This week in history – April 2, 1976: Last C-118A flight

  • Published
  • By AFNWC Historian
  • Air Force Nuclear Weapons Center
KIRTLAND AFB, N.M. --  On April 2, 1976, an Air Force crew flew the last Douglas C-118A Liftmaster to Davis-Monthan AFB, Ariz. for storage. The Air Force C-118 Liftmaster was the military version of the Douglas DC-6 commercial passenger aircraft. Begun on an Army contract in 1944, World War II ended before the prototype flew and the effort became the DC-6, which was reworked to compete with the Lockheed Constellation in the long-range commercial transport market. The prototype XC-112A first flew on Feb. 15, 1946. In 1947, Army Air Forces officials ordered the 29th production DC-6 to be modified as a replacement for the aging VC-54C "Sacred Cow" presidential aircraft. In May 1953, after nearly six years of White House service, the "Independence" was retired as a presidential aircraft and subsequently served several Air Force organizations as a VIP transport. The Air Force and Navy renewed their interest in the DC-6 during the Korean War. Beginning in 1951, the Air Force purchased 165 C-118A Liftmasters that were about six feet longer than the Independence.