\nin a Gooney Bird.<\/div>\n
\n<\/div>\n
\nMy
\nfamily arranged for me to take a flight is a C-47 military aircraft
\nas a birthday present. It was a very special event, as I have always
\nbeen very impressed by the design and product life of this aircraft.
\nMy flight took place on Tuesday, Sept. 13, 2011.<\/div>\n
\nfamily arranged for me to take a flight is a C-47 military aircraft
\nas a birthday present. It was a very special event, as I have always
\nbeen very impressed by the design and product life of this aircraft.
\nMy flight took place on Tuesday, Sept. 13, 2011.<\/div>\n
\n<\/div>\n
\nThe
\nC-47 (aka Gooney Bird) was developed based on the DC-3 civilian
\nairplane. Here is a bit of background on the two versions of the
\nplane:<\/div>\n
\nC-47 (aka Gooney Bird) was developed based on the DC-3 civilian
\nairplane. Here is a bit of background on the two versions of the
\nplane:<\/div>\n
\n<\/div>\n
\nThe
\nDouglas DC-3 is an American fixed-wing propeller-driven aircraft
\nwhose speed and range revolutionized air transport in the 1930s and
\n1940s. Its lasting impact on the airline industry and World War II
\nmakes it one of the most significant transport aircraft ever made.
\nMany DC-3s are still used in all parts of the world. Translated,
\nthat is over 75 years of flying and the clock continues to tick.<\/div>\n
\nDouglas DC-3 is an American fixed-wing propeller-driven aircraft
\nwhose speed and range revolutionized air transport in the 1930s and
\n1940s. Its lasting impact on the airline industry and World War II
\nmakes it one of the most significant transport aircraft ever made.
\nMany DC-3s are still used in all parts of the world. Translated,
\nthat is over 75 years of flying and the clock continues to tick.<\/div>\n
\n<\/div>\n
\nThe
\nDouglas C-47 is a military transport aircraft that was developed from
\nthe Douglas DC-3 airliner. The first flight was Dec. 1941. It was
\nused extensively by the Allies during World War II and remained in
\nfront line operations through the 1950s with a few remaining in
\noperation to this day.<\/div>\n
\nDouglas C-47 is a military transport aircraft that was developed from
\nthe Douglas DC-3 airliner. The first flight was Dec. 1941. It was
\nused extensively by the Allies during World War II and remained in
\nfront line operations through the 1950s with a few remaining in
\noperation to this day.<\/div>\n
\n<\/div>\n
\nDuring
\nWorld War II, the armed forces of many countries used the C-47 and
\nmodified DC-3s for the transport of troops, cargo and wounded. The US
\nNaval designation was R4D. Over 10,000 aircraft were produced in Long
\nBeach and Santa Monica, California and Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. The
\nOklahoma City plant produced 5,354 C-47s from March 1943 until August
\n1945. The 10K units was in addition to the over 16,000 civilian
\nplanes.<\/div>\n
\nWorld War II, the armed forces of many countries used the C-47 and
\nmodified DC-3s for the transport of troops, cargo and wounded. The US
\nNaval designation was R4D. Over 10,000 aircraft were produced in Long
\nBeach and Santa Monica, California and Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. The
\nOklahoma City plant produced 5,354 C-47s from March 1943 until August
\n1945. The 10K units was in addition to the over 16,000 civilian
\nplanes.<\/div>\n
\n<\/div>\n
\nWhile
\nI am not a strong student of aircraft, the DC-3 has always fascinated
\nme. Many years ago, I arranged a business trip so that I could fly
\non a commercial airline that was still flying the DC-3. I was so
\nthrilled to fly on an aircraft with so much history.\n<\/div>\n
\nI am not a strong student of aircraft, the DC-3 has always fascinated
\nme. Many years ago, I arranged a business trip so that I could fly
\non a commercial airline that was still flying the DC-3. I was so
\nthrilled to fly on an aircraft with so much history.\n<\/div>\n
\n<\/div>\n
\nCan
\nyou imagine how thrilled I was to be able to fly on the military
\nversion? The flight was out of the Colorado Springs Airport. The
\npilots flew us north so that we could fly over The Garden of the
\nGods. All in all, a very impressive and fun adventure.<\/div>\n
\nyou imagine how thrilled I was to be able to fly on the military
\nversion? The flight was out of the Colorado Springs Airport. The
\npilots flew us north so that we could fly over The Garden of the
\nGods. All in all, a very impressive and fun adventure.<\/div>\n
\n<\/div>\n
\nHere
\nare some photos (not the best quality as they were taken with my cell
\nphone).<\/div>\n
\nare some photos (not the best quality as they were taken with my cell
\nphone).<\/div>\n
\n<\/div>\n
\n![](\"http:\/\/1.bp.blogspot.com\/-elKqzboV4gk\/Tn9IOQ5qc9I\/AAAAAAAAAaY\/mXWxK0RKy6s\/s320\/C-47+port+side+%2528Medium%2529.jpg\")
<\/a><\/div>\n
![](\"http:\/\/1.bp.blogspot.com\/-elKqzboV4gk\/Tn9IOQ5qc9I\/AAAAAAAAAaY\/mXWxK0RKy6s\/s1600\/C-47+port+side+%2528Medium%2529.jpg\")
<\/a><\/div>\n\nThe C-47 is a classic “tail dragger”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
\n<\/div>\n
\n<\/div>\n
\n![](\"http:\/\/1.bp.blogspot.com\/-222uN6mJgwE\/Tn9IsIsMIMI\/AAAAAAAAAac\/EMQYUjfLxLE\/s320\/Window+with+opening+for+rifle+%2528Medium%2529.jpg\")
<\/a><\/div>\n
<\/a><\/div>\n\n<\/div>\n
\nLooking out the window with an opening<\/div>\n
\nthat was used to permit firing rifles during the war.<\/div>\n
\n
<\/a><\/div>\n
<\/a><\/div>\n
\n![](\"http:\/\/4.bp.blogspot.com\/-Cbu6I2cAZCc\/Tn9I6GfPByI\/AAAAAAAAAag\/4yAiR-28bFI\/s320\/Taking+Photos+%2528Medium%2529.jpg\")
<\/a><\/div>\n
<\/a><\/div>\n\nTaking pictures out the window. <\/div>\n
\nThey let us get out of our seats for most of the flight.
\nNote that you can see the structure of the fuselage
\nand the seats are very primitive. <\/div>\n
\nNote that you can see the structure of the fuselage
\nand the seats are very primitive. <\/div>\n
<\/p>\n
\n
<\/a><\/div>\n
<\/a><\/div>\n
\n
<\/a><\/div>\n
<\/a><\/div>\n
\n![](\"http:\/\/4.bp.blogspot.com\/-Mq0gqcKt0bk\/Tn9JsIlvWFI\/AAAAAAAAAak\/2RPtMvtQq-Y\/s320\/Flying+over+The+Garden+of+the+Gods+%2528Medium%2529.jpg\")
<\/a><\/div>\n
<\/a><\/div>\n\n<\/div>\n
Flying over The Garden of the Gods<\/p>\n
\n
<\/a><\/div>\n
<\/a><\/div>\n
\n![](\"http:\/\/1.bp.blogspot.com\/-SwvqiUlzcdA\/Tn9KN-SqdWI\/AAAAAAAAAao\/EOFOFv4EqOg\/s320\/C-47+Cockpit+%2528Medium%2529.jpg\")
<\/a><\/div>\n
<\/a><\/div>\n\n
<\/a><\/div>\n
![<\/a><\/div>\n\nLooking into the cockpit during the flight.<\/div>\n\nThe right side seems to be original, while the pilot<\/div>\n\nhas a modern display. <\/div>\n\n<\/div>\n\n<\/div>\n\n<\/div>\n\n<\/div>\n\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Flying in a Gooney Bird. My family arranged for me to take a flight is a C-47 military aircraft as a birthday present. It was a very special event, as I have always been very impressed by the design and … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-100","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/beltguy.com\/Travelogue\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/100","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/beltguy.com\/Travelogue\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/beltguy.com\/Travelogue\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/beltguy.com\/Travelogue\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/beltguy.com\/Travelogue\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=100"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/beltguy.com\/Travelogue\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/100\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/beltguy.com\/Travelogue\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=100"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/beltguy.com\/Travelogue\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=100"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/beltguy.com\/Travelogue\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=100"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}](\"http:\/\/4.bp.blogspot.com\/-Cbu6I2cAZCc\/Tn9I6GfPByI\/AAAAAAAAAag\/4yAiR-28bFI\/s1600\/Taking+Photos+%2528Medium%2529.jpg\"){kind=link}
<\/a><\/div>\n
\nLooking into the cockpit during the flight.<\/div>\n
\nThe right side seems to be original, while the pilot<\/div>\n
\nhas a modern display. <\/div>\n
\n<\/div>\n
\n<\/div>\n
\n<\/div>\n
\n<\/div>\n
\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Flying in a Gooney Bird. My family arranged for me to take a flight is a C-47 military aircraft as a birthday present. It was a very special event, as I have always been very impressed by the design and … Continue reading