Douglas+C-47

The Douglas C-47 Skytrain was first used by the U.S. Army Air Corps in 1940. The C-47 was a militarized version of the Douglas DC-3 airliner used for passenger flights.The Air Corp ended up receiving 9,348 C-47s by the end of World War II. The aircraft itself could be used for many needs throughout the war. The C-47 could carry up to 28 people, and it fit 6,000 pounds of cargo when on normal transport flights. When dropping troops over enemy territories, about 18-22 paratroopers could fit on board. This decrease in capacity is due to the amount of equipment paratroopers had on them. On medical missions, the cabin could fit up to 18 stretchers along with 3 medical personnel.

The C-47 continued to be used in the U.S. Air Force for years after World War II, for war and during times of peace. In 1949 when the Soviet blockade of West Berlin was not successful, the C-47 was one of many aircraft supplying provisions to Tempelhof in West Berlin. With help from French Air Force and the Royal Air Force (England), over 8,000 pounds of provisions were delivered each day. In the Korean War, the C-47 dropped paratroops, dropped bombing flares for attacks during the night, carried wounded soldiers, and hauled supplies. This aircraft was also used in The Southeast Asia War, but mostly as transport.

For the years it was produced, the Douglas C-47 came in many variants to meet specific needs for its customer. There was the AC-47D which was used mostly in battle. This variant differed from the original C-47 since it had three side firing minigun machine guns. The C-47B was an improved C-47 with supercharged engines, and extra fuel capacity. This allowed the aircraft to fly longer routes such as India-Burma-China. One unique version of the C-47 was the R4D-5L. This model of the C-47 was to be used in Antarctic explorations. The way this variant was unique was due to the deletion of any engine oil coolers. They were not needed as the aircraft was only meant to be used in cold polar regions.