The Inconspicuous Banshee

The term “one of the unsung aircraft of WWII” is a sobriquet that, in my opinion, is often overused. Namely, most of the planes tagged as unsung/neglected/overlooked were aircraft either built in very few numbers, were ineffective (see: built in very few numbers), or worse, lousy at their job. For such machines, being labeled “unsung” would imply they had done things worth singing about but were somehow overlooked by ill-informed or biased critics.

Then we have the A-24 Banshee, an airplane that did plenty to sing about but is indeed as non-sung of a WWII aircraft as they come.

Based on the A-24’s record as a frontline combat aircraft, it should be very well known then and now: They were in service throughout America’s involvement in the war and every theater of operations. They were rugged, reliable, and effective. Lastly, they were built in sufficient quantities (almost 1,000) to make a difference.

Nevertheless, the A-24 is little known outside the world of WWII airplane aficionados/geeks. The reasons are simple: Mustangs, Lightnings, Thunderbolts, and other pursuit ships also made excellent multi-role fighter bombers and eventually took away much of Banshee’s reason for being. Furthermore, when discussing WWII light bombers, the Marauders, Havocs, and Mitchells will always come first to mind.  Moreover, all of these planes – fighters and bombers – were built in the tens of thousands. Yes, almost 1,000 Banshees were built, but that number pales compared to the volume of better-known aircraft manufactured during WWII. The A-24 – despite its effectiveness – was simply not going to be as famous as many other aircraft.

Unfortunately, the A-24 Banshee has never received the attention it deserves. Not only has it long been overshadowed by the other fighters and bombers of the Army Air Forces, it also had the misfortune to have a far more famous look-alike cousin, the preeminent ship-killing aircraft of WWII, the SBD Dauntless.