C-54/D ✪ Skymaster Long-range Transport Aircraft Douglas
The Douglas C-54 was the military version of the four-engine, Douglas DC-4 commercial transport. The C-54 was modified over the years into thirteen different variants and 1,084 examples of the aircraft were built for military service. It was never adapted for parachute delivery of either troops or cargo. C-54 Skymasters flew a total of 79,642 ocean crossings during World War II, with only three aircraft lost. The C-54 also participated in operations between India and China over the Himalayan Mountains—flying the ”Hump.” Skymasters transported supplies to both the European and Pacific Theaters during World War II. Women Air Force Service Pilots (WASPs) operated the C-54 and piloted some of these missions. After World War II, over two hundred C-54s, including this C-54G, hauled coal, food and milk to West Berlin, Germany, during the Berlin Airlift.