Two Douglas DC-3’s (a.k.a C-47 Dakota) are seen displaying at the Warbirds Over Wanaka Airshow in New Zealand last year, along with a fighter escort of two Spitfires and two P-51 Mustangs.
The Douglas DC-3 is an American fixed-wing propeller-driven airliner, the speed and range of which revolutionized air transport in the 1930s and 1940s. Its lasting impact on the airline industry and World War II makes it one of the most significant transport aircraft ever made. The major military version was designated the C-47 Skytrain, of which more than 10,000 were produced. Many DC-3s and converted C-47s are still used in all parts of the world.
Total production of all derivatives was 16,079. More than 400 remained in commercial service in 1998. Production was as follows:
- 607 civil variants of the DC-3.
- 10,048 military C-47 derivatives were built at Santa Monica, California, Long Beach, California, and Oklahoma City.
- 4,937 were built under license in Russia as the Lisunov Li-2 (NATO reporting name: Cab).
- 487 Mitsubishi Kinsei-engined aircraft were built by Showa and Nakajima in Japan, as the L2D2–L2D5 Type 0 transport (Allied codename Tabby).
Production of civil DC-3s ceased in 1942; military versions were produced until the end of the war in 1945. In 1949, a larger, more powerful Super DC-3 was launched to positive reviews. However, the civilian market was flooded with second-hand C-47s, many of which were converted to passenger and cargo versions. As a result only three Super DC-3s were built and delivered for commercial use the following year. The prototype Super DC-3 served the US Navy with the designation YC-129 alongside 100 R4Ds that had been upgraded to the Super DC-3 specification.
Source: YouTube/Wikipedia