Commando 42-96587

VARIANT: Curtiss C-46A-45-CU Commando

USAF SERIAL NUMBER (S/N): 42-96587

CURTISS CONSTRUCTION NUMBER (C/N): 30249

COMMANDO LINE NUMBER (L/N): CU785

FATE: Written off

  July 1944 to unknown date

  42-96587 - USAAF (USA)

8 July 1944

Delivered from the Curtiss-Wright factory in Buffalo, NY.

6 August 1944

Assigned to ATC North African Division.

Unknown date

Assigned to Cairo Payne Field, Egypt.

23 July 1946

Condemned for salvage, probably by the Army-Navy Liquidation Commission.

  Unknown dates

  PP-VCR - VARIG (BRAZIL)

Unknown date

Purchase intended, but deal fell through and registration was never taken up.

[registration later assigned to a VARIG Convair 240]

  Unknown date to 1954

  42-96587 - USAAF (USA)

Unknown date

Remained stored at Cairo Payne Field, Egypt.

  1954 to 1956

  OD-ABX - LIA (LEBANESE INTERNATIONAL AIRWAYS) (LEBANON)

1954

Purchased.

Right: luggage being loaded onto OD-ACK in front of Beirut Airport terminal, 1955.
Photo credit: John Stroud / hansenfineart.co.uk

  1956 to October 1957

  OD-ACK - LIA (LEBANESE INTERNATIONAL AIRWAYS) (LEBANON)

1956

Reregistered.

3 October 1957

Damaged beyond repair off Beirut, Lebanon after an in-flight fire (27/27 fatalities).

The Commando was operating a night scheduled passenger service between Beirut and Kuwait. It took off from Beirut at 01:17, and shortly thereafter the crew radioed they had a fire onboard and were returning to Beirut. More than thirty minutes later, while at altitude of 2,000 meters, the aircraft lost height and crashed into the sea some 16 km off Beirut. Some debris were found in the morning and all 27 occupants were killed. The airplane was also carrying a load of gold.