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Specs on a Catalina Flying Boat

Known as the PBY Catalina during World War II, the Catalina flying boat was the most common amphibious aircraft used by the American military during that era. The aircraft was used for patrols and reconnaissance as well as a bomber. The design was licensed to aircraft manufacturers in Russia, Canada and England. According to militaryfactory.com, the term Catalina is applied to the original design and all its subsequent modifications and manufacturers. Total production in all countries of licensed to produce the Catalina amounted to 4,000 aircraft. The website warbirdalley.com estimates about 30 remain in the air as of 2006.

Power Plants
- The Catalina is powered by two engines. Original designs used a 1,200-horsepower Pratt and Whitney radial piston engine. The air-cooled engines were affixed to the wing mounted above the fuselage of the aircraft.
Size
- The Catalina has a wing span of 104 feet, according to the website warbirdalley.com. The plane is about 64 feet and length and stands 20 feet tall when parked on its landing gear.
Capacity
- The Catalina was configured during World War II to carry a total of nine personnel, according to the website militaryfactory.com. The plane had a capacity of fuel and payload of about 15,000 lbs.
Performance
- Top speed for the Catalina was 179 mph. The plane, with standard fuel tanks, had a range of more than 2,500 miles, making it one of the more useful long-range bomber and patrol planes in the U.S. Navy arsenal. The Catalina had a rate of climb of about 525 feet per minute to a service ceiling of about 14,700 feet.
Weapons
- Normal armament included five machine guns with two mounted in a bow turret, two in blisters, glass bubbles, on the sides of the fuselage and one in the tail of the plane. The Catalina could carry up to 2 tons of bombs, torpedoes, mines or depth charges depending on the mission.

Aviation