Warbird Information Exchange

Canso42,

There are a fair number of ex-AA airframes still around, a testament to the DC-3 durability. In addition to Flagship Detroit, Flagship Knoxville is restored and on display at AA Headquarters in the C.R. Smith Museum. Another Flagship will soon begin a restoration program, and others are scattered around the globe. I've often thought it would be cool to find an original Douglas Sleeper Transport, as that was the first DC-3 type airframe to be built.

As to the engines, the equally beautiful Ship #41, restored by Delta folks, has Wrights as well--I think Delta ordered all their original DC-3s with Cyclones.

Scott

Great pics, my Uncle, Bryce McCormick worked on and was part of the crew that flew Flagship Louisville from TUL to DFW and the famous damage they inflicted to the DFW landing lights. Bryce went back from TUS to work on the Louisville alot.

When they flew it down to put it in the C.R. Smith Museum, Capt. McCormick, not my Uncle, and his wife MiMi, who was an American Stewardess before marrying Capt. McCormick wore her original uniform to properly take care of the crew and passengers for the flight. When they landed at DFW, they told the crew to get on the ground and get off the active ASAP (they were constipating the traffic into DFW). Well, Capt. McCormick did just that, and he literally caught a threshold light at the edge of the active with the tail wheel. Now, he was 80'ish at the time and had an active certification on the DC-3, FAA tried to pull it after he caught the light. Oh well, they gave up on it in a bit.

She looks great, nice to know another of the Flagship Fleet is flying. Also, the ship in the background in the TUL hanger is a 757, not a 737. Really round tail cone versus the 737 that is shorter and flatter.

Marc

Marc,

My reference to the 737 pertains to the airplane across the ramp with just the 46 section outside the hangar. That is Hangar 2, Detroit was parked in Hangar 5 bay "E" and the 757 getting winglets was in 5"F".

The airplane in the C.R. Smith Museum is Flagship Knoxville, not Loiusville.

S

My mistake, been a while since that front and center in the family. Are they modding all the 57's, and 67's with winglets?

Marc

Marc

They are going great guns to get all the 757s done. I think all 737s are winglet-equipped now, and AA has agreed to be the guinea pig for the 767 installation from information I've read. Don't know when they are going to do the first 767, though. I guess they really help fuel consumption, even more than advertised on longer routes.

Scott

Scott..

Yep, all the 737's have been modified.. They do have 2 Navy 737's coming in under contract for the winglets. I believe we have about 50 757's left to do. 767's are "supposed to be done in KC.
As to the fuel savings.. the first reports that came in on a/c so equipped showed better savings than initially estimated. That's what drove them to start the second line to expedite the mods.

Bill

Scott,

I've been trying to put together a complete spreadsheet of all of AA's DC-3 flagships (including DSTs) and whether or not they are still around. As best I can find at the moment, Flagship Texarkana (c/n 1499, and also the oldest existing AA DC-3/DST) and Flagship El Paso (c/n 2216) are the only AA DSTs still around. There are three or four DSTs that I haven't accounted for, but those two would be the first candidates for a DST retoration. the Texarkana is in Georgia, and from what I've heard (all second and third-hand) the owner has been offered some pretty good sums for the aircraft, and he's refused. There are rumors of an asking price (keeping in mind, for a non-flyable DC-3) in the $500,000 range. While it would be great to have in restored condition, that price is really out of the "reasonable" ballpark.

kevin

_________________
FOUND the elusive DT-built B-24! Woo-hoo!!!

What was the reasoning behind putting the cabin door on the right side? I probably never would have noticed from just looking at pictures, but now that it's been pointed out, it looks so strange!

Going from memory on this, the DST's were first built in the late 1930's, and at the time, there wasn't a standardized location for doors on aircraft. With time, airports and facilities started setting up for doors on the left side of the aircraft.

_________________
Roger Cain
www.sfahistory.org
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Stearman/


We must limit politicians to two terms:
one in office and one in jail.

It was a purely AA thing. C.R. Smith, who ordered the first DC-3s, didn't want the passengers to deplane next to the baggage being unloaded, which took place on the left side of the aircraft. So he ordered the doors on the right side.

kevin

_________________
FOUND the elusive DT-built B-24! Woo-hoo!!!

The AA DC-3s also had a small socket on the co-pilot side near the sliding window in which to place the "Admiral's Pennant" when taxiing up to the parking area. Oh, for the day when folks dressed in suits and fine dresses to travel!

The last time I was unfortunate enough to travel by airliner I got crammed in next to a smelly oaf in cutoffs and flip-flops.

Scott

Hey, sounds like you were beside me!! Just kidding. I had a rather uncomfortable airline experience last week, and also a very good experience with Jet Blue, unfortunately nobody flies DC-3's anymore, I'd rather fly on one of them than a Scarebus anytime!

Here's one of the flags, from the C.R. Smith museum.



Photo found here:

http://www.airchive.com/SITE%20PAGES/VI ... SMITH.html

_________________
FOUND the elusive DT-built B-24! Woo-hoo!!!

Speaking of sitting next to unpleasant company. ... Last week a co-worker showed me a msg on his work email. It described the rude next-seat passenger who looks over your shoulder at your laptop.

" Open your laptop, close your eyes, take a deep breath, exhale looking at the celing and then hit this link. "
Mike hit it and it opened a black screen with one big red line of text in Arabic with a six second timer running down in hundredths and thousandths of seconds. A good joke to talk about sitting on the ground but the fed air marshalls would probably shoot first and question later if you really did that!

cheers. I'd like to travel on a DC -3 myself!
Canso42