Curtiss - Wright
C-46
Commando
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Photo: Robert Deering 1991
Midland International Airport (MAF)

Midland, Texas
The C-46 was developed from the new and unproven commercial aircraft design, the CW-20, which first flew in March 1940. Deliveries of AAF C-46s began in July 1942 for the Air Transport Command and Troop Carrier Command. During World War II, the USAAF accepted 3,144 C-46s for hauling cargo and personnel and for towing gliders. Of this total, 1,410 were C-46Ds.

The C-46 gained its greatest fame during WWII transporting war materials over the "Hump" from India to China after the Japanese had closed the Burma Road. C-46 flights on the treacherous air route over the Himalayas began in May 1943. The Commando carried more cargo than the famous C-47 and offered better performance at higher altitudes, but under these difficult flying conditions, C-46s required extensive maintenance and had a relatively high loss rate. In Europe, C-46s dropped paratroopers during the aerial crossing of the Rhine River near Wesel in March 1945. C-46s saw additional service during the Korean War.
SPECIFICATIONS: PERFORMANCE:
Span:  108 ft. Maximum speed:  245 mph
Length:  76 ft. 4 in. Cruising speed:  175 mph
Height:  22 ft. Range: 1,200 miles
Empty Weight: Service ceiling:  27,600 ft.
Gross Weight:  51,000 lbs. maximum  
Crew:  
Engines:  Two Pratt & Whitney R-2800s of 2,000 hp each  
Armament:  None  
SOURCE:  National Museum of the United States Air Force  

Photo: Robert Deering 10/18/2012
National Museum of the USAF
Wright-Patterson AFB (FFO)
Dayton, Ohio