Douglas R5D-4 Skymaster (8479)

Original design was started in 1939 as the DC-4 for the airlines. The first batch was commandeered off the assembly line in 1942 and redesignated C-54. C-54s were first delivered to the Army Air Forces in March 1942. They saw service in every theater and were the primary airlifter across the Atlantic and Pacific, making nearly 80,000 crossings with the loss of only 3 aircraft. 201 C-54s were delivered to the Navy as R5D Navy Transports. The Presidential version was a C-54 outfitted with a hydraulic elevator for President Franklin D. Roosevelt and nicknamed the "Sacred Cow." The Berlin Airlift of 1948-49 used 319 of the approximately 400 C-54s to haul supplies to the city with the Russians closed road and rail access to the city. This aircraft at Castle Air Museum, which was assigned to Navy Transport Squadron VR-8, was one of those so used. Over 189,000 flights were made in the 15 months of the lift, delivering 2.3 million tons of food, fuel and supplies. C-54s served until 1972.