The U.S. Navy built 217 PB2Y Coronados as heavy patrol bombers. At a quoted 151 miles per hour, the aircraft had a range of roughly 930 nautical miles, markedly less than the PBY Catalina. It could carry about 12,000 pounds of bombs or two Mark 13 torpedoes. Those figures made the Coronado a powerful strike aircraft, while its shorter endurance limited its value for searching a wide ocean. The comparison with the Catalina explains why maritime reconnaissance and maritime attack could require different aircraft even when both carried the patrol label.
Notable Point · 9:56-11:55
PB2Y Coronado: payload over reconnaissance range
The PB2Y Coronado is compared with the PBY Catalina to show the trade between a heavy bomb load and the endurance needed for wide-area scouting.