Scott's Superforts

Handwritten on back:
"B-29 Engine"

Today’s series of photos is the first from a collection taken by a young aviation enthusiast (we’ll see more in the coming weeks). While these photos won’t win any awards for photographic excellence, they are nevertheless wonderful snapshots of a very brief moment in time when majestic Boeing B-29s graced Scott Air Force Base in Illinois with their presence.

Anyone with info on the specific aircraft shown is invited to comment!

B-29-86-BW tail number 44-87719.

B-29A-55-BN tail number 44-61956 is on the left; the tail number of the
aircraft on the right is too out-of-focus to read. Handwritten on back
is "B-29s on Runway at Scott Field."

Update, 8/3/12 - While I've yet to be able to find any detailed information on the B-29s shown, I have found some history of the C-54 at the bottom of this post. As the post originally was written, I surmised that these photos were taken in the early 1950s. However, it is clear by the aircraft data that these were taken sometime in 1945 or '46.

C-54B-1 serial 42-72362 (Douglas c/n 10467), was originally delivered on December 8, 1944, and damaged in a landing accident in Kungming, China, in February 1945. After it was repaired, it was bought back by Douglas and converted to civilian DC-4 specifications. From August 9, 1946 to 1950, it flew with Pan Am, carrying civilian registration N60115; unlike other DC-4/C-54s operated by PAA, it doesn't appear to have been given a "Clipper" name, however. They then leased it to Transocean, before it went on to subsidiary Pan American Grace Airlines (PANAGRA). It was then sold to AeroMéxico and flew as XA-KOK.

Douglas C-54 Skymaster tail number 42-72362.

The plane was then leased to LAMSA (Lineas Aereas Mexicanas, S.A.), and later flew with Fuerza Aérea Mexicana as ETP-7004. It is reported to have been destroyed in an accident at Cozumel, January 11, 1979.