| DC-5/C-110/R3D | |
|---|---|
 US Navy Douglas R3D-2 | |
| General information | |
| Type | Transport |
| Manufacturer | Douglas Aircraft Company |
| Designer | Donald Douglas |
| Status | Retired |
| Primary users | KNILM |
| Number built | 12 |
| History | |
| Introduction date | 1940 |
| First flight | 20 February 1939 |
| Retired | 1949 |
TheDouglas DC-5 (Douglas Commercial Model 5) was a 16-to-22-seat, twin-engine propeller aircraft intended for shorter routes than theDouglas DC-3 orDouglas DC-4. By the time it entered commercial service in 1940, many airlines were canceling orders for aircraft. Consequently, only five civilian DC-5s were built. With theDouglas Aircraft Company already converting toWorld War II military production, the DC-5 was soon overtaken by world events, although a limited number of military variants were produced.
The DC-5 was developed in 1938 as a 16-22 seat[1] civilian airliner, designed to use eitherPratt & Whitney R-1690 Hornet orWright R-1820 Cycloneradial engines.[2] It was the firstairliner to combineshoulder wings andtricycle landing gear, a configuration that is still common inturboprop airliners andmilitary transport aircraft, although the modern versions are actually high wing, as the structure sits atop the fuselage shell rather than intersecting a significant segment.[3]The tricycle landing gear was innovative for transport airplanes. It provided better ground handling and better ground visibility for the pilots.
The fuselage was about two feet above the ground, so loading of passengers and cargo was easier than aircraft with the then-standardconventional landing gear.[4]A very early design change was the addition of a 15-degreedihedral to the horizontal tail group to negate a hint of an aeroelasticity problem. Thedorsalstrake, introduced in minimal form and expanded to full growth on the Boeing 307, is also well developed on the DC-5. Another significant modification was adding exhaust stacks to the enginenacelles, which was retroactively incorporated after the series entered production.[5] An unusual optical trick was applied to the prototype. The top of the vertical stabilizer and the outline of the engine nacelles were painted a darker color following the aircraft's contour, making the tail and engines appear somewhat smaller and the aircraft sleeker.[6]
Prior to US entry into World War II, one prototype and four production aircraft were built.
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The prototype DC-5, Douglas serial 411, was built atEl Segundo, California, with 1,000 hp Wright R-1820-44 Cyclone engines. The aircraft made its first flight on February 20, 1939, withCarl Cover at the controls. This sole prototype (configured with just eight seats) became the personal aircraft ofWilliam Boeing, who named itRover. It was later impressed into the US Navy and converted for military use as an R3D-3 variant in February 1942.[6]
The first customer for the type wasKLM, who ordered four planes. Pennsylvania Central (later renamedCapital Airlines) ordered six andSCADTA (Sociedad Colombo-Alemana de Transportes Aéreos), ancestor ofAvianca, ordered two. When Douglas factories went into war production, DC-5 production was curtailed to build additionalSBD Dauntless dive bombers for theUnited States Navy (USN) andUnited States Marine Corps (USMC) and so only KLM received the high-winged airliner.
A dozen DC-5s were completed, of which four went into commercial service with KLM. The first two initially were put to use by theKLM West-Indisch Bedrijf and flew betweenParamaribo inSurinam (now Suriname) andCuraçao in theDutch colonial territory of the same name. The other two were sold to the Netherlands-Indies Government for use byKNILM (with no affiliations with KLM, despite having their head offices in Amsterdam) from Batavia (nowJakarta, Indonesia) from 1940 onwards. The first pair were later also transferred to KNILM. Of these four aircraft, three were used for the 1942 evacuation of civilians from Java to Australia; the fourth was damaged in an air strike by theImperial Japanese Army Air Force at Batavia Kemajoran Airport on February 9, 1942, and abandoned. Japanese forces captured and subsequently repaired it for testing in Japan during 1943. This DC-5, painted in camouflage with Japanese Imperial Army Air Force markings, was later used as a transport in theJapanese Home Islands.[6]
The three remaining aircraft made their way safely to Australia where they were sold to theUnited States Army Air Forces (USAAF) and operated for theAllied Directorate of Air Transport (ADAT). Two were destroyed by the end of 1942, the other was transferred toAustralian National Airways (ANA), which operated it throughout the war on behalf of ADAT. In 1944 the USAAF retroactively designated the three aircraftC-110 for administrative purposes.
In 1939, the USN ordered seven aircraft. Three were delivered as R3D-1s, the first of which crashed before delivery. The remaining four were R3D-2s for the USMC and were equipped with 1,015 hp R-1820-44 engines, a large cargo hold, and 22 seats forparatroopers.[6]
After World War II, production of the DC-5 was not resumed because of the abundance of surplus C-47 aircraft, converted for civil service as DC-3s. In 1948, the last surviving DC-5 was sold by Australian National Airways to another Australian airline, which smuggled it to Israel for military use. The aircraft arrived atHaifa in May 1948, and from there it went toSde Dov, where its markings were removed and the name "Yankee Pasha – The Bagel Lancer" was crudely painted on the nose by hand. The aircraft joined103 Squadron atRamat David Airbase. Because Israel was in the midst of the1948 Arab–Israeli War, it was occasionally used as abomber as well as flying transport missions. On bomber missions the aft loading door was removed and bombs were rolled out of the opening "by a judicious shove from a crewman's foot."[7] The operational record of the aircraft is in dispute as authoritative sources do not verify its combat service.
When the war ended and 103 Squadron moved, the DC-5 was left behind at Ramat David.[8] It eventually found its way to a technical school where it was used extensively as a ground instruction airframe atHaifa Airport. When it was no longer serviceable due to a lack of spares, the airframe was stripped of its engines and instruments and the last DC-5 was reduced to scrap in Israel sometime after 1955.[9]
| Construction number | Civilian registration | Initial service date | Military service registration | last noted | Remarks |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 424 | PH-AXA | Reservation for KLM as PH-AXA "Alk" (reservation not taken up due to getting sent to Netherlands Antilles) | |||
| as PJ-AIW | May 1940 | Went to Curaçao for KLM West Indisch bedrijf as PJ-AIW "Wakago". Went to Netherlands Indies via USA briefly after war broke out. | |||
| as PK-ADC | August 1941 | Camouflage colour scheme. Was flown to Australia in February 1942 because of the Japanese threat. | |||
| VH-CXB | April 1942 | USAAF unk | Used for charter work by Allied Directorate of Air Transport (ADAT) | ||
| June 1944 | retro-serialled 44-83231 | 1946 | registered and assigned type designator C-110. Used by USAAF 21 squadron in USAAF colours and markings. Scrapped in 1946 at Essendon | ||
| 426 | PH-AXB | Reservation for KLM as PH-AXB "Boschduif", but this airframe was used for static destructive testing for modifications demanded by the Netherlands airworthiness agency. Douglas replaced it with a new c/n 426 | |||
| 426 | PH-AXG | Reservation for KLM as PH-AXG "Grutto" (reservation not taken up due to getting sent to Netherlands Antilles) | |||
| PJ-AIZ | 30 May 1940 | Went to Curaçao for KLM West Indisch bedrijf as PJ-AIZ "Zonvogel". Went to Netherlands Indies via USA briefly after war broke out. | |||
| PK-ADD | August 1941 | Camouflage colour scheme. Was flown to Australia in February 1942 because of the Japanese threat. | |||
| 41-426/VH-CXC | April 1942 | Used for charter work by Allied Directorate of Air Transport (ADAT) | |||
| June 1944 | retro-serialled 44-83232 | registered and assigned type designator C-110. Used by USAAF 21 squadron in USAAF colours and markings | |||
| VH-ARD | July 1946 | Sold to Australian National Airways and later to Gregory Richmond Board in Sydney, yet later to New Holland Airways as 'Bali Clipper'. | |||
| 1501 | 1948 | 1962 | Sold via Italy to Israeli Air Force; received IAF serial 1501, Went to Israëli AF Technical School in Haifa. Supposedly scrapped in mid-1960s. | ||
| 428 | PH-AXB | Reservation for KLM as PH-AXB "Boschduif" | |||
| PK-ADB/D-904 | May 1940 | went to KNILM in Netherlands-Indies. | |||
| Camouflage colour scheme. Was flown to Australia in February 1942 because of the Japanese threat. | |||||
| 41-428/VH-CXA | April 1942 | Used for charter work by Allied Directorate of Air Transport (ADAT). Supposedly damaged during Japanese attack on Port Moresby (PNG) August 1942 others say a Parafield (South Aus) end of 1942. | |||
| June 1944 | retro-serialled 44-83230 | registered and assigned type designator C-110, even though it had been written off 18 months earlier. | |||
| 430 | PH-AXE | Reservation for KLM as PH-AXE "Eend" | |||
| PK-ADA/D-905 | went to KNILM in Netherlands-Indies. | ||||
| March 1942 | Captured by Japanese troops, repaired and flown to Tokio for testing. | ||||
| 1945 | scrapped |
Data from Jane's all the World's Aircraft 1939,[17] McDonnell Douglas aircraft since 1920 : Volume I[18]
General characteristics
Performance
Related development
Aircraft of comparable role, configuration, and era
Related lists
