Warbird Information Exchange

I was surprised to see a statement recently that the final USAF Curtiss C-46 was retired "in 1968" and assumed it was a mistake: not so!

By the spring of 1968, there were thirteen C-46Ds remaining in service, all appropriately assigned to the 24th Air Commando Wing at Howard AFB, Canal Zone. The 24th Air Commando Wing had gained these machines from the 605th Air Commando Squadron (also at Howard AFB) at the end of March. This latter unit had suffered a fatal accident on 1 September the previous year when C-46D s/n 44-77552 had crashed on take-off with the loss of seven lives.

On 17 May 1968 the 24th ACW retired its first Commando, s/n 44-78018, which departed for storage at Davis Monthan and was later earmarked for the Air Force Museum. A second C-46 (s/n 44-78380) had been routed to the Warner Robins Air Materiel Area on 29 March for overhaul but did not return to Howard AFB after rework.

The remaining eleven were finally retired between 17 and 20 June, all going to Air International Inc. in Miami for overhaul prior to transfer overseas as military aid. Most, if not all (and including 44-78380 from Robins AFB) were destined for the Republic of Korea AF.

Which brings me to my question: where are the photos of these last remaining USAF C-46s? I could only locate two images, both showing the NMUSAF machine in its final colours, with minor differences: The first one appears to have been taken at Albrook AFB possibly around the 1963/64 timescale:



And then the second (credit as shown), photographed as it had come out of storage at Davis Monthan and on its way to the Air Force Museum; note the ten-year 'zero' prefix to the tail number, circa 20 March 1972:



So does anyone have anything else? The Air Commando Wing at Eglin also operated C-46s into the mid-1960s but images of these are also notable by their absence. Were any given SEA camouflage like the C-47/AC-47 fleet?

I din't realize that any C-46s had stayed in service for so long. But a year or so ago I was at my friendly local air museum (Pima), and while gawking up at their C-46 (it's one big airplane), an old (even older than me) gentleman walked up next to me and said "I used to fly these in the Air Force". In our ensuing conversation I asked "What was it like to fly?" and he replied "It was a Beast". He was unaware that a few still fly for a living in Canada...
Sorry not to answer the question, but that[s too good a story not to tell.

Thanks Mark; it's important to remember and share these recollections.

Indeed, I always though they were much the same size as the C-47 until I saw my first C-46 alongside a C-47 at Miami. At least a size larger if not two!

I certainly thought they were long gone from USAF service soon after WWII...

No stories other than to recall the unfortunate end of one of the Dominican C-46s I saw at Miami in 1984. It was underslung by a CH-53 (I think) for delivery to a museum somewhere to the north. Unfortunately it began to rotate on the end of the strops, leaving the CH-53 crew no option other than dump the load into the gator-inhabited swamps below...

I saw that C-46 when I was there in '87; its demise must have been around that time because I remember the story.