What happened to C-46A 42-96609?

[Wildchild]

I've been reading about this C-46 for awhile but i've hit road block... The information i have so far is from here:

http://www.flyinghigher.net/curtiss/N1001A.html

And all I know is it ditched off of San Andros Island, Bahamas with no fatailities. What I'm wondering is what happened to it? Did they recover it or is it still there?

Thanks, Chris

[The Inspector]

I've been reading about this C-46 for awhile but i've hit road block... The information i have so far is from here:

http://www.flyinghigher.net/curtiss/N1001A.html

And all I know is it ditched off of San Andros Island, Bahamas with no fatailities. What I'm wondering is what happened to it? Did they recover it or is it still there?

Thanks, Chris

I remember SKY VAN AIRWAYS @ KBFI! their 'facility' sat about where Clay Lacys hanger is now. They had a couple C-46's and one (maybe 1001A) sat in the same place for decades and had some tie-in with a moving and storage outfit as I recall one had a lions head painted on the front end and some bogus 'Amalgamated air service' B.S. logo over the windows (1950's time frame). The King County Airport Commission pushed it over to the far NorthWest side of the field onto Boeing property after it was impounded for non payment of years and years of tie down fees. Boeing needed the area for some other use and the airplane was sold to a guy who put another set of stabs and elevators on it (no idea where the originals went to). That guy was a neighbor of a fellow I worked with @ BADWRENCH and it did Alaska work in the Summers and the Caribbean in the Winters, so maybe it ended it's life as a tropical reef.

[WallyB]

I've been reading about this C-46 for awhile but i've hit road block... The information i have so far is from here:

http://www.flyinghigher.net/curtiss/N1001A.html

And all I know is it ditched off of San Andros Island, Bahamas with no fatailities. What I'm wondering is what happened to it? Did they recover it or is it still there?

Thanks, Chris

Still there AFAIK


N10624 Curtiss C-46A-45-CU Commando 30271 R-2800-51 1944
rg 07/18/73 Miami Air Lease Inc. Maimi FL, w/o 9/28/79 ditched into sea off Andros Bahamas, canx 04/11/81
N10624 North American Aircraft Trading
N10624 AAXICO American Air Export and Import Co
I-SILA SAMediterranea
I-SILA Alitalia 1962
OD-ACL re-registered
OD-ABZ Lebanese Internationa
N1001A dd 1951 Boreas Corp.
42-96609 United States Air Force USAF

[Wildchild]

Need a helicopter to get her

[APG85]

In the water since 1979...yikes. Can't be much left after 30 years of storms, etc. How old is that picture...?

[marine air]

Ever wndered how the C-46's became so rare? I was looking at the NTSB reports from my birthyear of 1963, and other years. Civil C-46's were being lost at a rate of about one per month. DO the math and you can see how they became so rare. I'm not sure if I have ever even actually seen one.

[Steve Nelson]

I've seen a couple in museums, and crawled through "China Doll" at an airshow once, but I've never seen one fly. Buffalo Airways seems to like them though.

SN

[The Inspector]

I recall listening to REEVE ALEUTIANS C-46's roll past where I was working in '67 in ANC and hearing the horribly squealing brakes. Lots of them laying all wadded up in the far North and in South America and in tropical Asia.

[Wildchild]

I recall listening to REEVE ALEUTIANS C-46's roll past where I was working in '67 in ANC and hearing the horribly squealing brakes. Lots of them laying all wadded up in the far North and in South America and in tropical Asia.

There's a C-46 that had crash landed at Henderson field in Tampa and instead of repairing it they pushed it to the end of the runway and buried it next to a B-29.

Has anyone from the states tried to recover any C-46's from Canada or south America? If not I can only imagine how many wrecks an derilic's are down there

[The Inspector]

For the most part, there is no access other than by air. There is no real road system in the far North, and except for a very few tracks or dirt roads between two very imprtant towns or villages, it's an on foot over pretty unfriendly ground and vast distances swarming with silver dollar leg span mosquitos,midges, flies, no seeums(very tiny swarming gnats)and if it flies, it bites, three far North Mosquitos will suck you dry in about 2 hours.
You can get an idea by visiting www.ruudleeuw.com

[RMAllnutt]

Evertts Air Fuels operate four C-46's out of Fairbanks Alaska, have a further 10 or so in their bone yard. It's a very cool aircraft! I wish there were more flying.

Cheers,
Richard

[Russ Blow]

There used to be one that flew into what was then Norfolk Regional from Michigan to delivery parts for the Ford assembly plant here. There were still quite a few radial engined birds flying over here all the time, mostly S 2's and some DC 3's but when my dad heard the 46 he would jump up and run outside to watch it and then we would drive to the field to look at it.

He flew them in China in 45 and I asked how he knew the sound of it. He just said from 500 hours over China is how.