Editing Vought SB2U Vindicator (section)

===French Navy===
On 22 February 1939, France placed an order for 20 V-156-Fs for the carrier-based squadrons of the ''[[Aéronautique Navale]]'' (French Naval Aviation), with an order for 20 more V-156-Fs following in May 1939.<ref name="AE p7">Green and Swanborough 1978, p.7.</ref><ref name="avn54p378">Ledet September 1997, pp. 37–38</ref> Based on the SB2U-2, the V-156-F incorporated specific French equipment, included {{cvt|7.5|mm}} [[Darne machine gun]]s and French radios, while the aircraft were fitted with dive brakes, as tested and rejected by the US Navy.<ref name="AE p7"/> The aircraft were delivered to France in crates and reassembled at [[Orly]], with the first example flying in France on 6 August 1939.<ref name="avn54p389">Ledet September 1997, pp. 38–39</ref> On the outbreak of the [[Second World War]] in September 1939, the French Navy decided that its only aircraft carrier, {{Ship|French aircraft carrier|Béarn||2}} was too slow for operational service, and the ship's squadrons disembarked for land-based service.<ref name="fana297p42">Morareau February 1997, p. 42</ref> By mid-October 1939, the first ''[[escadrille]]'', AB 1, had reequipped with the V-156-F,<ref name="fana297p42"/> while a second ''escadrille'', AB 3, was formed in November 1939.<ref name="fana298p42">Morareau March 1997, p. 42</ref> In March–April 1940, AB 1's pilots carried out successful deck-landing training aboard ''Béarn'', and were declared carrier qualified.<ref name="fana297p45">Morareau February 1997, p. 45</ref><ref name="AE p8"/> 

On 10 May 1940, on the opening day of the [[Battle of France|German invasion of France]], all 12 of AB 3's aircraft were destroyed in a German air raid on [[Boulogne-sur-Mer|Boulogne]] airfield.<ref name="AE p8"/><ref name="fana298p44">Morareau March 1997, p. 44</ref> AB 1 was ordered up to Northern France from [[Hyères]] as a replacement, sustaining heavy losses while attacking bridges and German ground targets in Northern France, including seven aircraft shot down by [[Messerschmitt Bf 109]]s during an attack on a bridge over the [[Sambre–Oise Canal]] on 20 May 1940, and later that month provided air cover for the [[Evacuation of Dunkirk]].<ref name="AE p8"/> AB 3, which had had its losses replaced by V-156-Fs taken out of storage,<ref name="AE p8"/> was deployed against the Italians following the [[Italian invasion of France]] on 10 June and on 14 June, four V-156s attacked the {{ship|Italian submarine|Gondar}}, which was unharmed.<ref name="fana298p45">Morareau March 1997, p. 45</ref> By the time of the [[Armistice with France (Second Compiègne)|Armistice]], there were only a handful of remaining Voughts in French hands, and the type was phased out of service.<ref name="fana297p54">Morareau February 1997, p. 54</ref>