Introduced in 1940, the Dauntless was developed as a scout bomber. Flown by squadrons of US Navy and US Marine Corps pilots from land bases and aircraft carriers, the Dauntless was the principal American dive bomber through much of the war, replaced by the SB2C Helldiver in mid-1944.
 
During the Battle of Midway in June 1942, Dauntlesses would deliver fatal blows to all four Japanese fleet carriers that were present. The Akagi, Kaga, and Sōryū were hit and disabled within the span of just 6 minutes. The Hiryū would be disabled later in the same day.
 
The Military Aviation Museum's SBD-5 was Bureau Number (BuNo) 36175, accepted for Navy service on October 4, 1943 and used to train new Navy pilots receiving their carrier qualifications on the Great Lakes. On January 20, 1944, the aircraft met with the mishap that would see it preserved for 50 years on the bottom of Lake Michigan.
 
Lieutenant Charles L. Ford III was attempting a landing on the training carrier USS Wolverine. He was too slow on his approach and was given "come on" signals by the Landing Signals Officer; when he was issued a subsequent "wave-off" command, the pilot banked away from the carrier with too little power, leading to a crash. The pilot was lucky to survive with just a few deep cuts to his forehead.
 
In 1994, the aircraft was recovered as part of a large operation to retrieve rare and important naval aircraft from the bottom of the lake. This operation was conducted by A and T Recovery who would bring more than 40 of the aircraft to the surface. More than 140 are known to have crashed into the lake, with only six being recovered during the war. A and T located 36175 in 177 feet of water, sitting upright on the lake bottom with its engine some 80 feet away.
 
In partnership with the Military Aviation Museum, a portion of the proceeds from every bag of Slow But Deadly Coffee purchased will go directly to supporting the restoration of this historic aircraft.
 
A blend of Indian and Central & South American beans is used to produce a great-tasting bold coffee that delivers the same type of punch that this World War II Dive Bomber delivered.