This looks familiar: The airport in Innsbruck the way it was back in the 1950s, right down to the DC-3. This photo is from 1952, when the planes were still parking on grass, and the tanker looks to be a US Army WW2 veteran 6×6. My father used to take us there sometimes if he knew a plane was coming or going, something that did not happen all that often. Once he hired a pilot to take us up in his Cessna, my first highly memorable airplane flight. Flying through the valleys between the chains of mountains was amazing, as was coming in low over Innsbruck on the approach.
One day in 1959 my father told my older brother and I that something unusual would be flying in today, a four engine DC-4. That was a big deal, so my brother and I went by ourselves on our scooters. A memorable day, only marred by my brother getting bumped by a car on the way home. He just toppled over and got a bad scrape, fortunately.
It turns out that this DC-3 is still flying to today.
The complete history of this plane is fully documented here. She was built as a C47A-1-DL in Long Beach, CA and inducted into the US Army in 1942. After the war, she was turned into a civilian DC-3 and flew for the Scottish Airlines, but was requisitioned for the Berlin Airlift. In October of 1952, not long after she visited Innsbruck, she emigrated to France with the French Air Force. In 1972 she was privatized again, with a series of owners.
In 1974, she went to the Central African Republic and became the personal aircraft of Jean Bedel Bokassa. Then she was owned by several other private owners, including Inter-RCA, and then with Transvalair in 1983. Then followed a number of other private owners, presumably cargo or charter operators.
In 2008 she was finished in the livery of Air France as used in the 1950s on one side and as KLM Flying Dutchman on the other. Sometime not long after, she received the Air France livery on the other side too.
In 2014, this video of her performing at an air show was taken.
This picture was taken in July of 2021. Sometime in the previous couple of years, the Air France logo was painted over. She’s still looking as beautiful as ever.
I love the DC-3. I am amazed at the number that are still in service of some kind.
Quite a number of years ago I read an article that the number of rebuildable radial engines for these was becoming scarce and that people were exploring alternative power options. I don’t know what ever happened with that situation.
“people were exploring alternative power options”.
See Basler Turbo. This is a PT-6 conversion with five bladed props and I believe that on some or all the fuselage has been extended.
Very nice, amazing how you can look these things up now.
The KLM DC-4 that brought my mother’s family to Canada was last registered flying freight in Columbia during the 1970’s. I also found a photo of it after a landing gear collapse in 1948.
We’re lucky to have a vintage flying museum close by, and I see their DC-3 go over occasionally. Unfortunately the Lancaster is grounded this year with engine trouble, but the B-25 is in regular use.
No discussion of the DC3 should fail to mention that Bassler of Oshkosh WI converts these aircraft with PT6 turbo prop engines. The resulting aircraft has a substantial fuselage stretch, and is completely gutted- all new wiring, instruments, hydraulics, etc installed. The result is licensed as a “new” aircraft- a Bassler Turboliner. Good for another century.
Electric?
lol!
Big fan of the DC-3 here! Having shared this here before, I won’t rehash all of the details, but the I spotted one of these flying into the Frederick Maryland airport years ago when visiting a pilot friend of mine. The old girl was painted with a wild emerald green and bright yellow livery, which would not have been my first choice, but it was great to see one flying.
She landed, taxied over to the fuel pumps without gassing up, then turned around and taxied back out to Runway 5 and took off. Not sure what that was all about.
This is one of the more pleasurable planes to pilot in Microsoft’s Flight Simulator. The video that Paul posted here shows the difference however in how to land one of these. Since she’s a big taildragger, you fly the plane onto the runway and then cut the throttle back to idle. That’s a lot different than the usual method with conventional “tricycle” landing gear.
Taxiing one of these however is not an easy task! It was much easier to taxi a Boeing 737 in the Flight Simulator. Not really sure about in reality though…
I flew in one from Nantucket to Boston in 1985 after waiting several hours for the fog to clear. It may have been the last airline in the US to fly the DC-3. Providence-Boston? PBA? The engines were a little noisy, but the slower change in altitude made it more comfortable for my delicate ears than a jet. The reverse journey was in a modern, small commuter plane. I’d bent way over and still scraped the middle of my back on the door opening.
Provincetown-Boston Airlines. I remember the DC-3’S Rumbling over Duxbury Beach in the 80’s.
Every time a discussion about DC-3s comes up, I marvel again how a plane manufactured in 1942 can still be flying today.
Perhaps those here who actually understand planes (I sure don’t!) can explain how these 80 year old machines can keep flying when much much more modern aircraft are taken out of service and left in desert storage likely never to fly again. I’m not talking about economics of rotating planes in and out of commercial fleets, but rather just asking if the 767 (e.g.) that has been parked in AZ could ever be brought back alive and could it be kept going like this DC-3? Or is it something unique about these planes from the 1940s that allows them to be maintained in condition to keep flying?
The DC3 is not pressurized. Makes a huge difference in the life of the fuselage. Less stress on the structure because it doesn’t “inflate” as it gains altitude.
Thanks! That makes perfect sense. So this is why there are so many aircraft from the WWII era that are restored and still certified airworthy, but not so many after that time.
Another great bit of history .
I too love the venerable DC-3 .
-Nate
Flew in these as a lad in New Guinea. Some at full airliner standard, 2 seats one side, single on the other side of the aisle.
Others had a row of inward facing seats along each side, with a row down the middle.
Either was fine with a plane loving lad. And the passion continues. “My” SP-2H Nepune is in my avatar.
My late Grandfather retired from Northwest Orient Airlines as a Lead Aircraft Mechanic. He always said the DC-3 was one of, if not the, toughest birds ever to fly.
One of the greatest planes ever made. Keep em` flying!