Douglas DC-3 (Military Version C-47 Dakota)

The Douglas DC-3 is a type of aircraft from the Douglas Aircraft Company. A total of 16,079 of them were built, including 15,472 military aircraft. In Germany, the military versions are also known by the nickname "raisin bombers". 70 years ago, the allied airlift to West Berlin kept more than two million people alive with its food transports from 1948 to 1949. This was the largest and most spectacular relief operation in our country so far. To coincide with the anniversary of the airlift, the DC-3 on display at the Technik Museum Speyer has been extensively restored.

On 25 June 2019, the aircraft was lifted by crane back to its original location above the main entrance of the museum. It was as legendary as the Junkers Ju-52. In the USSR, it was rebuilt as Li-2. The plane exhibited at the museum made its maiden flight in 1958 for the then newly founded airline "Air Inter". A few years later, it took part in the famous rally "Paris-Dakar" as a supply aircraft. In some countries, the Douglas DC-3 is still flown today.