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#1181

Curtiss C-46 Commando

🇺🇸 United States ·first flew 1940· military transport aircraft

🎖️ military 2× piston ✓ still flying
10 photos from Wikimedia Commons · credits & licences
  1. 1. N78774 (7810310184): Paul Nelhams from Shannon, Ireland· CC BY-SA 2.0
  2. 2. C-46-First Nations Transportation,: Bzuk at English Wikipedia· Public domain
  3. 3. C-46F Quicktrans Busanda (6287464059): Bill Larkins· CC BY-SA 2.0
  4. 4. C-46 Commando: usaf· Public domain
  5. 5. C-46 medical flight: US Army Air Forces· Public domain
  6. 6. C46F Curtiss Commando: Holly Cheng· CC BY-SA 3.0
  7. 7. Curtiss C-46A NASA: NACA / NASA· Public domain
  8. 8. Curtiss C-46D Super 46C HR-LAJ LANSA FLL 25.02.78: RuthAS· CC BY 4.0
  9. 9. Curtiss C-46 N355BY F1999-Bah3-20-V-2: Uli Elch· CC BY-SA 4.0
  10. 10. Curtiss C-46 Riddle (6819870860): Bill Larkins· CC BY-SA 2.0
Read about it on Wikipedia ↗
Curtiss C-46 Commando, photo 1 of 10
1/10 Paul Nelhams from Shannon, Ireland· CC BY-SA 2.0

what is it?

The Curtiss C-46 Commando is a low-wing, twin-engine aircraft derived from the Curtiss CW-20 pressurized high-altitude airliner design. Early press reports used the name "Condor III" but the Commando name was in use by early 1942 in company publicity. It was used primarily as a cargo aircraft during World War II, with fold-down seating for military transport and some use in delivering paratroops.

How to recognise it: 2 piston engines with propellers · low wing · retractable tailwheel (taildragger) · 32.9 m wingspan

base stats

  • speed 434 km/htop speed
  • seats 40passengers
  • size 20.4 tmax take-off weight
  • built 3,140made in total

Bars compare against all aircraft: 3,500 km/h, 20,000 km, 850 seats; size and number built on a log scale up to 640 t (An-225) and 45,000 built (Cessna 172).

fun facts

  • First flew 86 years ago, in 1940.
  • Top speed is 3.3× a car on the Dutch motorway (130 km/h).
  • Wingspan of 32.9 m: about 7 cars parked nose to tail.
  • Fully loaded it can weigh as much as 3 African elephants (~6 t each).

piston: A car-like piston engine turning a propeller: simple and cheap, the classic small plane.

spec sheet

first flight
1940-03-26
introduced
1941
status
still flying
number built
3,140
role
military transport aircraft
origin
🇺🇸 United States
makers
Curtiss-Wright
engines
2× Pratt & Whitney R-2800-51 Double Wasp
crew
4
passengers
40
length
23.3 m
wingspan
32.9 m
height
6.6 m
max take-off weight
20.4 t
top speed
434 km/h
cruise speed
278 km/h
range
—
ceiling
7,468 m
wings
low wing
landing gear
retractable conventional landing gear

Specs are for the version in the Wikipedia article's specification section. Blank means the sources don't say.

Sources: Wikidata Q1145708, Wikipedia: Curtiss C-46 Commando (CC BY-SA 4.0).Updated 2026-10-24.

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