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Douglas DC-3 and C-47 in Swaziland


 

13164 3D-AAH Swazi Air Tony Edlind

C/N 13164
3D-AAH
Swazi Air
Blantyre International (Chileka) (BLZ / FWCL) Malawi
14 March 1973
Photograph: Tony Edlind

 

13164 VQ-ZJB Swazi Air Will Blunt

C/N 13164
VQ-ZJB
Swazi Air
Photograph: Will Blunt

 

13164 VQ-ZJB Jan Smuts Atlas john miller

C/N 13164

VQ-ZJB

Swazi Air

Photograph: John Miller

John wrote:

I believe the aircraft was owned by NAC at the time. It is parked outside the Atlas flight test hangar at Jan Smuts Airport and was the first commercial DC-3 maintenance work completed by Atlas hence the picture.

C/N 13164
TYPE: C-47A-20-DK
Delivery date: 1 May 1944
KG 572 RAF Nassau 12 May 1944
ACSEA (Air Command South East Asia) 18 June 1944
Indian Government 30 January 1947
Scottish Aviation Ltd 2 October 1947
G-AKJH Maharaja of Baroda 1 April 1948
Skyways ltd. 18 May 1950
BEA Edward Hillman 21 November 1950
Pionair 8 May 1951
Leased to WAAC
Derby Aviation Ltd. 17 April 1961
Derby Aviation Ltd. Monsuldale (or Monsildale)
British Midland Airways 1 October 1964
Gregory Air Services 12 April 1965
EI-ARR Leased to Emerald Airways 15 June 1967
C-AKJH Gregory Air Services 5 December 1967
VQ-ZJB Swazi Air 12 August 1968
3D-AAH re-registered April 1977
A2-ZHR Air Botswana (Protea Airways) July 1973
Botswana Air Service, Jan Smuts Airport
ZS-KAT Protea Airways 4 May 1977 via Aviation Equipment
R3700 Rhodesian Air Force 3 Squadron 8 January 1978
26,849 Flying Hours
3700 Air Force of Zimbabwe
Information from Bill Sykes
29 August 2009

 

 

C/N 42978

3D-ABI

Swazi Air

May 1974

Photograph: Ger Buskermolen

C/N 42978
Built as (post-war) type DC-3D and registered as NC34982 to the Douglas Aircraft Company.
The aircraft was sold to Swissair on 15 April 1946, as HB-IRC.
It remained with Swissair, until sold to Protea Airways in May 1969.
It was subsequently registered ZS-FRJ on 9 May 1969.
It operated on charter work for Protea Airways two subsidiaries, Swazi Air as 3D-ABI and Air Botswana, until it was withdrawn from service in early 1977.
It was restored to Protea Airways as ZS-FRJ on 11 May 1977 and sold via Aviation Equipment (Pty) Ltd to the Rhodesian Air Force. The aircraft was delivered to New Sarum and joined 3 Squadron, as R7310, later in May. It remained in the country through the 1980 transition to Zimbabwe.
As at the 11th June 1991 it was still with the Air Force of Zimbabwe and had flown 29,515 hours and 15 minutes.
It was ferried to Wonderboom for turbine conversion by Wonder Air (Gert de Klerk) during 2001. It is currently stored by Gert de Klerk, near Kromdraai, north of Pretoria, pending conversion.
Text: Brendan Odell

C/N 42978

3D-ABI

Swazi Air

Rand Airport 16 November 1973

Photograph: Rolf Larsson

42978 3D-ABI Swazi Air Clinton Groves

C/N 42978

3D-ABI

Swazi Ai

Note the rotting fabric on the control surfaces.

Photograph: Clinton H Groves collection

C/N 9628

3D-AAV

Rand Airport 16 November 1973

Photograph: Rolf Larsson

Built as C-47A

Registrations carried
42-23766 USAAF
FD906 RAF
6802 SAAF
ZS-DDV
G-AJXL
G-AMGD
VP-YTT
ZS-EKK
3D-AAV
ZS-IWL Comair
ET-AIA

 

 
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