The Grumman Duck, designated J2F, was the company's first amphibian aircraft. It first took to the sky on April 25, 1933 and soon became the primary single engine workhorse military amphibian.
The aircraft was used by the U.S.N., U.S.M.C. and U.S.C.G. in addition to a number of U.S. allies. A single Grumman Duck aircraft was used by the U.S.A.F., primarily for search and rescue duties.
The Grumman Duck performed a multitude of roles including aircraft carrier transport, reconnaissance, search and rescue, target tow, anti shipping, and anti submarine. It even found a civilian use as an executive transport.
Given its bulky shape, the Grumman Duck was a surprisingly aerobatic flier. At least one performed at air shows, but has since been retired.
Grumman Ducks were built strong enough to withstand aircraft carrier and choppy sea landings. Although the aircraft fuselage was made from metal, the wings were covered with cloth.
The aircraft had retractable landing gear. Light attack versions of the Duck had single or twin machine guns and could carry bombs under their wings.
Throughout their production period the aircraft were modified to increase performance with more powerful engines, and hull changes to improve water handling.
A total of 632 Grumman Duck aircraft of all types were produced. We do not know of any still flying, but several well preserved examples can be found on static display.
A Grumman Duck from Toner Plans.
You should be able to find a number of plans and perhaps even a kit if you want to build the Grumman Duck.
Pictured immediately above is the Grumman Duck from Harold Toner Plans. Wingspan is 52" with a length of 49". Power
comes from a .46 two cycle engine.
The first picture below is of the Grumman Duck built from Uncle Willies Plans. It has a 58" wingspan and a 52" length
overall. Recommended for power is a .60 two cycle engine.
We found two sets of Grumman Duck plans for sale on eBay. The larger model has a wingspan of 63" and a length of 56".
Power comes from .90 to 1.20 engines and weight is around 17 lbs.
The smaller Grumman Duck has a wingspan of 58" with a length of 43". Construction materials are balsa and ply. The
kit provides for the addition of retracts. Engines are .46 to .60 two stroke.
Cleveland has plans for sale of the rc Grumman Duck with wingspans of 39", 58", 77" and 116".
The next picture below is an example of their 116" wingspan model.
Pictured third below is the Grumman Duck from a Charlie Smith short kit. We do not know the wingspan of the model.
The bottom picture is of the 38" wingspan Grumman Duck built by Jerry Hall. It is powered by a geared Mega 16/15/4
motor and weighs about 2 1/4 lbs. all up.
