Based upon a report by Geoff Jones for WarbirdsNews:
The Indian Air Force Vintage Flight is in the beginning stages of assembling a fleet of vintage aircraft to serve in India as a tribute to their military aviation heritage, much like the Battle of Britain Flight serves the UK. One of their aircraft is Douglas DC-3 N347DK (c/n 32820). The cargo plane is currently in England undergoing restoration. She once served as a sprayer with Air Atlantique serialed G-AMSV, and briefly in 1980/81 as F-BSGV with Bretagne Air Services and Trans Europe Air. In 2011, the Dak arrived for work at Cotswold Airport (formerly RAF Kemble), after which she was supposed to fly on to India to take up her duties with the Indian Air Force Vintage Flight. Work on the aircraft by Kemble-based Vintage Flyers included stripping the external paint to bare metal, and the application of Indian AF roundels. Unfortunately, Vintage Flyers ceased trading in 2013, and since then the aircraft moved into storage within C2 Aviation’s hangar at Kemble.
In a recent statement to Geoff Jones, Mike Edwards MBE, the Chief Adviser to the Indian AF Vintage Flight said, “The plan is to get this Dak back in the air this year and operate it in the UK for a year or two before deciding any long term plans for the aircraft”. Here’s hoping the restoration work continues apace, and we can see this aircraft in the skies again, where she belongs!
Richard Mallory Allnutt's aviation passion ignited at the 1974 Farnborough Airshow. Raised in 1970s Britain, he was immersed in WWII aviation lore. Moving to Washington DC, he frequented the Smithsonian’s National Air & Space Museum, meeting aviation legends.
After grad school, Richard worked for Lockheed-Martin but stayed devoted to aviation, volunteering at museums and honing his photography skills. In 2013, he became the founding editor of Warbirds News, now Vintage Aviation News. With around 800 articles written, he focuses on supporting grassroots aviation groups.
Richard values the connections made in the aviation community and is proud to help grow Vintage Aviation News.
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