Curtiss C 46
SE-CFH
c/n 33294

Delivered to US Air Force in February 1945. After service in Pakistan it was sold to the Government of India. Later it was registered to some different owners before it became N 3958A with Associated Air Transport. It was then rebuilt by LB Smith to Super 46C and sold to Transair in March 1961. Upon arrival in Malmö there was a large freight door installed, as this aircraft was the only TSA C 46 that arrived without freight door. Leased by ONU between May 06 1962 until September 23 1963. A new lease under the name Transair Congo took place between June 30 1965 until March 16, 1966. In May the same year it was flown to Las Palmas, Canary Islands for storage.

In November it was sold to Paraense, Belem, Brazil for US$ 60.000 and made its delivery flight to the new owners just before Christmas 1966. It was flown Las Palmas - Dakar - Sao Luiz - Belem and the distance between Dakar - Sao Luiz took 10 hours and 36 min, which is a record for TSA C 46. Extra fuel tanks were mounted in Las Palmas before the long ferry flight. It was registered PP-BUB January 10 1967 to Paraense and later sold (1974) with the same registration to TABA (Transportes Aereos Regionais da Bacia Amazonica S.A.) also in Belem, Brazil. It was still there in 1993.

TABA PP-BUB in Belem 30 July, 1981.
Photo: Alberto P. Fortner, Sao Paulo.

In 1995 the aircraft was registered CP-1655 and owned by Servicios Aereos Cochabamba in Bolivia. In 1997 with the same registration the new owner was Servicios Aereos Oriental and 1998 there was again a new owner, Transportes Aereos Universal Ltda. Finally in 1999 the aircraft was still in use and now as CP-1655 with SAO (Servicios Aereos del Oriente). But it seems that during the last years it is the same owner but with different names.

Here are two photos of this Curtiss, which is still going strong. The first picture with blue tail is taken in La Paz, Bolivia May 3 1985 and the other with the aircraft in all silver metallic is also taken in La Paz December 8 1994. Both pictures by Michael Magnusson.