Canadian Forces C-47 Dakota 1960s-1980s
Photos by Dr. John Blatherwick (unless otherwise credited)
Write up by Henry Tenby
Between the mid 1940s and the late 1980s the Royal Canadian Air Force and Canadian Armed Forces operated a fleet of several hundred different airframes of the C-47 over the passing decades.
The reliable transports were based from coast to coast, with major bases including CFB Cold Lake, CFB Winnipeg, and CFB Shearwater, in addition to overseas assignments supporting Canadian troops in our NATO commitments at bases with Europe, primarily in the UK, France and Germany.
Canadian Armed Forces C-47 Dakota 12944 at Vancouver in May 1971.
Many of the aircraft were built by Douglas of Santa Monica during World War II, and after their retirement from Canadian military duty a good number of the C-47 Dakotas were sold into the civil market operating for smaller Canadian airlines. The C-47 aircraft were operated under several divisions including Rescue, Air Training Command, Maritime Command, and Mobile Command.
Most of these lovely images were taken by Dr. John Blatherwick during his Canadian travels in the 1970s.
Henry Tenby has been collecting aircraft slides since the early 1980s, and has amassed the collection of NASA flight test development aircraft slides in his collection as presented on this page.
I am looking to purchase 35mm Kodachrome aircraft slide collections. Please contact me: henrytenby at gmail dot com
Thank you very much for visiting this page, and enjoy!
Canadian Armed Forces Training Rescue C-47 Dakota 12905 at Winnipeg in April of 1974. Notice recently retired Air Canada Viscounts that are parked in the background.Canadian Armed Forces Air Transport Command C-47 Dakota 12931 at CFB Shearwater in September of 1973.Canadian Armed Forces Maritime Command C-47 Dakota 12916 VU32 at CFB Shearwater in September of 1973.Canadian Armed Forces Mobile Command C-47 Dakota 12948 at London, Ontario in November of 1973.Canadian Armed Forces C-47 Dakota 12965 at CFB Shearwater in September of 1973.Canadian Armed Forces C-47 Dakota 12936 at Calgary in October of 1973.Canadian Armed Forces Training Command C-47 Dakota 12924 at CFB Shearwater in September of 1973.Canadian Armed Forces C-47 Dakota 12953 at Winnipeg in September of 1973.Canadian Armed Forces C-47 Dakota 12932 at rest at Vancouver in July of 1974.Canadian Armed Forces C-47 Dakota KN270 location not known in April of 1970.Royal Canadian Air Force RCAF Rescue C-47 Dakota KG587 location not known in March of 1968.Royal Canadian Air Force RCAF C-47 Dakota KN9797 location not known in June of 1970.Canadian Armed Forces C-47 Dakota 12907 at an airshow in Eastern Canada in August of 1988.Canadian Armed Forces C-47 Dakota 12959 at CFB Cold Lake in May of 1989.Canadian Armed Forces C-47 Dakota 12950 at Vancouver in May of 1974.Royal Canadian Air Force C-47 Dakota KN427 location not known in July of 1971.Former Canadian Armed Forces C-47 Dakota CF-QHF at Edmonton Municipal Airport in September of 1971.Canadian Armed Forces C-47 Dakota 12963 at Vancouver in June of 1977.Canadian Armed Forces C-47 Dakota 12965 at CFB Shearwater in September of 1973.Canadian Armed Forces C-47 Dakota 12944 location not known in October 1986.Canadian Armed Forces C-47 Dakota 12944 at Vancouver in May 1971.RCAF Royal Canadian Air Force C-47 Dakota 10917 location not know known 1968.Canadian Armed Forces C-47 Dakota 12938 Cold Lake probably taken at Cold Lake, April of 1975.
