"Bataan"








This Super Constellation (Air Force C-121)
was the personal plane of General Douglas MacArthur.












It's appropriately dubbed "Bataan."













She hasn't flown in 10 years but the engines are
run on occasion.   There was no oil on the ground.













"Bataan" is on display in the aviation museum
at Grand Canyon Valle Airport in northern Arizona.













The cockpit looks like great fun!















The Engineer's table behind the co-pilot.















The Navigator's station just behind the pilot.















Each set of seats has a folding work table.















Apparently the Communications Center.















Presumably the General's seat.   What were his
thoughts as he rode to meet President Truman?





From a "Planes of Fame" promotional brochure:





In 1948 the U.S. Air Force ordered from Lockheed ten Model L-749
Constellations and designated them C-121As. The type had a strengthened
floor and a large cargo door fitted to the aft fuselage, but could also
be fitted with a removable 44-seat passenger cabin, or house 20 stretchers
for medevac missions. The ten aircraft (AF serial #s 48-0608 through 0617)
were delivered between December 1948 and the first part of 1949 and were
based at Westover AFB as part of the Atlantic Division of the Military Air
Transport Service (MATS).



Within a short time, eight of the aircraft, including Bataan, were involved
in the Berlin Airlift, making almost continuous Atlantic crossings delivering
cargo to England or Frankfurt, Germany, for onward transport. Their long
range was a big factor; the eight flew over 5 million miles during the Airlift.




Shortly after the conclusion of the Airlift, the C-121s were withdrawn
from service and flown to Lockheed for conversion to high-speed VIP
transports for the U.S. Air Force. The cargo interiors were removed,
extra windows were added, and weather radar was fitted to the nose,
resulting in the familiar, more pointed nose. The C-121A was the first
type in USAF service to be fitted with weather radar.


After conversion, the aircraft were assigned to various VIPs. Number 613
became the personal aircraft of General Douglas MacArthur and was used by
him during his time as Supreme Commander Allied Powers during the Korean
War. He named the aircraft Bataan after a peninsula in the Philippines.
Bataan was the last stronghold of MacArthur's American forces defending the
islands against the Japanese in 1942.



The General flew many notable missions in the Bataan, including his famous
meeting with President Truman on Wake Island, and 17 missions over the Korean
battlefields. His last flight took him back to San Francisco after he had
been fired by Truman for making political statements. The aircraft was
thereafter used by his successors, Generals Ridgeway and Clark.



Subsequently, the airplane was assigned to the ranking Army General in the
Pacific and was based at Hickam AB in Hawaii. It served in this role until
its retirement from Air Force service in 1966. At that time, all the C-121As
were sent to Davis-Monthan AFB in Tucson, AZ, for storage. Many were
stripped of military equipment and sold to civilian operators, ending up
in Canada as fire fighters and bug sprayers. No. 613 was luckier and was
assigned to NASA for use in conjunction with the Apollo space program.



Redesignated as NASA 422, the airplane was refitted with banks of
sophisticated computers, tracking equipment, and communications gear used
to calibrate the many air- and ground-based tracking and communications
relay stations around the globe used to keep in constant contact with
orbiting spacecraft. In order to fulfill this mission, the aircraft was flown
over the Caribbean and Pacific. With the cancellation of the Apollo program
in 1970, #422 was sent to the Army Aviation Museum at Fort Rucker, AL,
for public display.



After 20+ years on display in the open, #613 was given a new lease on life
when The Air Museum Planes of Fame acquired her for its collection. After a
full restoration to flying condition, the airplane was flown to Texas
where she was outfitted with an exact reproduction of her original VIP
interior. She was flown to The Air Museum at Chino, CA, and is now on
permanent display at the Planes of Fame Grand Canyon in Valle, AZ. The
aircraft is maintained in flyable condition.



Specifications:



Engines: 4 x R-3350, 2,500 hp each
Span: 123 ft.
Length: 95 ft.
Gross Weight: 133,000 lbs.
Cruise Speed: 347 mph
Ceiling: 22,300 ft.
Range: 2,400 mi.

If you were, or know someone who was, a flight or ground crew member
for Bataan, or any of the other C-121As, please contact Bob Reed, Director,
Planes of Fame Grand Canyon, HCR 34, Box B, Valle-Williams, AZ 86406












Continue to the "Columbine"






See a detailed history of the Constellation by Ralph Petterson







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