Posted on 10/25/2023 1:10:43 PM PDT by Red Badger
We used them precisely like that
Dirt and gravel strips and uneven terrain
Sorta slow to gain altitude but steady
I still know immediately when I hear radials overhead at nite in an instant
I did some of my A&P exam on a DC-3. I thought what a big plane. Later in life was line mechanic for a main line carrier. DC-3 a really small aircraft by those standards.
PBA used them in the keys in the 80s
“Last time I flew in one was on Texas International Airlines from Texarakana to Dallas and back in 1975, 48 years ago.”
I flew on a TIA Convair 240 back in early 1971 between San Angelo and Dallas when I was in crypto school before I was sent overseas. TIA started out as TTA (Trans Texas Airways, but was affectionately known as Tree Top Airways).
1975 was 48 years ago. Think about that. WHAT!?
🙏🇮🇱👍
My first multi-engine flight experience was as a passenger on a DC3. They took my boy scout troop for a short flight in the early sixties.
Thank you for these cool pics!
Some of the old Piedmont DC-3s were purchased by Naples Airlines (fl) and flown by them until the early 1980s. I grew up a mile from the airport and we would climb the fence and play in an old Piedmont airframe. LoL I couldn’t imagine getting away with that today.
bkmk
Appears to be a C-43 with modified engines. They look like turbo-props?
My dad was a maintenance chief in a bombardier training unit in New Mexico in WW2. He said they used those Beechs with little bomb bays installed. They’d drop concrete practice bombs filled with black powder. He said they were always fixing holes in the bellies of those planes when the trainees dropped them at too low attitudes. Apparently the noobs didn’t understand about inertia all that well. They thought the bombs would fall straight down and not follow the plane. Lol.
True about the DEA. We bought a 40yo twin engine aircraft some years ago from Colombia. Hubby got it to the US and the nize Fedbois were all over it and then angry/disappointed because (of course) they found nothing.
Fun people.
One of the greatest planes ever built. And how many thousands were manufactured? I’m not surprised a number are still in service.
The Goony Bird!
I remember flying in one from Ft Lauderdale to Grand Bahama back in the 60’s. You really had to walk uphill to get to your seat. The pilot asked my dad how much he weighed, and then told him where to sit.
Way, way back before my time, my mom was a stewardess with Delta. She flew from Charleston, I am not sure to where. She would talk about the sailors in uniform traveling on her flights. She said there would be at least one on every flight who would start turning a little green, and suddenly yank his white cap down to catch the spewing chunder. Fun times!
Back in the 1960’s, our squadron CO loaded up the MAG-32 C-117 with anybody who wanted to go and flew us to a junior pilot’s wedding in Missouri.
The skipper was in the left seat, while some poor lieutenant ( I’ll call him Larry) occupied the co-pilots position. The rest of us were in the back playing cards. After about an hour, the CO came back and joined the game. Most of us were a little concerned, since we knew that the guy up front (Larry) was an F-4 pilot, but wasn’t checked out in the Gooney bird.
A few minutes later, Larry wandered to the back and asked the Skipper a question about the flight plan. Either the autopilot was operative ( a
rarity in those days), or Larry was really great at trim settings, since the flight deck was unoccupied!
There are still some flying in Alaska. DC-6 too. Had one go over my house about 10 days ago. Also C-46 are still flying up here.
“The Goony Bird!”
There it is... I was reading through to see if anyone remembered the real nickname. :)
Good chance that I flew on that Aircraft as a little kid. I know that I was on many of them back in the day.
FU- gettyimages you money grubbing pricks!!!
History (((PING)))
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