Of the 203 Owls ordered in 1940 for the USAAC for observation duties, four survive. This two-seater type , the last in the 'O' series before the 'L' designation replaced it, had forward and rear firing machine guns. They were used for anti-submarine searches in the Americas and through lend-lease also on the Eastern Front in Europe by the Soviets. However it was quickly realised that its performance was inadequate, leading to its relegation to courier-type duties

In 1940 the Army Air Corps ordered 203 O-52s for observation duties but after the US entry into WWII it was apparent that the Owl lacked the performance necessary for combat operations overseas. As a result, the USAAF relegated the type to internal courier duties and short-range submarine patrols off the US coasts. This example is now on display at the National Museum of the USAF was obtained from the US Federal Reformatory at Chillicothe, OH in 1962 and restored by the Pittsburgh Institute of Aeronautics.