this undated photograph.

Air/Sea Heritage Foundation

By Wyatt Olson | Stars and Stripes March 19, 2026

The Devastator torpedo bomber’s role in World War II was short-lived but historic.

U.S. Navy pilots flew the TBD-1 Devastator against the Japanese in the 1942 Battles of Coral Sea and Midway. Developed by Douglas Aircraft Co. in 1937, the Devastator was the Navy’s first carrier-based plane with an enclosed cockpit.

The 129 Devastators produced by Douglas, however, were already outdated and quickly replaced by the speedier, nimbler Grumman TBF Avenger.