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CAT (Civil Air Transport)

Operator Identification

  1946 to February 1968

  Taiwan

TYPE: Airline

IATA/ICAO CODES: -- / ---

HEADQUARTERS: Taipei

OTHER NAMES: Chinese National Relief and Rehabilitation Administration (CNRRA) Air Transport  (1946-1950), CAT (Civil Air Transport) (1950-1959), CAT Company Ltd. (1955-1968), Asiatic Aeronautical Company Ltd. (1955-1959), Air Asia Company Ltd. (1959-1968)

SUBSEQUENT NAME: Air America (1959 spin-off), Flying Tiger (assets handed over 1968)

Cat civil air transport

Operator History

Civil Air Transport (CAT) was a unique airline formed in China after World War II by General Claire Lee Chennault, leader of the Flying Tigers, and Whiting Willauer of the China Defense Supplies (CDS). They purchased war surplus cargo planes, enrolled WWII veterans, and wound up with an enthusiastic, colorful group of former Flying Tiger aces and airmen from the USAAF, US Navy and US Marine Corps. Operating under the aegis of the China National Rehabilitation and Relief Association (CNRRA), CAT distributed food and medicine to the interior of China where roads, railways and bridges had been destroyed by Japan’s Imperial Air Force.

By the late 1940's, United Nations relief supplies overwhelmed the docks of Shanghai with no way to distribute them inland except by navigable rivers and air. When China’s Communist 8th Army besieged China’s northern cities, CAT delivered arms, ammo and food to the defenders and returned to Tsingtao with refugees and wounded soldiers. By the end of 1947, CAT had rescued 22,000 refugees and 4,500 wounded Nationalist soldiers from Communist-dominated territories. As Nationalist China faced trouble, CAT was drawn into China’s Civil War and provided assistance to Chiang Kai-shek in resistung the spread of Communist forces. CAT was also an occasional CIA contractor in the region. As the Communists ended up taking over mainland China, CAT's equipement was loaded on a WWII landing ship and moved to Taiwan. That ship later served as a sea-going aircraft maintenance and repair factory for the airline. CAT then provided hope to thousands of freedom-loving war refugees by flying them to Taipei. It also rescued the Government’s Bank of China silver ingots.

By the spring of 1950, the airline, stranded on the island of Taiwan, was a shadow of its former self with no more business perspectives. This is the time the CIA chose to purchase CAT from Chennault and Willauer, making it the agency's air arm in Southeast Asia while still conducting scheduled passenger flights to maintain the front appearance of a civilian airline. CIA flights were simply labelled as cargo charters. On 28 February 1955, CAT Inc. transferred the Chinese airline services to CAT Company Ltd., which had been formed on 20 January 1955. On 1 March 1955, CAT Inc. officially transferred the ownership of all but 3 of the Chinese aircraft to Asiatic Aeronautical Company Ltd. for one US Dollar per aircraft. So, from March 1955 onwards, we have two official owners of the fleet: most aircraft were officially owned by Asiatic Aeronautical Company Ltd., which changed its name to Air Asia Company Ltd. on 1 April 1959.

CAT aircraft were sent to Indochina to support French troops in their fight against communist rebels. The airline notoriously operated a fleet of C-119 Flying Boxcars provided much needed air transport to stranded French units during the Battle of Dien Bien Phu. During the Korean War, the CIA used CAT to infiltrate and extract agents in North Korea. From 1958, CAT was also involved in Indonesia, where it supported Permesta rebels in their fight against communist-friendly President Sukarno.

By 1959, investigative journalists were peeking through holes in CAT’s cloak of secrecy. The CIA retained the original name in half of its group while naming the other half (CAT Inc.) Air America. It was only a separation on paper, supported by legal documents, but the cohesion of the whole remained intact. Air crews and mechanics switched allegiances at the stroke of a scheduler’s pencil. CAT's remaining operation was mainly performed from Taiwan by DC-4s, Convair 880s and Boeing 727s. CAT closed down in February 1968 after the crash of its 727 in Taiwan, and its non-Air America assets were later taken over by Flying Tiger.

Commando Operations

January 1947* to March 1959

CAT was a major Commando operator, with dozens of them registered in the company's name throughout the years.

While CNRRA started off with a handful of C-47's, the Commando became the backbone of the fleet when 17 C-46D's were purchased in early 1947 from USAAF's surplus in Hawaii - 14 for flight and 3 for spares. These planes were operated using the last three digits of their USAAF serial number until receiving a Chinese registration in October 1947. These airplanes included the following 13:

  • 392
  • 395
  • 405
  • 409
  • 413
  • 522
  • 524
  • 528
  • 530
  • 536
  • 539
  • 540
  • 543

In the Spring, 15 Commandos were actively flying for CAT, with only 2 used for spares, so that the sourcing of spare parts became a problem. CAT convinced UNRRA to purchase 25 Commandos from USAAF surplus in the Philippines. The deal was made on 19 May 1947 for $183,000, and by June 1947 all these Commandos had joined CAT's reserve fleet at Tien Ho, Guangdong, China. 22 of these aircraft were stripped for parts and broken up, while 3 later joined CAT's fleet.

CAT finally gained several Commandos from CATC and CNAC in 1949 after these companies defected to the Communist. Chennault & Willauer managed to have some of these aircraft located in Hong Kong, Taiwan or other non Communist-Chinese airports to be assigned to them through a court decision in December 1949. They were then transferred to CAT and assigned a US registration.

Commandos Operated

Last edited: 18/07/2024