DB-7 (Great Britain)

▄DB-7

▄DB-7

Britain

II Rank

Battle rating:

AB	RB	SB
2.3	2.3	2.3

Class:

PREMIUM

Frontline bomber

Bomber

Purchase:Bundle or Gift

Show in game

This page is about the aircraft DB-7 (Great Britain). For other uses, see DB-7 (Disambiguation)

Description

The DB-7 (Great Britain) in the garage

The ▄DB-7 is a Rank II gift British bomber with a battle rating of 2.3 (AB/RB/SB). This aircraft has been in the game since the start of the Open Beta Test prior to Update 1.29.

General info

Flight Performance

Characteristics
Stock
Max Speed (km/h at 2,896 m)		Max altitude (meters)	Turn time (seconds)		Rate of climb (meters/second)		Take-off run (meters)
AB	RB		AB	RB	AB	RB
476	462	7200	28.9	29.7	9.5	9.4	550
Upgraded
Max Speed (km/h at 2,896 m)		Max altitude (meters)	Turn time (seconds)		Rate of climb (meters/second)		Take-off run (meters)
AB	RB		AB	RB	AB	RB
505	491	7200	27.2	28.0	13.5	11.5	550

Details

Features
Combat flap	Take-off flap	Landing flap	Air brakes	Arrestor gear
✓	✓	✓	X	X

Limits
Wing-break speed (km/h)	Gear limit (km/h)	Combat flap (km/h)	Max Static G
			+	-
665	296	520	~9	~3

Optimal velocities
Ailerons (km/h)	Rudder (km/h)	Elevators (km/h)	Radiator (km/h)
< 260	< 360	< 343	> 270

Compressor (RB/SB)
Setting 1
Optimal altitude	100% Engine power	WEP Engine power
3,090 m	1,050 hp	N/A

Survivability and armour

• 12.7 mm steel in front of cockpit
• 8 mm steel lower side of cockpit
• 9.5mm steel pilots seat
• 12.7mm steel below, behind and in front of the rear gunner
• No armour glazing
• Critical components located in the front and wings of aircraft (fuel, pilot, engine, controls)

Armaments

Offensive armament

The DB-7 (Great Britain) is armed with:

• 4 × 7.5 mm MAC 1934 machine guns, nose-mounted (500 RPG = 2,000 total)

Suspended armament

The DB-7 (Great Britain) can be outfitted with the following ordinance"

• 4 × 500 lb AN-M64A1 bombs

Defensive armament

The DB-7 (Great Britain) is defended by:

• 1 × 7.5 mm MAC 1934 machine gun, dorsal turret (500 RPG)
• 1 × 7.5 mm MAC 1934 machine gun, ventral turret (500 RPG)

Usage in the battles

The DB-7 is a very fast aircraft for its rank, this being coupled with its Battle Rating of 2.3 means it can often outrun most aircraft it faces in level flight. The DB-7 has four 7.5mm light machine guns in the nose that are fixed and controlled by the pilot. Two additional guns are located in turrets facing the rear, one above and one below the fuselage. The upper turret has better coverage than the lower. Although the defensive armament may seem underwhelming, they are more than capable of dealing with planes of a lower BR. They can still be made to work against higher level planes if AP-T or AP belts are used. As always, one should aim for the pursuer's engine.

Recommended belt for the offensive weaponry is the Tracers belt (IT). For the defensive weaponry, the AP-T belt (IT/AP) is the best choice

The good level speed allow for hit and run tactics, however some dedicated fighter pilots may choose to hunt you down regardless. In such cases try to run for allied fighters and drag the enemy behind. Alternatively the superior climb rate in comparison to other bombers allows to climb above one's allies which subsequently act as meat shield i.e. other bombers are easier targets. Although this can turn into a false sense of security. Stay vigilant.

It is best to use the plane as a fast attacker. Keep your altitude and proceed to bombing points. Once your payload is delivered, you can engage enemy fighters which should still be climbing to reach your altitude while being careful not to become outnumbered or dive towards friendly forces in order gain cover. Few are the planes which will be able to keep up with you if you choose the latter. If you are in a map with lots of vital soft targets, you can always engage those. One has to keep in mind that doing so will leave him exposed to enemy interceptors. If you decide to engage enemy fighters, you will find that the DB-7 is quite manoeuvrable for it's size. Always keep an eye on your speed and avoid depleting too much of it in case you need to flee from the battle. The DB-7 can soak up a lot on LMG fire and return to base. The radial engines can also take a lot of punishment before going out. If the rest of it's fuselage is not damaged, the aircraft can easily fly on one engine. HMGs and canons will quickly render the plane uncontrollable.

While a lot of the above is true, it is much more important to stick with friendly forces since one can easily become outnumbered if on his own near the enemy's spawn point.

Manual Engine Control

MEC elements
Mixer	Pitch	Radiator			Supercharger	Turbocharger
		Oil	Water	Type
Controllable	Controllable	Not controllable	Controllable	Combined	Not ontrollable	Not controllable

Modules

Tier	Flight performance		Survivability	Weaponry
I	Fuselage Repair	Radiator
II		Compressor	Airframe
III	Wings Repair	Engine
IV		Engine Injection	Cover

The plane comes with all modules unlocked except mark of distinction which allows you to use all 4 decal slots without a premium account. It is recommended to upgrade the crew qualification and have a second trained gunner as the improves the plane further.

Pros and cons

Pros:

• Fast for its rank and role.
• Decent bomb load. (4 × 500lb)
• Has offensive armaments. (4 × 7.5mm machine guns)
• Good amount of rounds for the offensive armament. (2000 rounds, 500 per gun)
• Great RP rewards.
• Efficient at researching planes from Rank 1 to 3.
• Can soak up damage from and return to base with an engine out.
• Can go up to 434 Mph or 700 kph IAS in a dive and maintain control.

Cons:

• Armament, both offensive and defensive, can become inadequate tougher enemies.
• Prone to fires.

History

The Douglas DB-7 (DB-7B3) was a twin-engine light bomber/ground-attack aircraft of all metal construction. Jack Northrop started to develop this aircraft as early as 1936, on his own personal initiative. When, in 1937, the United States Army Air Corps command formulated its requirements for a next-generation ground-attack aircraft/bomber, the draft design of the Model 7A multi-purpose aircraft (which would combine the functions of a light bomber, a ground-attack aircraft, and a reconnaissance aircraft) was already complete.

In the meantime, the small Northrop Aviation Corporation was taken over by the Douglas Aircraft Company. Since the USAAC had not made their final choice about their main bomber, the Douglas Aircraft Company continued working on the aircraft, despite having no guarantee of its profitability. The first Model 7B prototype conducted its first test flight on October 26th 1938. 

The French Purchasing Commission took an interest in the new aircraft and placed an order for a total of 100 aircraft in February 1939. The Model 7B prototype aircraft was altered at the customer's request: the modified aircraft, designated the DB-7 (Douglas Bomber 7), made its first flight on August 17th 1939. The first production bomber was delivered to the French in October 1939.

The production DB-7 was equipped with 1,000 hp Pratt & Whitney R-1830-SC3-G radial air-cooled engines with Hamilton Standard Hydromatic 23E50 three-bladed variable-pitch metal propellers.

The aircraft’s defensive armament consisted of six 7.5 mm Chatellerault MAC 1934 machine guns of French manufacture. Four of these belt-fed machine guns, with 500 rounds each, were located in the nose section on each side of the navigator's glazed cockpit. One machine gun was mounted in the radio operator/gunner's cockpit in the rear upper gun position, and another one in the lower hatch. Both machine guns had 500 rounds each (5 pan magazines with 100 rounds). The DB-7 had an enlarged bomb bay, with its payload increased to an 800 kg capacity.

The American aircraft were designated DB-7B3 (B3 meaning ""three-seat bomber"") by the French Air Force. In the summer of 1940, DB-7s participated in combat operations in Southern France, where they suffered serious losses assaulting German tank columns without fighter cover. After the French surrender, these aircraft were used in the service of the Vichy French government who collaborated with Nazi Germany. In November 1942 the same aircraft were used to strike the British-American landing forces in Algeria during Operation Torch.

Media

An excellent addition to the article will be video guides, as well as screenshots from the game and photos.

Read also

Links to the articles on the War Thunder Wiki that you think will be useful for the reader, for example,

• reference to the series of the aircraft;
• links to approximate analogues of other nations and research trees.

Sources

Paste links to sources and external resources, such as:

• topic on the official game forum;
• page on aircraft encyclopedia;
• other literature.