1943 C-53 Skytrooper 'Gruesome' - a photo on Flickriver

1943 C-53 Skytrooper 'Gruesome'

            This C-53 rolled off the Douglas assembly line in Santa Monica, California, in June 1943, immediately crossing the Atlantic to join the Mediterranean theater of operations the following August. The C-53 Skytrooper was prepared for the transport of troops and wounded, where they were not transported. Assigned to the 52nd Troop Carrier Wing, participating in Operation Giant on the night of September 13-14, 1943, parachuting the men of the 82nd Airborne Division near Salerno. Wednesday 1944, while I was in France, I landed at the temporary A22 airport near Colleville-sur-Mer, with the mission of rescuing the wounded.

Still in 1944, for Operation Repulse over Bastogne, it took off on December 27 from Châteaudun towing a Waco CG4-A glider to supply the 101st Airborne Division during the Battle of the Bulge. Upon arriving at the drop zone, the aircraft was hit by flak, damaging its left aileron and flap. Its crew consisted of Phil Hecker, pilot, and B. Simmons, co-pilot. The aircraft was then named Gruesome (the awful, the horrible, the terrifying...). Legend has it that upon returning from this mission, the mechanics asked why the crew had not abandoned the aircraft...

After the war, its career turned towards civilian life and this DC-3 was acquired in August 1949 by the famous Howard Hughes, head of Trans World Airlines (TWA). The following years saw this twin-engine aircraft transformed into a VIP aircraft for Volkswagen (1966) in the USA (registration N163WW!), then worked for an oil company (1968), Air Americana (1974), North American Airlines (1981) and finally Air Dakota (1996). After a stint in Melun-Villaroche, it has since joined the collection of the future Aeronautical Museum of Brittany based in Rennes.

Taken on: June 7, 2025

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