The first of today's three images is probably a staged Air Force publicity shot. |
The Packet, unfortunately, was somewhat of a failure. It was underpowered, and the design of the fuselage made it less than ideal for the cargo it was intended to carry. The Air Force wasn't happy, and asked Fairchild to redesign the aircraft. Initially designated the XC-82B, the redesign utilized larger engines, and the cockpit was moved forward, freeing up cargo space. Now happy, the Air Force ordered this new version into production as the better-known C-119 Flying Boxcar, and over 1,100 were built.
But what is especially interesting about two of these photos is what's in their backgrounds. One of the C-82's roles was that of glider tow. During the war, WACO built over 13,000 CG-4 troop gliders, which were towed into combat behind transports such as the C-46 and C-47.
But with the end of the war, it became clear that large troop-carrying gliders were no longer relevant, and the production contract was cancelled, with only 473 aircraft built. Only one complete G-15 fuselage has survived the years, and is awaiting restoration at the WACO Museum and Aviation Learning Center at the historic WACO Field, Troy, Ohio. (Images of the current condition of the airframe can be seen here - you'll have to scroll about 3/4 down the page.)
Lastly for this week is this image of three GIs. Handwritten inscription on the back of the photo says "Last day at Benning." No idea who these three are, but what I found interesting (and why I acquired the photo) are the three C-82s in the background which are in various stages of disassembly.
If anyone has stories of what the aircraft were utilized for at Fort Benning, please share!
Hi, The C-82 was used briefly at Ft. Benning in its Airborne School. The GI's in the picture look to be "legs" (non-airborne). Great pix! Followed a link from Dark Roasted Blend. Respects, Tom
ReplyDeleteHi Tom, Thanks for that! I'd forgotten about the airborne aspect of Ft. Benning.
ReplyDeleteAlan,
ReplyDeleteThe area in the background with the three soldiers was a training field that taught securing vehicles and other equipment in these aircraft. The ones you see as appearing in disassembly are actually non-operational displays for this training. The field was named "Wilson Field" and is located only a few hundred yards from the airfield seen in the other photos. The road they are standing on leads to the airfield. This training was a special one week training phase that was part of parachute training, but only for NCOs (and officers too I think). It was only during the 40s and 50s. Photos of this area are rare and I would like to get a scan of this one for my research and future book publication if possible. All of these images are Fort Benning and in the airfield ones you can see the helmet liners with white stripe, which is headgear of Infantry School instructors. In this case, these are Airborne School instructors (which was and still is under the Infantry School - thus the identifying headgear).
Thanks for the really valuable info! Would be happy to provide a higher res scan to you...but your comment was posted anonymously, so i have no clue how to get it to you. Email me at airphotoservices at gmail dot com!
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