Home DC-3 Individual Aircraft History C/N 12026
 
C/N 12026

Douglas C-47A-1-DK

31 October 1943 delivered to the USAAF as 42-92247.

5 January 1944 it went to the Royal Canadian Air Force as FL615.

February 1944 was transferred to the RAF and served with an Operational Transition Unit in Canada, 32 OTU

19 February 1946 struck off charge and entered the War Assets Corporation (Canada) Ltd.

1 March 1946 started with Trans Canada Air Lines as CF-TDO

11 May 1959 started with Matane Air Services Ltd

21 August 1963 registered ZS-DRJ for Commercial Air Services, Comair

1976 Leased to Lesotho Air Lines

1979 Leased to Magnum Air Lines

National Airways Corporation.

Operated for XPS

1996 operated by Oriole Express and named Lady Victoria

Also seen with the name Little Annie

Owned at one stage by Sheréll Cunningham. (Sherell)

Carried the name Reiger when in service with Comair, to commemorate 50th anniversary of the first DC-3 in South Africa which was PH-ALR of KLM in December 1938.

1999 To Africa Charter Airlines. Stored at Rand Airport. Egoli Plek van Goud titles. In English Egoli Place of Gold

2009 Sold to Gert de Klerk. Aircraft Parked at Phoebus Apollo facilities and prepared for ferry to Wonderboom Airport

DC-3 ZS-DRJ flies again after 13 years

30 January 2010 ZS-DRJ was ferried from Rand Airport to Wonderboom Airport. Crew was Gert de Klerk and Ernst Conradie. The aircraft had not flown for 13 years. It was quite poignant as the Dakota Association was in the middle of its first meeting after 10 years of being dormant. The take-off was viewed from the balcony of the Dakota Lodge at Rand Airport where the DASA meetings are occasionally held.


C/N 12026

ZS-DRJ Comair

Rand Airport 16 November 1973

Photograph: Rolf Larsson

12026 ZS-DRJ Comair Clinton Groves

C/N 12026

ZS-DRJ Comair

October 1976

Photograph: Clinton H Groves collection

12026 ZS-DRJ Comair clinton Groves 2

C/N 12026

ZS-DRJ Comair

Photograph: Clinton H Groves collection

C/N 12026

ZS-DRJ Comair

Photograph: Peter Wonfor



C/N 12026
ZS-DRJ
Rand Airport 15 May 2005.
Photograph: Bruce Perkins
12026 ZS-DRJ Rand 28 July 2003 Thomas Posch

C/N 12026

ZS-DRJ
Rand Airport 28 July 2003
Photograph: Thomas Posch
12026 zs-drj 9 February 2006 Rand Airport Timothy Webster 1

C/N 12026

ZS-DRJ
Rand Airport 9 February 2006
Photograph: Timothy Webster
12026 zs-drj 9 February 2006 Rand Airport Timothy Webster 2

C/N 12026

ZS-DRJ
Rand Airport 9 February 2006
Photograph: Timothy Webster

12026 ZS-DRJ 22 November 2009 Bruce Perkins

C/N 12026

ZS-DRJ
Rand Airport 22 November 2009
Photograph: Bruce Perkins

 

12026 ZS-DRJ 30 January 2010 Bruce Perkins

C/N 12026

ZS-DRJ
Rand Airport 30 January 2010

Egoli Plek van Goud titles. In English Egoli Place of Gold. The titles were only on the left side

Photograph: Bruce Perkins
12026 ZS-DRJ 30 January 2010 Paul Potgieter 1

 

C/N 12026

ZS-DRJ
Departing Rand Airport for Wonderboom Airport 30 January 2010
Photograph: Paul Potgieter

12026 ZS-DRJ 30 January 2010 Paul Potgieter 2

C/N 12026

ZS-DRJ
Departing Rand Airport for Wonderboom Airport 30 January 2010

Photograph: Paul Potgieter


12026 ZS-DRJ 30 January 2010 Paul Potgieter 3

C/N 12026

ZS-DRJ
Departing Rand Airport for Wonderboom Airport 30 January 2010

Photograph: Paul Potgieter


12026 zs-drj 30 January 2010 Karel Zaayman 1

C/N 12026

ZS-DRJ
Departing Rand Airport for Wonderboom Airport 30 January 2010

Photograph: Karel Zaayman


12026 zs-drj 30 January 2010 Karel Zaayman 2

C/N 12026

ZS-DRJ
Departing Rand Airport for Wonderboom Airport 30 January 2010
DC-3 ZS-BXF parked on the apron

Photograph: Karel Zaayman


12026 zs-drj 30 January 2010 Karel Zaayman 3

C/N 12026

ZS-DRJ
Departing Rand Airport for Wonderboom Airport 30 January 2010

Photograph: Karel Zaayman


12026 zs-drj 30 January 2010 Karel Zaayman 4

C/N 12026

ZS-DRJ
Departing Rand Airport for Wonderboom Airport 30 January 2010

Photograph: Karel Zaayman


12026 zs-drj 30 January 2010 Karel Zaayman 5

C/N 12026

ZS-DRJ
Departing Rand Airport for Wonderboom Airport 30 January 2010

Photograph: Karel Zaayman


A legend gets resurrected from the long grass gravesite.

By Erns Conradie

Recently, Gert de Klerk, DC-3 legend pilot/engineer/rebuilder/converter/owner, purchased ZS-DRJ, the old Comair DC-3 with the Egoli emblem, which had been parked in the long grass areas of Rand Airport for the last 13 years.

He got hold of legendary DC-3 engineer Mike Conyngham and tasked him with getting the DC-3 airworthy to ferry over to Wonderboom where she will get taken apart again and properly serviced to full airworthy status. This took him about a month and by the end of January, she was ready. Engines were run up twice and all circuits, pumps, and systems worked fine.

Rand Airport, Saturday, 30 January 2010. Oom Gert, Mike and I arrived at the aircraft, fit borrowed batteries (because the plane had been run up with ground power), just to find out the batteries don’t work. The batteries were checked and found healthy. So we got hold of an electrical engineer. He said a relay broke, but he can’t find it at the usual place so we all start unscrewing panels all over the plane to look for it. Two hours later, we find it under the floorboard below the first passenger row - of all places. He doesn’t have the spares but rewire the ground power relay to batteries and we’re good to go.

Starting up. Wow, no problems. She starts like she’s been flying every day. After the engines warmed up, we switched on the generators (the switches are in the baggage compartment so I have to unbuckle and climb out of my seat to reach them). The generators only work from about 1400rpm and you can only get that sort of rpm with hot oil otherwise the oil pipes burst. No charge. This is bad news even for a ferry, because the propellers feather using electrical power and a lot of it so we can’t trust batteries which are depleting on the flight and has been used for the start as well. I get up again and flick the switches a couple of times and later Mike gets in to help. Nothing. Then I found 2 switches behind the Captain seat with no name or placard. I try them. Still nothing. Then suddenly, one of them jumps online. Now for the radios, and yes they work.

After a radio call for taxi, we taxied to runway 29. Although 35 was in use and the DC-3 has no problems using 35, we decided to use runway 29 because it is a bit longer and the possibility of a rejected take off is rather bigger than normal. This is after all the aircraft’s first flight in 13 years! At the holding point we do a proper run-up. The engines are running beautifully and there is hardly an rpm drop when we checked the magnetos. With the before takeoff checks done, we get told to line up and wait.

We are cleared for take off. Mixtures to auto rich and Oom Gert gently opened the throttles to a modest 35 inches MP at 2700rpm. Temperatures and pressures in the green and unbelievably the same for both sides, he let go of the brakes and we’re off. At 30 knots, the tail jumped in the air and at 85 knots we’re airborne just after the 35 intersection. Positive climb, gear up. I check outside for the wheel coming up and the engine cowling is glittering in the sun without any oil or smoke.

Oom Gert asked for climb power after which I adjust the throttles to 31 inches with 2100rpm. She sounded sweet. Oom Gert confirmed that the aircraft flew good enough to spend another 5 minutes here so I asked the tower for a fly-past/runway inspection as requested by the Dakota Association. We turned final for 35 and kept about 100 feet and 130 knots to minimize stress on the airframe and have a bit in the bank for his old bird.

The flight to Wonderboom carried on without any hitch. We climbed to 7500 feet and set cruise power to 27 inches 2000rpm with the mixtures to auto lean. At Woodmead we flew alongside the N1 past Grand Central Airport and then along the R28 between Waterkloof and Swartkop. We joined left hand downwind for runway 29 at Wonderboom and with no traffic around, were on final approach in no time. The wheels extended on schedule and with flaps set to 45 degrees, we were good to land and what a greaser it turned out to be! We easily made the turnoff just after runway 24 and taxied to the hanger without any hiccups.

After we put all the covers on and locked the aircraft, I walk to Oom Gert’s car where he had just got off the phone with his girlfriend. “They don’t get it you know…. This is the safest aircraft in the world – that’s why they still work commercially after 75 years. She should rather worry about us driving back now!”

Spot on, I think to myself. I started flying 16 years ago at Oom Gert’s flying school, Tropair Training, and at long last got to fly with the legend in a legendary aircraft. I got to be the luckiest person in the world.


12026 ZS-DRJ at Wonderboom Rainer Bexten 19 March 2011
C/N 12026
ZS-DRJ
Undergoing restoration to flying condition.
Wonderboom Airport 19 March 2011
Photograph: Rainer Bexten
12026 ZS-DRJ At Wonderboom 27 April 2011 Bruce Perkins
C/N 12026
ZS-DRJ
Undergoing restoration to flying condition.
Wonderboom Airport 27 April 2011
Photograph: Bruce Perkins

DC-3 ZS-DRJ flies again after 13 years
 
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