Commando 44-77589
Aircraft Identification
VARIANT: Curtiss C-46D-10-CU Commando
USAAF SERIAL NUMBER (S/N): 44-77589
CURTISS CONSTRUCTION NUMBER (C/N): 32985
COMMANDO LINE NUMBER (L/N): CU1521
FATE: Unknown
Operational Record
December 1944 to September 1947
44-77589 - USAAF (USA)
December 1944
Delivered from the Curtiss-Wright factory in Buffalo, NY.
Early 1945
Assigned to the 9th Air Force, 52nd Troop Carrier Wing, 313th Troop Carrier Group, 48th Troop Carrier Squadron based at Grevillers-Achiet, France.
Marked "Z7".
24 March 1945
Assigned to Operation Varsity as Chalk 41, but suffered engine problems after takeoff and had to return.
Crew:
1st Lt. Norman B. Glaser, Pilot
1st Lt. John O. Houck, Copilot
S/Sgt. Irving J. Kaplan, Radio Operator
T/Sgt. Lawrence A. Longtin, Crew Chief
After takeoff, the Commando's right engine started cutting out due to fouled plugs and a bad ignition harness. The pilot elected to return to Achiet and the load was transferred to spare aircraft 44-77583.
September 1947 to May 1962
44-77589 - USAF (USA)
18 September 1947
Transferred.
Unknown date
Assigned to 2234th Air Force Reserve Training Center, based at Hanscom, MA.
10 June 1950
Received major damage at Hanscom, MA in a takeoff accident.
Pilot: Charles L. Rockwood (survived, went on to fly in Korea & Vietnam and retired a USAF Lt. Col.)
Unknown date
Assigned to 2578th Air Force Reserve Training Center, based at Ellington AFB, TX.
11 January 1958
Assigned to the Arizona Aircraft Storage Squadron and stored at Davis-Monthan AFB, AZ.
2 February 1959
Sent to reclamation.
Later withdrawn from surplus list.
November 1965 to July 1975
N9458Z - AIR AMERICA (USA)
10 November 1965
Purchased.
24 November 1975
Registered.
Assigned to Saigon, South Vietnam.
1 January 1966
Transferred to the Vientiane, Laos base.
14 April 1966
Flew from Vientiane, Laos to Bangkok, Thailand.
15 April 1966
Flew from Bangkok, Thailand to Vientiane, Laos.
3 May 1966
Flew from Vientiane, Laos to Bangkok, Thailand.
18 May 1966
Flew from Bangkok, Thailand to Vientiane, Laos.
April 1966
Assigned to USAID contract AID-439-342 out of Vientiane, Laos.
19 April 1971
Damaged at Luang Prabang, Laos in a ground accident.
The Commando was damaged by flying fragments of rotor blade parts while parked at Luang Prabang, Laos.
Repaired.
15 July 1971
Released from contract AID-439-342.
31 July 1971
Put in inactive storage at Tainan, Taiwan.
Circa April 1973
Returned to service and assigned as spare aircraft in Saigon, South Vietnam.
29 April 1975
Escaped from Saigon, South Vietnam probably to Hong Kong. Permanent return to the Continental USA had been scheduled for 15 June 1975, but the fall of Saigon decided otherwise.
15 June 1975
Arrived in Tainan, Taiwan and stored there.
20 August 1975
Registration cancelled, exported to the Philippines. [date also noted as 4 August 1975]
Right: N9458Z on a Bangkok, Thailand stopover in 1971.
Photo credit: Kevin Haigh / Flickr
July 1975 to early 1980's
RP-C1462 - OASIS (ORIENT AIR SYSTEMS & INTEGRATED SERVICES) (PHILIPPINES)
25 July 1975
Registered.
28 July 1975
Purchased (sale was initially planned 18 June 1975).
Below, left: RP-C1462 waiting for its new registration to be painted, Manila, Philippines, September 1975.
Photo credit: Geoff Goodall / AV.CA
Below, right: RP-C1462 now operational, seen in Manila, Philippines on 18 June 1976.
Photo credit: Brian G. Nichols / Airliners.net
Bottom, left: RP-C1462 taxiing out at Manila, Philippines in October 1977.
Photo credit: Brian G. Nichols / Air Britain
Bottom, right: RP-C1462 parked in Manila, Philippines on 23 February 1979.
Photo credit: Christian Volpati / Wikimedia Commons
Early 1980's
RP-C1462 - KRIS AIR (SINGAPORE)
Unknown date
Wet-leased from OASIS to replace two retired Commandos.
Used to transport oil drilling equipment and refugee humanitarian relief supplies from Singapore to various destinations in Southeast Asia and India.
Left & below: RP-C1462 at Seletar, Singapore working for Kris Air in July 1980, still sporting its former registration on the instrument panel.
Photo credit: Geoff Goodall
Early 1980's to ca 1981
RP-C1462 - OASIS (ORIENT AIR SYSTEMS & INTEGRATED SERVICES) (PHILIPPINES)
Unknown date
Returned from lease to Kris Air.
February 1981
Withdrawn from use and stored in Manila, Philippines as OASIS closed down.
ca 1981 to unknown date
RP-C1462 - UNKNOWN OPERATOR (PHILIPPINES)
Circa 1981
Purchased by another Filipino operator and repainted.
Early 1990's
Withdrawn from use and stored in Manila, Philippines.
Fate unknown.
Below, left: RP-C1462 in Manila, Philippines in January 1982, now working for another Filipino operator.
Photo credit: propfreak / Flickr
Below, right: RP-C1462 on 21 November 1984, now looking derelict in Manila, Philippines, with the left wing dismantled on the ground. It apparrently flew again.
Photo credit: Danny Grew / AirHistory.net
Last edited: 09/04/2024