Christmas light flights are a tradition like no other, especially in Fort Worth TX with Southern Cross C-49J operated by Greatest Generation Aircraft (GGA). The Christmas light flight tradition started over 10 years ago and is still going strong with the GGA crew working hard on the 2024 season as we speak! Before we get into Christmas light flight details, here is some information about Southern Cross.
Southern Cross is a very special example of the DC-3. The aircraft was originally intended to be delivered to Delta Airlines, but when Pearl Harbor broke out plans were changed, and the plane received the C-49J designation. Its destination…Army Air Transport Command. There were 138 DC-3s that received the C-49 designation, and only 34 of those specifically received the J. Southern Cross is the only J example left in airworthy condition.
Southern Cross rolled off the assembly line on November 12th, 1942, as S/N 6315 (43-1975). Unfortunately, there is not a lot of information about the aircraft’s time in service, but we do know that she stayed in the US and served as a troop transport and training aircraft. Southern Cross was released from service on July 29th, 1944, and was acquired by Chicago & Southern Airways entering service on October 21st, 1944, as “City of Little Rock.” The airplane flew with C&S until the airline merged with Delta in 1953. In a way, Southern Cross made its way back to Delta, but it was soon sold off to Aero Leasing because the airlines were moving on to bigger four-engined aircraft.
Southern Cross had many civilian owners both in the US and Mexico. At one point, she was one of the Mexican president’s transport aircraft. After eventually making it back to the US, Southern Cross became the jump plane that is. After the aircraft was acquired by Greatest Generation Aircraft in 2003, the name Southern Cross was kept since there were no records of what she was called during the war, or if she had any nose art at all. A full restoration was completed, including installing a radio room, and navigators station, and giving the fuselage a complete WWII-era look to showcase how the aircraft would have looked during her service. Today, Southern Cross flies air shows, performs static line jump operations, and provides passenger flights including the Christmas light flights every year!
You may be wondering what the differences between a C-47 and a C-49 are. There are only a couple, but they are important when it comes to differentiating between the two types. All of the C-49s were equipped with the Wright Cyclone 1820 engines, while the C-47s had the Pratt & Whitney 1830s. The C-49s all came with a passenger door, no strengthened floor, no strengthened landing gear, and no glider tow. They were specifically used for troop and wounded transports only. Southern Cross has a couple of modifications that make her even more unique. Large photo windows were installed in the back of the fuselage, the hamburger door was removed, and the nose cone was replaced with a more modern version. You can think of it as a nose job for the plane!
A classic Christmas light flight experience starts at Fort Worth’s Meacham airport. While Southern Cross is hosted at the Vintage Flying Museum, flights take off from Modern Aviation. Like the name states a modern FBO facility. This provides comfort for the passengers as they await their special flights! The fuselage is decorated in bright Christmas lights and the crew wears Santa hats to get everyone in the Christmas spirit. Before boarding the aircraft, passengers snack on Christmas cookies and receive a preflight safety briefing from a crew chief. The crew chief then escorts everyone to the aircraft, and the journey back in time begins. Seating is on a first come first serve basis, but once the aircraft reaches a safe altitude, passengers are welcome to get up and walk around. It’s an amazing experience, especially for a first-time flier! When asked about his favorite part of the experience, crew chief Roger Krueger said “We have many returning fliers but my favorite is the first-time fliers, them seeing the DC3 for the first time, me seeing their eyes light up when the engines start and the then getting out of their seats to see the beautiful Christmas lights over Fort Worth. The highlight is the brake lights of all the cars stuck in the holiday traffic!”
The flight path goes over Fort Worth’s most heavily populated Christmas-light neighborhoods. Just like crew chief Roger stated, you can see the traffic trying to get in to see light displays as you fly over the lights. Passengers also get spectacular views of downtown Fort Worth from about 1000 feet in the air. The best part is when passengers spot their own home from the air and check out how their decorations look. This is where the modified photo windows come in handy, they provide a great viewing spot for passengers. About 30 minutes into the flight, it is time to land, and everyone sits down reminiscing the sights of the lights.
It sure is a great sight for our crew to see families enjoying flying on a vintage aircraft, and passengers of all ages bonding together over the experience. Kaitlin Mroz, Southern Cross pilot, said that her favorite part about the Christmas light flights is actually “seeing younger generations just as excited about the plane as they are about the lights. If we don’t keep more younger people involved and excited for these flying works of art, they’ll soon be found only in museums and boneyards.” The Christmas light flights provide a bonding experience for the whole family and introduce kids to warbirds and history in a fun way. If you are ever in the Fort Worth TX area, we invite you to come on a flight with us and experience the magic for yourselves! The Christmas light flights are truly a unique Christmas tradition for the whole family. To make it your family tradition, book your flight today at www.gga1.org. Follow Greatest Generation Aircraft on Facebook and Instagram for updates.
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Karolina is a photographer and enthusiast of vintage aviation and warbirds. She travels near and far to capture special moments in vintage aviation on her camera. Karolina’s mission is to spread her passion for aviation history to the younger generation through her photography and Instagram page. Outside of her aviation adventures, she works in the Airline industry.
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