Skymaster unveiled in Nebraska

摘要

The Strategic Air & Space Museum in Ashland, Nebraska, has completed its restoration of Douglas C-54D Skymaster 42-72724. The recent unveiling of the aircraft marked the conclusion of a meticulous, three-year project, which began in October 2012. Two staff members and several dozen volunteers devoted more than 16,000 hours to welding, sanding and painting, ultimately returning the machine to its former glory. Manufactured at the Douglas factory in Chicago, 42-72724 was delivered to the USAAF on July 16,1945. It flew with the Twelfth Air Force in the Mediterranean before returning to the US in March 1946, where it was contracted for three years to Goodyear in Akron, Ohio. Having served with several units, mostly in Ohio and California, the Skymaster's final operator was Strategic Air Command's 3902nd Air Base Wing, based at Offutt, Nebraska. In January 1970 it was withdrawn from military service and transferred to the museum.