Jack Laister designed the aircraft in response to the formation of the
United States Army Air Corps'
American Glider Program in 1941, basing it on his
Yankee Doodle design of 1938 for
Lawrence Tech. Aside from the addition of a second seat, the Yankee Doodle 2 differed from its predecessor by having wings of constant dihedral instead of
gull wings. The USAAC expressed interest, but only if Laister could arrange for the manufacture of the type. When Laister found a sponsor in businessman
John Kauffmann, they established the
Laister-Kauffmann Corporation in
St Louis, Missouri and the USAAC ordered three prototypes as the
XTG-4. When evaluation of the type proved positive, the Army placed an order for 75 aircraft, followed by an order for another 75. These were operated as the
TG-4A. All had been withdrawn from service prior to the end of the war when it was discovered that the flight characteristics of the aircraft were so different to those of a cargo glider, that the experience gained on the TG-4 was not particularly relevant. After the war many were sold as surplus and helped build civilian gliding in the USA. == Variants ==