The Syrian airfield prepare for reception of military aircraft of China
The latest news about fast emergence in borders of Syria of navy of China encouraged Syrians and res[...]
DC-3s Go to War
When America went to war in 1941, the DC-3 became even more valuable as the C-47 military transport. During World War II, the airplanes were built at three plants: in Long Beach and Santa Monica, California, and in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.
In its military role as the C-47 and other models, the DC-3 underwent internal changes. For troop carrying, the passenger cabin was refitted with utility seats that were set along the sides facing inward. The C-47 had twin radial engines, giving it a cruising speed of 207 miles per hour (333 kilometers per hour), and it had a range of 2,125 miles (3,420 kilometers). It could carry
up to 6,000 pounds (2,725 kilograms) of freight or twenty-eight fully equipped paratroopers. It was known as the Skytrain, the Skytrooper, and the “Gooney Bird.”
The C-47 proved to be an outstandingly successful troop carrier and was also widely used to drop paratroopers and tow gliders. C-47s, known in Britain as Dakotas, flew secret missions, often at night, over Nazi-occupied Europe. They dropped Allied agents, guns, and supplies by parachute to Resistance fighters. The aircraft also became a familiar sight to troops fighting on the Pacific and Southeast Asian battlegrounds. C-47s flew over the Himalayas between India and China and dropped ammunition,
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food, and fuel to soldiers in jungle clearings in Burma or on small Pacific islands.
C-47s took part in the D-Day invasion of German-occupied northern France in June 1944. They also dropped Allied airborne troops during the Arnhem and Nijmegen assaults (in the Netherlands) in September 1944. Douglas supplied more than 10,000 C-47s to the Allies during the war, and a further 2,000 were built in Russia for use on the Eastern Front.
There were even DC-3s flying on the other side in World War II. The Japanese had bought twenty DC-3s in 1939 and had acquired a license to manufacture the plane. During the war, more than 400 Japanese DC-3s were used by the Imperial Japanese Navy. These planes, known as Showa L2Ds, were used mainly as personnel transports.