Few aircraft are as well known or were so widely used for
so long as the C-47 or "Gooney Bird" as it was
affectionately nicknamed. The aircraft was adapted from the
DC-3
commercial airliner which appeared in 1936. The first C-47s were
ordered in 1940 and by the end of WW II, 9,348 had been procured
for AAF use. They carried personnel and cargo, and in a combat
role, towed troop-carrying gliders and dropped paratroops into
enemy territory. It was he most widely used military transport in
World War II. It saw service with the U.S. Navy as
the R4D and with the RAF as the Dakota.
After WWII, many C-47s remained in USAF
service, participating in the Berlin Airlift
and other peace-time activities. One hundred C-47J aircraft were
reengineered by Douglas and incorporated new wings, a new,
taller vertical tail, modified landing gear, and more powerful
engines. They entered U.S. Navy service under designation
C-117D.
During the Korean Conflict, C-47s hauled
supplies, dropped paratroops, evacuated wounded and dropped
flares for night bombing attacks. In Vietnam, the C-47 served
again as a transport, but it was also used for a variety of
other missions which included flying ground attack,
reconnaissance, and psychological warfare missions. The AC-47 "Spooky",
a heavily-armed gunship version of the C-47, was equipped with
three side-firing 7.62mm Miniguns and was nicknamed "Puff
the Magic Dragon."
The last C-47 was retired from the U.S. Air Force in 1975.
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