List of C-47 Skytrain operators

List of C-47 Skytrain operators includes the country, military service, known squadrons, and related data. The Skytrain or Dakota is a military transport that was developed from the Douglas DC-3 airliner. The C-47 has served with over 90 countries outside of the United States:

Operators

ARG

AUS

*Royal Australian Navy
**No. 723 Squadron RAN
**No. 724 Squadron RAN
**No. 725 Squadron RAN
**No. 851 Squadron RAN
*Royal Australian Air ForceThe RAAF drafted civilian DC-3s into military service in September 1939 at the outbreak of World War II. The first true C-47s were delivered to the RAAF in 1942 (ex-USAAF) and the first built specifically for the RAAF entered service in February 1943. 124 C-47s were delivered to the RAAF (and four to the Royal Australian Navy) by 1945. They were used throughout World War II, Korea and Malaya and in Occupied Japan. Most were transferred to civilian government agencies in Australia and New Guinea or sold to airlines in the 1960s. A handful survived in RAAF service into the 1990s with the last two being retired from the Aircraft Research and Development Unit in March 1999.

BEL

BEN

flag|Biafra

BOL

BRA

BUL

Bulgaria operated Soviet-built Li-2.

BIR

CAM

CAN

*Royal Canadian Air Force

CHA

CHI

ROC

PRC

COL

CGO

COD

CUB

CZS

Czechoslovakia operated C-47s and Soviet-built Li-2.

DNK

ECU

EGY

ESA

ETH

FIN

FRA

* The French Air Force operated Skytrains from September 1944 on, when Lend-Lease C-47Bs were delivered to the Groupe de Transport 1/15.

GAB

=flag|Nazi Germany|name=Germany=

* Luftwaffe operated several DC-3s captured from commercial airlines of various European countries.
* Lufthansa was supplied with few of these captured DC-3s from Luftwaffe inventory.

GDR

East Germany operated Soviet-built Li-2s.

GER

20 used by German Air Force

GRE

* Royal Hellenic Air Force
** No. 355 Squadron RHAF employed in the Greek Civil War from 1946 through 1948.

GUA

HAI

HON

HUN

Hungary operated Soviet-built Li-2s.

IND

IDN

*Indonesian Air Force (TNI-AU):
** C-47 Dakota with tailnumber RI-001 "Seulawah", bought by Acehnese people in 1948 during the Netherlands policional action in Indonesia. This plane used for the transportation between Java and Sumatra. One aircraft is given to Burma (now, Myanmar) as an honour for the friendship with Indonesia, during the war with the Dutch.
** Indonesia got some C-47 from the Netherlands after the wars ended in 1949.
** C-47 intensively used in lots of military conflicts with local rebels like PRRI in Sumatera and Permesta in Sulawesi and Maluku. Beside that, C-47 used for transport in non-conflict areas.
** Some C-47 given to local airlines for commercial using.

IRN

ISR

ITA

CIV

JPN

The Showa aircraft company of Japan acquired a license in 1930s to produce a copy of DC-3 as L2D, which was operated by Japanese armed forces during World War 2.

LAO

LBA

MAD

MWI

MLI

MRT

MEX

MON

MAR

NLD

NZL

* Royal New Zealand Air Force: Operated C-47s between 1942-1977.
**No. 40 Squadron RNZAF
**No. 41 Squadron RNZAF
**No. 42 Squadron RNZAF
* New Zealand National Airways Corporation (1946-1970)
* South Pacific Airlines of New Zealand (1960-1966)
* Southern Lakes Tourist Company (1961-1975)

NIC

NIG

NGA

PRK

North Korea operated Soviet-built Li-2s.

NOR

OMN

PAK

PNG

PAR

PER

PHI

POL

* Polish Air Force operated C-47s bought post-war from US stocks and Li-2s bought in Soviet Union.
* LOT Polish Airlines operated C-47s.

POR

:"Section source: Geocities C-47" [ [http://www.geocities.com/CapeCanaveral/Hangar/9376/c47FAP.htm Portugal Service] ]

The first C-47 Dakota (always known as Dakota in Portugal) operated by Portugal arrived in 1944, and like many other aircraft during this period of time, as a consequence of World War II. This first Dakota, with the serial number D-1, was the only aircraft of this type in service with Portugal until 1958. Already at the service of the Portuguese Air Force] , she was used for the transport of higher officer ranks.In September 1958, more C-47 are delivered to Portugal through the rest of the years, had been bought from the United States and some airlines. These aircraft were used for all type of missions, in Portugal and in Africa: transport of troops and cargo, medic evacuations, aerial photography, and search and rescue. C-47 were also converted to conduct special missions; at least one aircraft (6155) was used as a bomber in Guiné-Bissau during the Portuguese Colonial War, and other two were converted to release pesticides on crops in Africa.

The C-47 was finally retired in 1976. One (6157) was preserved for the "Museu do Ar" (Air Museum).

;"Aeronáutica Militar" (Army Military Aviation)
* "Esquadrilha Independente de Aviação de Caça-Secção de Transportes Aéreos" (Fighter-Air Transport Section of Independent Aviation Squadron)

;Portuguese Air Force
* 81 Squadron - Transport mission
* E.I.C.P.A.C. - "Esquadra de Instrução Complementar de Pilotagem de Aviões Pesados" (Heavy Transport Training Squadron). Formed at B.A.2 Ota in 1960 with C-47's.
* E.L.T.S. - "Esquadrilha de Ligação de Transporte Sanitário" (Sanitary Transport Squadron). Also based at Lisbon, had aircraft equipped for VIP and sanitary transport.
* 101 Squadron - Formed at B.A.10 - Beira (Moçambique) in February 5 1962 with C-47's. Later transferred to Lourenço Marques as Esquadra 801.

;Popular cultureAs two aircraft (6153 and 6171) were sold as N9984Q and N9983Q in July 1976, to be used in the movie A Bridge Too Far.

flag|Rhodesia

ROU

RWA

SAU

SEN

flag|South Africa|1928

* South African Air Force
** 35 Squadron SAAF: Still in use, flying the Turbo Dakota.
** 44 Squadron SAAF: Employed in 1944 and 1945 to support operations in the Greek Civil War.

KOR

SOM

USSR

* Soviet Air Force: The Lisunov Li-2 was a licensed copy of the DC-3, produced in Russia, some 6000 were made between 1939 and 1952, [cite web |last=Brouwer |first=Maarten |url=http://www.centercomp.com/cgi-bin/dc3/story?1332 |title=Lisunov Li-2 (NATO: Cab) |accessdate=2006-07-05] operated by the Soviet Union, and presumably some of its allies and client states. Soviet Union operated also C-47s supplied under the Lend-Lease system during World War II.

SRI

ESP

SWE

The Swedish Airforce started using DC-3s soon after World War II for transport purposes. A few were converted to SIGINT platforms and eavesdropped on Soviet radio communications and radar stations in the 1950s. One such plane was shot down by Soviet fighters in international airspace over the Baltic Sea in 1952 with all of the crew killed. ["Bortom Horisonten : Svensk Flygspaning mot Sovjetunionen 1946-1952" by Andersson, Lennart, Hellström, Leif]

SYR

THA

TOG

TUR

UGA

URU

UK

* Royal Air Force: RAF Transport Command was supplied with over 1,900 Dakotas under the Lend-Lease system during World War II and the type was flown by at least 46 operational squadrons, plus numerous support units. In total the RAF flew 50 Dakota I (C-47), 9 Dakota II (C-53), 962 Dakota III (C-47A) and 896 Dakota IV (C-47B). RAF Dakotas were assigned to the European, North African, Middle East and Far East theatres of war. C-47 Dakotas of the RAF and USAAF played an important role in dropping paratroopers and equipment and towing gliders to the Normandy landings and to Arnhem. Four squadrons of Dakota IVs took part in the Berlin Airlift in 1948/49.
* BOAC: 59 C-47s were supplied to BOAC to maintain international air links.

USA

* US Army Air Corps
* US Army Air Force
* US Air Force
* US Marine Corps
* US Navy
* National Test Pilot School

VEN

VNM

Vietnam operated Soviet-built Li-2s and ex-South Vietnamese captured C-47s.

=flag|South Vietnam|name=Republic of Vietnam=

* Air Vietnam
* Vietnam Air Force

YEM

YUG

ZAI

ZAM

References