Content area
Full Text
The world's most widely used general-purpose military transport, the Douglas C-47 was military transport version of the commercial DC-3 airliner which first flew on 22nd December 1935and entered service with the United States Army Air Force in 1941. Hundreds ofC-47s entered a fourth decade of service in the 1970s and a total of10,926C-47s (Dakotas in RAF service) were manufactured in the USA, while licence production was also undertaken in the USSR and Japan. The C-47 could accommodate 28 troops or carry 7,500 lb. (3,406 kg.) of cargo and was powered by two 1200 h.p. Pratt and Whitney R-1830-90c radial engines.
More than any other type, the Dakota dominated in its service with the Indian Air Force, quite appropriately with its glorious place assured in the history of aviation. The establishment of a transport unit in the Royal Indian Air Force was considered soon after the Second World War and No.12 Squadron was earmarked for eventual conversion to the C-47 Dakota general purpose transport. In fact No. 12 had initially been raised with Spitfires in December 1945 at Kohat and was to have re-equipped with twin-engined fighter-bomber aircraft but as these were not available, the transport role was allotted to this formation which received ten C-47s at Panagarh towards the end of 1946. An inauspicious beginning, for most of these aircraft were badly damaged and written off in wake of a cyclonic storm which hit the sprawling airfield and replacement aircraft were only available some months thereafter.
The Squadron briefly trained on twinengined Oxfords at Bhopal and then moved to Mauripur for final conversion to Dakotas, RAF instructors being provided by Nos.10 and 31 Squadrons RAF. During their training period, No.12 Squadron's Dakotas flew passenger and freight runs from Karachi to Poona and Jiwani, carrying urgently needed water supplies to that droughtstricken area.
The Squadron then moved to Chaklala (Rawalpindi) in mid-1947 with a flight detached at Drigh Road and was involved with the Paratrooper Training School which was expected to function under a joint India-Pakistan command for three years. In the event, No.12 was allotted to India and Pakistan was to instead receive Dakotas assigned to No. 6 Squadron which was converting to the transport role from fighters at Drigh Road. In August 1947,...