The Curtiss C-46 Commando was a military transport aircraft used by the US Army's Air Forces during World War II. Initially developed for the civil market, it entered service in June 1942. It was first employed on local duties, but its operations would soon be expanded to cover the Mediterranean Theater to supply Allied troops in North Africa with ammunition, weapons, and food. It would also fly combat sorties in Korea and in Vietnam. A total of 3,180 Commando airplanes were built, with the main versions being the C-46A, C-46D, and C-46E.
Although it operated under the shadow of the more prolific Douglas C-47, the Curtiss C-46 gave reliable service throughout WW2 as well as in later armed conflicts. It usually flew at the extreme of its performance, covering the India-Burma-China Theater of Operations. Later, it would become a reliable cargo plane in the postwar period, taking part in the Berlin Airlift to supply food and fuel to the Germans living in West Berlin, which had been blockaded by the Soviet Union. As a civil airliner, it was known as the CW-20.
Technical Characteristics
The Curtiss C-46 Commando was a large twin-engine monoplane, with all-metal fuselage. It had dihedral, cantilever mid-wing, which tapered towards the tip. It was the first aircraft to use a 'double-bubble' pressurized design, which used the cabin floor as a common chord line. It could accommodate up to 40 paratroopers. It also had the capacity to carry up to three 4x4 Jeeps.
Specifications
Type: military transport plane
Length: 23.27 m (76 feet, 4 inches)
Wingspan: 32.92 m (108 feet, 1 inch)
Wing Area: 126.16 m2 (1,338 square feet)
Height: 6.71 m (22 feet)
Power Plant: two Pratt & Whiney R-2800-51 Double Wasp, 18-cylinder, air-cooled radial engines, each producing 2,000-HP.
Maximum Speed: 434.5 km/h (270 mph)
Range: 3,701 km (2,300 miles)
Service Ceiling: 8,412 m (27,600 feet)
Crew: 3
Below, the Curtiss C-46 Commando makes a home delivery flight in May 1943
The R5C-1, US Marine version of this cargo plane, in flight in April 1950.
A Curtiss C-46A parked on a grassy airfield in unknown location. The Commando proved rugged enough to operate on airfields even in worse conditions than the one you can see in the photograph.
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