Boarding PH-PBA!

[Hanno Spoelstra]

Originally Posted by Lang

Was Aert Mente one of the pilots?

He was probably one of the world's youngest 747 captains at 28, suppose he would be about 45 now and flys the DC3 in his spare time off fom Martinair/KLM.

Lang,

You're probably asking because you know him?

But no, sorry, the captain was a 63 year retired Martinair pilot (ex-naval engineer, ex-flight engineer, then pilot), the co-pilot is flying the last Douglas-designed aircraft (MD-11) for KLM.

Hanno

[Keith Webb]

Enjoyed your videos Hanno, the only thing missing was you should have turned your camera around for us to see your S.E.G.

[motto]

The company I worked for still operated C47s in Papua New Guinea for quite a few years after I started with them in 1966 and had only just disposed of the set of JATO bottles held for emergency purposes.

All of them carried a 1-1/2" flare pistol and six flares on the radio compartment bulkhead and the aircraft were never locked up at any time. Anybody could walk out onto the tarmac as the perimeter fence at Lae, our main base, was only waist high. It was a different world then.

Several of our aircraft were still fitted with the High Density or troop seating which was canvas fold up seating with the backs against the side of the fuselage and another row sideways down the middle. I well remember taking off from Lae on a staff charter flight with a total of 54 souls on board. Every troop seat was occupied with many adults having a child on their lap.The rear cargo compartment was full of Eskys and on the cabin floor just inside the entry door under a cargo net were two 9 gallon kegs of beer and large bags of ice.

On takeoff it took an age for the tail to come up and we used the full length of the runway to get airborne with the 1830s giving all they had and the props clawing at the moist tropical air while everyone sat tense and silent awaiting the outcome. When we lifted off at the end of the strip and roared out over the Huon Gulf a cheer went up. It was indeed a different world.

David

[Keith Webb]

Wow, great atmospheric story David. What was your job there?

Interestingly I have just been reading a story about Catalinas equipped with a pair of JATO bottles on each side, which were fitted post war to aircraft scheduled to go to Macquarie Island. There's a photo of one doing a test take-off from Port Philip Bay. The pilot said it had incredible performance up to about 500' when it returned to being just a Catalina at 90 knots.

[motto]

I joined TAA as an apprentice Aircraft Maintenance Engineer-Airframe Keith based in Melbourne. We also operated DC4s and at least one DC6B as I recall.

David

[Tony Wheeler]

Originally Posted by motto

On takeoff it took an age for the tail to come up and we used the full length of the runway to get airborne

Great story well told David. Reminds me of a book I read as a kid which told of a C47 loaded (supposedly) with PAP Marston matting. Apparently someone screwed up - it was actually PSP matting!

I've tracked down the probable book - "Grand Old Lady: Story of the DC3", which I recall as being an exceptionally good read. Copies are readily available and dirt cheap: http://www.amazon.com/gp/offer-listi...condition=used

Also a few copies on ebay: http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/1959-STOR...item4844617fc6

David, it sounds like the company you worked for disposed of their JATO bottles prematurely! Some great footage of a JATO C47 getting airborne in this old newsreel clip:

http://youtu.be/j7IeoPq2X5o

[Hanno Spoelstra]

That's what I like so much about the Dakota. It started life as the state of the art "Douglas Sleeper Transport" to compete in American coast-to-coast passenger flights, it turned out to be the most versatile workhorse the world has ever known.

Ever heard of the DC 2.5? How many accounts of grossly overloading (even by a factor of 2.5) are documented and still being able to fly? And 77 years after it's first flight, still in commercial operation today . . . will it make a century of flight?!?

What else can one do but to this grand old lady of the skies?

H.

[Col Tigwell]

And there was the one at cyprus which was blown up and repaired with Dexion stores racking.

Hard to kill this airplane.

Regards

Col

[Col Tigwell]

Age is making me a bit rusty on detail

A google search punching

Aircraft repair using Dexion steel will bring out the full story

Regards

Col