The Airplane that Was Going to Change Everything

In the midst of the 1950s Cold War, the U.S. Navy set its sights on a radical transformation of naval aviation. The star of this high-stakes endeavor was the XF2Y-1 Sea Dart, a seaplane with a mission: to shatter the norms of carrier-based aircraft and touch the edge of supersonic speeds.
Conceived by Convair’s visionary minds, this delta-winged marvel sliced through conventions with its unique hydro-skis, designed to glide over water and then lift into the air with an exhilarating rush. It was more than an aircraft; it was a bold statement in engineering, intended to make water runways obsolete and to outmaneuver the enemy with unmatched agility.
As the Sea Dart, equipped with its twin Westinghouse engines, thundered across the water, it was a spectacle of power and speed. The hydro-skis, tucked beneath its sleek frame, deployed gracefully, cutting through the waves as the aircraft surged towards takeoff speed.
Inside the cockpit, pilots were at the helm of an aircraft that was both a warrior and a water bird, armed with Colt Mk12 cannons and unguided rockets. Yet, in its wake of white foam and roaring engines, there lingered a quiet whisper of the Sea Dart’s impending struggle with nature’s elements-a struggle that would ultimately test the limits of this groundbreaking machine.
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Join Dark Skies as we explore the world of aviation with cinematic short documentaries featuring the biggest and fastest airplanes ever built, top-secret military projects, and classified missions with hidden untold true stories. Including US, German, and Soviet warplanes, along with aircraft developments that took place during World War I, World War 2, the Korean War, the Vietnam War, the Cold War, the Gulf War, and special operations mission in between.
As images and footage of actual events are not always available, Dark Skies sometimes utilizes similar historical images and footage for dramatic effect and soundtracks for emotional impact. We do our best to keep it as visually accurate as possible.
All content on Dark Skies is researched, produced, and presented in historical context for educational purposes. We are history enthusiasts and are not always experts in some areas, so please don't hesitate to reach out to us with corrections, additional information, or new ideas.

[@7seriesmax]

There’s one on permanent display at Willow Grove NAS in Willow Grove, Pennsylvania. When I was younger, I used to take all of my cars there to take pictures with it. There’s a parking lot where you can pull up off the main road (Pa. RT 611) that goes around the air station and park right next to it on the other side of the fence.

[@lancerevell5979]

Having been an Avionics Tech in the Airforce on the F-106, I've always loved Convair designs. Always cutting edge. Sometimes a bit whacky but always interesting. 😎👍 Only Convair would think of putting an F-102 on water skis! 😅

[@brotherjim3051]

Love convair planes. The Sea Dart is my favorite design of them all.

[@flukedogwalker3016]

Sea Dart, the only plane able to shake your retinas loose while taxiing.

[@1mm0rtaldreads]

Super cool. My grandfather worked on thst plane. Iv sat in the one in Pennsylvania at willow grove when i was a kid. So cool to see you cover this.

[@mickaleneduczech8373]

That's really cool. In the 60-70s there was one in a storage bay at the General Dynamics plant here in San Diego. I used to like going to look at it.

[@BlueTrane2028]

Came here to post about the Willow Grove Sea Dart. It's displayed outside and there's no chance to get to the cockpit but it's super cool to be around an example of the only ever supersonic seaplane.

[@pamelarobinson859]

I used to live quite close to WGNAS and have seen this plane there, among other examples of interesting and rare airplanes.

[@andrewerickson6089]

Starts as a boat, goes into an Ekranoplan, turns into a super sonic jet, that's really something!

[@chrissnyder2091]

I was thinking the same

[@gdmofo]

Another convair aircraft that was revolutionary The b-58 Hustler

[@kylesmith7970]

My all-time favorite Cold War aircraft!

[@markiangooley]

So beautiful, so problematic…

[@socaljarhead7670]

Incredibly problematic. If the B-1 had never come along, the Hustler would’ve Heidi the tithe as “biggest hangar queen” in Air Force history.

[@abraxasracing]

Saltwater, aluminium and electronics....

[@leonmusk1040]

So you remember the British patrol boats that kept disappearing with all hands until they worked out the hulls were dissolving from electrolysis.

[@nsh1980gmail]

@@leonmusk1040that’s called learning the hard way

[@andrewzayn544]

You put the Chinook in the water!

[@Joseph-Colin-EXP]

Right!?

[@SPak-rt2gb]

There's also a Sea Dart at the Sun n Fun museum in Lakeland Florida and one in Pennsylvania

[@freddotu]

I thought I had seen one of those impressive looking craft at the airport during Sun 'n Fun. Thanks for the confirmation.

[@daveyheaward1317]

Correct on the Florida Air Museum in Lakeland, Florida the picture used @ 12:59 is that one.

[@gdmofo]

Appreciate you nobody appreciates history I love your Channel keep them coming

[@ronaldannas1935]

Funny how on almost all the canceled projects have the same trend. The designs proposed engine was not available, so less powerful engine was used. Then government cancels the project due to the design not reaching the performance goals.

[@leonmusk1040]

I know right you design an airframe around a power plant replacing it with a less powerful version is a shit idea.

[@YoungGandalf2325]

Jetboat racers: "Why would you want to take off?"

[@theprojectproject01]

"... I mean, on purpose. We do it all the time, but never mean to!"

[@cdrkennon]

It is apparent the original engineers knew nothing of the sea. Any significant open ocean sea state would make takeoff and landing impossible. Salt water would corrode and destroy the engines. To this date, on carriers, salt water mitigation on aircraft is a major issue. How in the world would it be fueled and armed mid ocean, and by whom? Fascinating concept; thoroughly impractical.

[@NBZW]

The ship I was assigned to frequently tied up at North Island, NAS. Sea Dart was being tested at the time, witnessed it airborne for the first time.

[@digger105337]

If you want to see one and your planning to be in the Philadelphia area. The Pitcairn Aviation museum has one.

[@dentalnovember]

This is one of my favorite aircraft. Thanks for posting.

[@olsonspeed]

I saw a Sea Dart at the Naval Ship Yards in Bremerton, WA for many years, it was later moved to Boeing Field, Renton, WA. Airframe corrosion and salt water ingestion must have been a constant maintrnance nightmare.

[@raymondclark1785]

It didn't help.any that DoD combined jet engine testing into a USAF facility that doesn't test for salt water ingestion :(

[@allenmichaud1605]

Better title. Sickest jet-ski ever.

[@markhuebner7580]

Wonderful new addition to my SeaDart understanding, underpowered engines for development! Extra trickiness to a fundamentally complex problem!

[@James-yg4xu]

As soon as I heard the description of this video the first thing that I thought was, what about rough seas

[@wrsmith711]

never heard of this at all until today.

[@TheDaveYelinko]

They have this at a museum quite close to us! I've touched this aircraft.

[@MrRandomcommentguy]

Convair really was the gigachad of US aeronautical development

[@xodiaq]

They didn’t always succeed, but they def thought wilder than most others of the time!

[@randalparks9648]

Way back when, I was a Sea Scout and our "ship" attended a jamboree at the late Sand Point Naval Station in Seattle. They had an inoperable Sea Dart on display down by the docks on Lake Washington. To bad it didn't run, I'd have liked to see it in operation.

[@piconano]

Reminds me of Thunderbirds tv series.

[@Idahoguy10157]

The Navy gave up on seaplanes. The Seadart and Seamaster were cancelled. Their budgets were reassigned to new carrier aircraft and Polaris SSBN’s

[@gumpyoldbugger6944]

It wasn't the first jet powered seaplane fighter, that honour goes to the UK's Saunders-Roe SR/A1 proof of concept A/C, conceived in 1943 and first flew in 1947, eight years before the Sea Darts first flight. It was judged to be an inferiour concept compared both to land and carrier based jets and was cancelled in 1962. It was also an export failure, though it was offered to other allied nations, no one signed on although the US did show some interest at the time and probably that is where they got the idea for the Sea Dart.

[@BronxBastard730]

The Saunders roe wasn't super sonic .. he said the first super sonic sea plane .. not first jet sea plane

[@gumpyoldbugger6944]

@@BronxBastard730 He implied that the Sea Dart was the first jet powered seaplane fighter.....it wasn't.

[@Bob-qk2zg]

Of course, nobody asked civilian seaplane pilots how difficult water landings and takeoffs were.

[@HighSideHustler81]

This is the usa navy/ government that’s why, that just makes far to much sense to look into that stuff prior, because how else would they be millions of dollars over budgets with almost every jet, they just worry about that stuff later after a few test pilots do a few air ejections lolz

[@cahg3871]

Float planes love to nose dive on contact with water.

[@gawainethefirst]

They didn’t need to. They still had many seaplanes in military service at the time.

[@theprojectproject01]

​@@gawainethefirstAnd many, many pilots who'd flown Catalinas and Mariners in the recent wars.

[@brotherjim3051]

Tell me about it. It's the most real flying there is.

[@twoheart7813]

I learned something new today, thank you.

[@paulbervid1610]

Great conversation

[@walterpasicznyk4325]

One Sea Dart is in Horsham, PA and has been there at least since the 1970's at what was once one of only two air bases that served all four branches of the Armed Services, now only a PA Air Natiional Guard Air Base, former Willow Grove Air Base. The "museam" part now officially called the Harold F. Pitcairn Wings of Freedom Aviation Museum has a YF-2Y Sea Dart on display. I admired the jet since my youth, fascinated by the jet with skis.

[@donaldparlett7708]

I remember back in the late 70s and I flew into an airshow and I was there for the weekend. I camped out in a Martin hanger and in the corner was this same seaplane. I tied my hammock to the landing struts for the weekend. It was a cool aircraft.

[@xfirehurican]

Wholly impractical.

[@benjaminrush4443]

We often learn from our mistakes. I'm sure that much was learned and later applied to future jet fighters produced. Thanks.

[@flyswryan]

There was a Sea Dart on display at the Lakeland Airport in Florida, on the Sun'N'Fun grounds, in the mid-80s. I know not her fate since then.

[@marekstanek112]

"groundbreaking"? ... kind of funny statement 😀

[@hertzair1186]

He meant water-breaking

[@socaljarhead7670]

One can be seen outside the aerospace museum at San Diego’s Balboa Park to this day. A tremendous museum by the way.👍

[@WilliamCollins-sh6lm]

What could possibly go wrong with a Jet Powered Lawn Dart ???

[@xodiaq]

Less than a jet powered water dart? 😂

[@coldwarconcealment]

Pretty amazing engineering, but I wonder what the overall doctrine was to integrate it into the fighting force?

[@ashkanhooshmand6518]

man cold war era engineering is so cool. we dont see stuff like this anymore.

[@johnstuartsmith]

For good reasons.... A lot of the proposed Cold War engineering projects were ridiculous.

[@phillipperritt7787]

Day dreaming about Sea Darts with PW F100-PW-220E engines with 23K lbs of thrust flying off frozen lakes in Alaska intercepting Bear Bombers.

[@TJ-vh2ps]

Great music by the way!

[@auro1986]

how many times did water get in air intakes?

[@markplott4820]

all the time. and Engines weren't galvanized.

[@JSFGuy]

Pilot induced oscillation.

[@bearencounter3184]

Do you think you could make a video on the McDonnell F-101 Voodoo?

[@carlmayer691]

I believe the F-101 Voodoo is still on outside static display at the DVHAS in Hsrahma I spoke about..

[@jimmymcgoochie5363]

“Supersonic seaplane” is a perfect example of being too concerned with whether they could to think about whether they should.

[@fredburley9512]

Cool looking aircraft. The early days of jets is so fascinating and exciting. Yeah, you would need consistent calm water for it to work - stresses must have been bad. 👍

[@sharkusvelarde]

Ridiculously impractical

[@KristianWontroba]

This concept might make sense as a drone.

[@Brucev7]

Sea Dart.....Sea Dud

[@sonnyd.6777]

We can PLANE-ly SEA some flaws in this futuristic plane

[@randelbrooks]

Thank you well done I had never heard of this. With modern technology and computer aided everything someone may make this work eventually. Thunderbirds are go!

[@deathstrike]

The only real problem this aircraft truly had was that it was ahead of its time. New Naval doctrine could reinvigorate a desire to return such aircraft back to a promising career. Planes like the E-2 Hawkeye and the P-3 Orion could be replaced with larger, faster, more advanced turboprops, or even jet engine equipped watercraft. Now with advanced materials and designs, this is the best time to reconsider water based aircraft. Also the "Wing in ground effect" is also promising as well, offering a much larger craft cruising fast just above the water.

[@raymondclark1785]

If they could have made it work a quick reaction force of SeaDarts , Seamasters and Tradewinds could have been a place holder until the Fleet arrived

[@mikaelbiilmann6826]

Salt. We salute the brave test pilots!

[@ristube3319]

9:25 571 is the “Nautilus” first nuclear power submarine. It lives in my town Groton, CT (Submarine capital of the world!)

[@aspalovin]

I've never heard of this aircraft... The Wet-15

[@robert-trading-as-Bob69]

Convair took the Supermarine Spitfire origin story a bit too seriously. Said a Convair spokesperson: "Well, Supermarine started on the water as a floatplane, and won the Schneider Trophy like a gazillion times and became the famousest aircraft ever, well we can do that too!" Interview ends in tears...

[@kylesmith7970]

Maybe not a traditionally successful aircraft it's certainly a fascinating bird.

[@stewpacalypse7104]

Convair: "Hey guys. Let's make it so if you have a crash landing you don't have to worry about burning but there's a good chance of you drowning before any help can get to you."

[@rossdinius3303]

I've seen one of those. There was one on display at sun n fun in Florida. Pretty cool looking thing and good idea. Just bad execution

[@carlmayer691]

That static picture is from the Delaware Valley Historical Aircraft Museum, which was a part of the now defunct Willow Grove Naval Air Station in Horsham Pa where I have lived my entire life .. was a police officer ...I passed by those planes probably a thousand times .. LOL A shame as we once had the only Me 262 Swallow "trainer' jet.. which after it was restored, went down to FLA.. We also had a German naval sea plane Arado Ar 196 which was given back to Germany ..all sorts of historical aviation. The museum is a must see if your near RT 611 right off the Willow Grove exit of the PA Turn Pike .. head North RT 611.. about 15 minutes .. on your left side after the large Ford dealer on your right side ..

[@10gsplus]

Dear Greenpeace ....

[@richteffekt]

How were they landed, ahm, watered, at night/bad weather?

[@jhill4874]

Planned engines not available? Replacement engines not adequate? Where have we heard that before? And we blame the plane.

[@stevenmatsoukas7905]

Not practical but has a high “cool” factor.

[@flickingbollocks5542]

The Japanese in ww2 had a submarine aircraft carrier

[@markplott4820]

YES, my Grandfather was a Seiren pilot in WWII and served aboard a I-400 class Submarine Aircraft carrier. he , along w/ his crew committed suicide & scuttled the SUB.

[@bawtreerd]

Seens like this sort of development is not a priority today

[@emanemanrus5835]

With retractable hydrofoils instead of that pair of skiis, it would not bounce dangerously on the water.

[@jackvoss5841]

Only the Navy would intentionally put a jet into salt water. AARRGGHH!! Courtesy of Half Vast Flying

[@erictaylor5462]

The F-16 also had an accidental first flight.

[@HighSideHustler81]

I get that it takes far longer to take off with jets (especially the early years of jets) but why do they have a faster landing speed also tho? Cause of the weight ?

[@cmdrflake]

There’s so much junk in the Oceans nowadays that it makes even less sense than 60-70 years on.

[@flickingbollocks5542]

Why are so many planes underpowered during development?

[@johnbrobston1334]

New engine designs had teething problems. Only 75 of 632 F-14s were built with the amount of power they were designed for.

[@jeromewagschal9485]

Maybe they were trying to "test the water" first ( pun definitely intended 🙂 )

[@jeromewagschal9485]

I wish I owned one of those...I can dream, can't I 🙂 ? I know it's full of flaws but whatever...

[@timper4326]

They smoked a lot of weed during that era of aircraft design.

[@MrAndyBearJr]

I sometimes wonder if rival aircraft companies were behind the delays in obtaining the more powerful engines, or if it was a political gamesmanship move by some senator who was being lobbied to block the contract and kill the project such as what happened with the YB-49.

[@andrewerickson6089]

Convair doesn't mean CONventional AIRcraft!

[@mladenmatosevic4591]

How they planned takeof at even very small waves?

[@RaymondKarlVeasey75]

Looks Like This Design Did A Belly Smacker.

[@gordtron]

they need to start looking into these older developments or they'll just start seeing it popping up where all the stolen research and technologies went.

[@michaelhband]

👍👍👍❤❤❤✈✈✈

[@bumpedhishead636]

IMHO, Convair did some really silly work. Of course it would have trouble in rough seas. Of course sea water ingestion would be a problem. They gets points for being bold, but lose far more points for wasting time on doomed ideas. This was a silly idea. So was the XFY-1 Pogo, the XF-92, the Convair 23 and of course the ConvAirCar. I suppose much of the blame should go to the Navy, who kept funding these experiments.

[@AC-awesome]

Stupid idea. Getting the planes into the water and retrieving them would be very challenging. Much of the time, the sea wouldn't be calm enough. The salt corrosion on the engines and other parts would be horrific.

[@jeffreywoodhead2682]

Ground breaking? Almost exactly the opposite...

[@maksimsmelchak7433]

👍🏻😎🇺🇸

[@msk806]

Wasn't very practical but it flew

[@msk806]

Elgin AFB

[@seanbigay1042]

This video has a very bad title. A better one would be "The Supersonic Plane Whose Runway Was the Sea."

[@ViolentCabbage-ym7ko]

Or amphibious fighter jet

[@SeeLasSee]

Agreed. My mind thought the same within 20 seconds. I’m glad of the creativity of the 40s, 50s, 60s.

[@MikeSutherland-yr8jc]

so go make ya own vid

[@levischittlord6558]

I looked the next day for the thumbnail but I forgot which channel it was.

[@Soggy-Soy-Toy]

This channel turned into a puppy mill and doesn’t care about being factualy correct.

[@Joseph-Colin-EXP]

Lol, variants?

[@1ntwndrboy198]

They might have better luck if they put castor oil on top of water calming it.

[@johnstuartsmith]

Dumb idea. Nearly all the ocean's surface has bigger waves and swells than this thing could take off of or land on.

[@jamesragus1577]

Complimentary algorithm enhancement comment!😊

[@alohathaxted]

They always put in too small of an engine. This happens again and again. Doomed many an interesting design.

[@wernervanderwalt8541]

Da comrades! Soviet Union build stronk plane called Ekranoplan. Much better than US and UK.😂😂

[@emaheiwa8174]

Stronk 📈

[@steadfastandyx4947]

Everything said is contradictory.

[@johncox2865]

Looks like a totally stupid idea to me.

[@travisinthetrunk]

Clickbait! It’s just a seaplane.

[@JSFGuy]

Not true, try watching the video and learn what you don't know.

[@travisinthetrunk]

@@JSFGuy I know about this aircraft. It’s a seaplane. Unless it carries its own flight deck around with it to land and take off from, then it’s not its own aircraft carrier.

[@ET_Explorer]

@@JSFGuy There is no aircraft carrier, its a seaplane that takes off from water areas. "Was its own aircraft carrier" I came here thinking that they were designing a seaplane with an aircraft carrier on it.

[@JSFGuy]

@@ET_Explorer I don't know where you got that I didn't hear that unless it was a description of what the Navy dreamed about having.

[@travisinthetrunk]

@@JSFGuy They changed the title of the video when they realized how dumb it sounded.