Taylorcraft L-2

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Taylorcraft L-2M at the National Museum of the United States Air Force

Taylorcraft L-2M N52347

Interior of Taylorcraft L-2M N52347

Taylorcraft L-2 Grasshopper is an observation and liaison aircraft used by the United States Army Air Forces in World War II. The L-2, adapted from Taylorcraft's pre-war commercial Model Tandem Trainer, was initially designated the O-57 at the time it was first ordered by the Air Corps. The airplane was given its service tests in the summer of 1941 during maneuvers in Louisiana and Texas where it was used for various support purposes such as a light transport and courier.

At the time American ground forces went into combat around the world during WW II, the AAF began using the L-2 in much the same manner as the observation balloon was used in France during WW I--spotting enemy troop and supply concentrations and directing artillery fire on them. It was also used for other types of liaison and transport duties and short-range reconnaissance which required airplanes that could land and take off in minimum distances from unprepared landing strips.