These claims were greatly exaggerated; in 1940 the average score for an Air Corps bombardier was a circular error of from , not from . Real-world performance was poor enough that the Navy de-emphasized level attacks in favor of dive bombing almost immediately. The Grumman TBF Avenger could mount the Norden, like the preceding Douglas TBD Devastator, but combat use was disappointing and eventually described as "hopeless" during the Guadalcanal Campaign. In spite of giving up on the device in 1942, bureaucratic inertia meant they were supplied as standard equipment until 1944.