@ Honolulu, HI
December 2024
An overhead view of the Pearl Harbor Aviation Museum’s C-47A “Cheeky Charlie”. Delivered in 1943, this aircraft had a distinguished service record in the Pacific. Postwar, it was converted to DC-3A airliner configuration and operated in Australia. In 1970 it was converted again to a freight transport, then transferred to Hawaii in 1972 where she was utilized for inter-island freight operations. The C-47 was flown by Aloha Airlines on its 40th anniversary in April 1998, eventually joining the Museum collection in 2012. It’s service life exceeded 55,000 flight hours. First flown in 1941, more than 10,000 of these iconic transports were produced. Approximately 100 countries’ armed forces have operated the C-47 with over 60 variants of the aircraft produced. As with the civilian DC-3, the C-47 remains in service in the present day with some nations. In June 1975 the USAF retired their last C-47 in service.
