Flying Bulls DC-6 - Restoration of a Diva
ฝัง
- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 12 มิ.ย. 2024
- Documentary on the ferry flight and restoration of a Douglas DC-6 that Red Bull bought in Namibia in 2000.
Takeoff TV website:
www.takeofftv.net/en
Year of Production: 2003
Chapters
0:00 Introduction
1:09 Takeover in Namibia and ferry flight to Austria
3:57 The restoration begins
9:23 Engine test runs
11:10 First flight after restoration - บันเทิง
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I am so grateful that Red Bull is supporting the restoration, operation, and maintenance of this magnificent aircraft, as well as the P-36 and F4U that it also flies.
I was part of the interior design team. An amazing experience. Salzburg was beautiful
You've made my heart sing! I was a stewardess for Western Airlines in the early 1960's and this is my all time favorite plane. I've spent hundreds of hours on the DC6b. My best friend and I worked on this plane, I am 75 and she 80. Well done Red Bull!
Congratulations on your career and may the Lord grant you and your friend many years in health and happiness. I got qualified on the DC-6 but before my first line flight I was transferred to jets. My loss for sure.
These fine men deserve to be congradulated for their hard tireless work and sacrifice for getting this old girl back to better than new condition.
PMDG's release of theDC-6 for MSFS last week has surely brought this video back from slumber lol
I'm going to do another around the world flight in MSFS using the PMDG DC-6. I've already done one around the world flight in the P-38.
What a great sound that jets will never match. ❤❤❤❤❤. My 1 st flight was a Untied from SEA to SFO, SFO to PDX a 30 stop and then PDX to SEA
IMHO the Constellation had the rugged beauty of an Amazonian warrior princess while the DC6's looks were angelic.
Agreed
This is a great video and thank you! The sound the engines made while flying overhead was unmistakable and I could hear one coming for miles. Some people have found the sound of a distant train comforting, but for me it was the DC-6b... and I miss it.
My grandma and I took one home from Chicago to Grand Rapids Mi once in the ‘50s! I’ll never forget that! It was fantastic!! That was 67 years ago!!! ❤️👍🙋♂️🖖🏻
I flew on the DC 6 in 1974 on a 2 hour flight it was 35 below zero the 2 stewardess wore gloves you could see your breath on the plane, I remember the sound of those engines, and the flames coming from the exhaust, it was a night flight, loved that plane.
That's a good way to get the mechanics as honest as possible. "You all had better fix it well because every one of you is riding along on the first flight!"
So happy they refurbished this DC-6 completely. It will be around for years to come for future aviation enthusiasts to see how far aviation has come!
That is my dad, Captain Eric Douglas Lee at the controls of her first flight after the restoration. He loved that airplane, he loved the Flying Bulls. He died of cancer at the early age of 68 in 2015.
Thanks a lot for your amazing comment. I have been on board when the DC-6 was flown from Windhoek to Salzburg and did some filming during the restoration. It´s a fantastic airplane and I understand very well why your father loved it./Frank
Take-off TV Thank you Frank, and thank you for a beautiful video.
My father spent thirty years hauling cargo all over the state of Alaska in DC-6s, I grew up on board those trusty old birds. One still comes out of Anchorage on a regular basis and I always stop whatever I’m doing to watch and listen as she flys by. I’m not positive but I think the old bird that still flys by is 80B, known as 80 Bravo she was Howard Hughes’s airplane, and she was the best in the fleet of DC-6s that Northern Air Cargo owned having next to no time on her when they acquired her from the Howard Hughes estate. When I was a kid and dad said “were flying 80 Bravo today” I was in, wherever she was going throughout the great state of Alaska. My dad was the number one pilot on the line at NAC and had been for over 20 years before the Flying Bulls came to NAC looking for some expertise.
By the time Red Bull came a knocking on Northern Air Cargo’s door for some help with training my dad was flying the Boeing 727 but his love of the DC-6 never left him and he jumped at the chance to get back in her again and help the Flying Bulls take her through her first flight, flight testing, and certification with the FAA and then be her Pilot for a few more years until he retired at age 60 as he had always planned.
At age 66 he was diagnosed with stomach cancer. He said “it’s ok, I’ve lived more in one life then most do in two, if it’s my time I’m ok with that”. He died Sept 11, 2015.
The Flying Bulls gave him the chance and the honor to be a part of something great towards the end of his career as a pilot. He cherished the plane and the people he came to love at the Flying Bulls, he considered them family and was proud to have been a part of it.
Thank you again for this video, it means a lot to me and the legacy of my father. As long as this bird lives so shall a piece of my father. Thank you
@@craiglee5568 Thanks so much again for your amazing comments. It makes me proud that you found and like this video. All the information that you are sharing with us about your father and your relationship to him is so heart warming. All the best to you, Frank
I worked with your dad. I’m sorry to hear of his passing.
He flew a horse to Deadhorse. True story.
Moose Pass Hippie that is awesome, I would love to hear that story.
I could watch hours of the restoration process even without narration. What a beautiful aeroplane.
I love these videos! You seldom hear radial engines or see an old airplane in the sky anymore. More of these old piston pounders should be saved. They represent a significant piece of history.
I was involved with those things. Believe me we weren't sad to see them go & replaced by nice clean Viscounts, Electra's, DC9's & 727's, ours ended up in Taiwan. Those 4 R2800's burn around 145 GPH each, so fuel costs would be around $3,800 per hour.
Good to see what can be done when money is not a problem. Fantastic restoration.
+Graeme Williams Thank you for your very competent statement.
When I was a kid, my family flew from Guam to San Francisco on a DC-6. in the mid 50s.. with a stop over on Hawaii.. Man that was one long trip.. but the in flight food was amazing.. the fried chicken was to die for..
I got to fly a DC-3 10 years ago . These aircraft are not for the weak ! The controls are all cable and pulley no hydraulic assistance. Seeing these aircraft restored to their former glory is wonderful.
Like driving an old Mack truck.
I was lucky enough to visit the Flying Bulls facility in June of 2019 as a part of the D-Day Squadron trip to commemorate the 75th Anniversary of the D-Day invasions. As a pilot and especially in the world of vintage aircraft, I've been fortunate enough to visit a lot of air museums. But hands down, the Red Bull Hangars 7, 8, and 9 (never saw 9, but 7 and 8 are incredible) complex is the most beautiful aviation facility I have ever seen. A fantastic group of professionals dedicated to keeping 'em flying makes this a truly unique place. A blank check helps, too.
Dieter is a little boy and a philanthropist in one. Many of his projects are ones I would have pursued as a little boy (and now) with unlimited money.
@@The_ZeroLine Just incredible collection and the things they do with them. 23 airplanes at the moment I believe, and the cinematography and photography they do to promote the airplanes is world-class. Their team are extremely qualified pilots as well... a Red Bull Air Race world champion among them. And they don't just sit! With unlimited money, I, too, would take my Caravan Amphib to Zell am See for lunch.
Was a co-pilot on the DC-6 out of the Detroit area back in the day when I was working my way up the food chain. Great memories. Great video!
I worked for Delta Air Lines from 1963 to 1966 and worked with the DC-6. I LOVED it, a beautiful plane.
Thank you Red Bull for having an interest to restore to flying condition One of the best airliners of all time. Workmanship is superb in every way possible. It truly is a working piece of history.
I'm old enough to have had the opportunity to fly in the DC-4, 6 & 7 aircraft a few times. Then, these birds were leftovers of the previous generation of air transport and needed at least a good scrubbing along with some fresh paint, which they weren't about to get from the airlines that still had them. So, it really feels good to see this machine, its sisters and the two or three Lockheed Constellations that have also been restored. Beautiful, beautiful airplanes.
Thank you Red Bull for saving this beautiful lady..
As a sheet metal/structures aircraft mechanic who has a passion for old, radial-engine planes, this video nearly makes me cry for desire of doing this kind of work. Restoring old airplanes would be a dream come true. Unfortunately, the money's not there, so I get to work on F-35s, which I enjoy, but airplanes like this DC-6 are the heart & soul of aviation. I wonder who bankrolled the millions of $ this required?
Did you get your paws on DOC while it was at McConnell?
The DC-6 was the best prop liner Douglas ever built, combined with the Best piston engines Pratt & Whitney ever built, if you compare the aircraft's speed, range, payload and fuel burn, it still has competitive numbers compared to most modern turbine powered aircraft. Hats off to you guys for bringing such a wonderful machine as the DC-6, back to life.
LOVE THESE RADIAL ENGINES OF THE PAST. GREAT FILM GREAT STORY...THANKS!
thanks for your comment :)
Hats off to these mechanics in the folks that Rebuilder
Dieter Mateschitz is a huge preserver of history from the unique to the soon to be unique like this DC-6. He deserves a lot of credit. He’s also the main supporter of a lot of sports that would have little or no funding without him.
Just flew mine on MS FS2020.. PMDG... A total handful and I need to fly it more. Thank goodness for the AFE...
very interesting, i'm currently flying at microsoft flight simulator 2020 with DC-6B lol
The one in this video is the sister aircraft of the one PMDG used to model their MSFS version.
That livery is superb, really very thoughtfully conceived
Spectacular! I got goosebumps watching it take off after 40+ years. Hats off to Angerer and Schutte who saved this beauty, and to each and every one who brought it back to life!
What a fantastic job of restoration! Congratulations to all who worked on her.
She is a beauty, and sounds owsome on take off, again thanks to all who brought her back to life. Many, many hours of safe flying to you all. Be safe. Peace.
Gorgeous! The old girl looks fantastic. Thank you RedBull!!
I can remember working at the PX gas station at Chelsea Naval Hospital and just north of the pump island was and still stands and is in service is a 150 foot tall water tower, the tank being a ball on top of the tower. I was watching DC 6's take off from Logan airport and the DC 6's were getting closer and closer to the water tank until finally one DC 6 misjudged his approach to the tower and I heard all 4 engines go to full throttle and literally stood the aircraft on his left wingtip until the aircraft was in a 90 degree turn and missed the water tower by not more than 15 feet, and this was a fully loaded passenger aircraft. This happened in 1966, I was 16 and loved it until the car I was gassing up stepped out and looked up and bitched him out. It was then I noticed the wings on his chest and he walked into the single bay gas station picked up the phone and called Logan to complain and told them to get the aircraft away from the hospital. He was a full Commander and boy was he mad about the close call.
Seeing this video brings back long forgotten memories.
I was a Fight Engineer on DC-6's in Alaska during the 90's. Only shut down one engine on one occasion, cracked spark plug ceramic. We were well over the gross takeoff weight of a hundred thousand pounds. The pilot said he couldn't even tell that the number 4 engine was shut down by the way it flew. The DC-6 is fast, reliable, hauls a heck of a load and lands on short Alaskan Bush runways. The saying was, it was the best prop liner Douglas ever built, combined with the best Piston engines Pratt & Whitney ever built, and I never saw anything that would suggest that wasn't true.
Amazing story :) Thank you!
She came from great stock, the tough-as-nails DC-3!
Who did you fly with? My dad, Doug Lee, was a pilot for NAC for 30 years flying those old birds before going to fly the Red Bull DC-6.
What a beautiful old Airplane! I remember flying in these when I was a kid in the 1950s.
"Even at her age she still has admirers" loved it! So why isn't this a full doc?
Thank buddha that someone out there sees the need to save icons like this. Thank you Red Bull and all others that are preserving history.
This is like 4014 running around the southwest US. Thank you UP
What a beautiful restoration of a wonderful aircraft. I spent almost two weeks on a DC-6 as an Observer and Flight Attendant back in September 1970 on a charter to Newfoundland from Fort Lauderdale,FL, to search for a balloon named the "Free Life" with three people aboard, that had gone down in the North Atlantic. 14 hour days
working a grid pattern and dropping sonar buoys when we saw any part of the balloon and the Canadian Coast Guard would pick it up. The only part of the balloon recovered was the O-ring and some Portuguese fishing nets, all three passengers were never found, and perished at sea.
Thanks for sharing this amazing story!
Sounds like an interesting story worth writing up.
A real beauty...I was lucky enough to get a ride in this aircraft in 2018 and it was like brand new inside and out.
I saw this at Duxford this year. What a great looking plane. They put on a great flying show also.
the 2800 engines were the best!
I love this plane and I still say the DC-6B was still one of the best workhorses ever.
Best workhorse indeed! However, I put my bets on the Connie and Stratocruiser as being more iconic
Saw this at Duxford flying legends 2018. Pilot put on a great performance and really threw it around! Lovely to see and smell in the metal!
My father was the Chief tooling Engineer Where this aircraft was built At Douglas Aircraft Santa Monica ca, he would love this.
Beautiful DC-6!
Good job!
Interesting to see that Flippie Vermeulen was at the helm! I flew with him in a DC-4 twice. He is Mr. Oldprop!
My heart felt thanks to one and all who worked the many hours it took to bring this ole' girl back to life. Thank you. Be safe. Peace.
Thank you for the video, a real gem, worked on the DC6 in the Air Force. There are some flying in Alaska
She's a Beauty, Nice Work.
The Flying Bulls always have impeccable machines.
My grandpa flew a C-118 for 12 years in the Air Force. Beautiful aircraft.
I'm partial to the connie, but this is still a beautiful machine. Really nice work, everyone!
True sounds of the 50!s and early 60s now bring on the restored Lufthansa Super Connie if you please.
One thing I found funny was that they said the engines (or maybe something else) were on the verge of dying when they landed. But that thing was still flying when they bought it and that’s the beauty of a lot of these machines built during the 50s and 60s. They were really high quality and could last wayyyy beyond what is/was thought possible.
Actually the DC-6 can maintain flight on only two engines. Typical cruise settings only require about 55% of available power.
Good god what a gorgeous airplane
I've ridden hundreds of thousands of miles in the DC-6. It was a super comfy airplane, and instilled a lot of confidence in it's character and integrity. During one of the flights, we flew through a Typhoon off the coast of Japan. She plowed right through without a hiccup! i truly miss the old girl. It's sad that none of them are still flying in regular service!
This thing is amazing. I remember them setting on the tarmac at Lambert Field in St.Louis and under each engine was a big oil spot on the ground. Those oil spots were all over the place wherever radial engines were parked. Beautiful sound and a good flyer they were. Damn, I'm getting old.
Sweet! Nothing like the sound of a radial engine... all 4 of them. Especially on this 'ol bird. :thumbup: Great to see she was kept away from the boneyard.
Oh, my goodness, this brings a lot of memories to me. I used to fly with this beauty at least once a year back in the late 60s from Santa Cruz (SLVR) to Cochabamba (SLCB) with the Lloyd Aéreo Boliviano (LAB), and because we had lots of relatives in that company I was also able to fly in the cockpit ! I still remember the roaring sound on take off. Thanks for posting this video
Thanks for your amazing comment. /Frank
@@TakeoffTVnet My pleasure, Frank. Please, keep posting videos like this. Cheers /Branko
Great memories! I was in the USNR in 1966 - 1971. My last squadron was VR-52 and we has three of these beautiful birds. Mine was BUNO 131593. The navy called them R6Ds, but those of us who rode on them called them C-118s. My last hop was to Rota, Spain in 1970. We refueled at Lajes, Azores on the way over and back. It being an Air Force base, we got some of the best military chow in the world! Those AF chow halls were first class - WAY better than enlisted USN chow.
I flew on the DC 6B many times in the sixties and it was a fine and tough aircraft.
Hats off to all those who worked on and helped save this piece of aircraft history.
A beautiful aircraft. I spent a short while sheltering under this one during torrential rail at Zeltweg in Austria in 2005.
I may have to buy a few Red Bulls now that I know they support old aircraft! You guys rock!
Thanks cappie - many times taxied through those gates at Eros - NCF and NCG - now NCG is just standing there - did the last charter 3 years ago - sad story for this old lady.
Worked on a few of these in the Air Force. They were designated C-118. We had 118's and 119's and 124's at Richards Gebaur AFB near Kansas City MO.
These old planes simply beautifull
Nothing on earth like them.
Beautiful old bird.
Took some kind of paycheck to bring this aircraft to this stage. This thing looks fabulous. It's all worth it too. Great job and on this video also
Beautiful Job rebuilding her hats off to all who participated.
There are so many skills needed to refurbish this aircraft. I would love to learn them all some day.
Awsome job fellas ..thank you
these 10 people that don't like, must remind them that before we got the jet engine these airplanes were the best and transported millions of people. excellent work done on restauration of this beautiful machine
It’s amazing what’s possible when you have an endless checkbook.
well done. keep it flying from new zealand
In the early sixties I was one of forty aircraft mechanics that completely disassembled a D.C. 6 passenger plane and converted it to a cargo plane. This was at Santa Monica airport. Being a licensed aircraft mechanic I was put in charge of the major fuselage work such as installing a large cargo door on the starboard side of the fuselage just foreword of the wing, installing the oxygen system and cleaning the pickling juice from the engines and running them up, exercising the adjustable props and testing the pressurization system. When we got the aircraft the cabin stunk of cigarette smoke from its passenger days. A heavy cargo floor was installed with built in tie downs. The upper and lower wing fairings were made of stainless steel and were held in place by hundreds of ss sheet metal screws. The fairings had to be removed to thoroughly inspect the mid section of the wing attachments. We used X Ray and various dye penetrants and Magnaflux to assure a complete inspection. The project took two years. The aircraft was scheduled to be flown down to Peru where it would be used to haul cargo across the Peruvian Andes.
tim mayer. I lived in Santa Monica during that time. I was 15 at the time, used to ride my bicycle to Clover Field pretty much once a week. I would peek through a little opening of the hanger door while you were working on it ! The hanger was not to far from the FBO and observation deck towards the east end of the airport. When you guy's finally rolled it out it was parallel with the runway with the nose pointing West. Never did see it start up. Small World.... WOW. Ps did you know John Grooms ? N7006E 175 Cessna. I got to fly with him a few times. What fun that was, Ralph L
What a beautiful aircraft.
Imagine having the funds for this!
The sales power of Caffeine and Sugar!!!!!! better than Gold.
Zeltweg airshow, Austria 2005. I sheltered underneath this magnificent aircraft from a torrential downpour. Thank you Redbull. It was amazing being that close to this magnificent lady.
Air Micronesia use to fly DC-6’s when I lived on Guam (1969-1971) as a teenager. Use to see them flying over early in the morning to land at the Agana Airport. Remember seeing one come in once with a feathered engine. I understand the engines were the same used on the Navy’s F9F Bearcat.
Nice to see most of the panel are old-type gauges, not "glass".
Amazing beauty ! old Diva really . love to fly in such beautiful plane
Beautiful old bird...respect to those that kept her alive! the paint scheme looked lovely...until I saw the tail \o/
THE REAL DEAL. OLD SCHOOL
What a beautiful plane Red Bull is an awesome company for doing this.
What a great way to give back to the people.
What a beautiful job they did on that, nice that someone cares about these planes of yesteryear.
Fantastic job, great to see this old plane in lovely condition.
Surprisingly fast gear retraction/extension for a big old recip.
Such a marvellous machine!!!
What a beautiful airplane and restoration. I remember as a kid, my parents took us on a DC-6 flight from Detroit to Texas with a stop in Atlanta. I think it was American Airlines flying out of Willow Run Detroit to Atlanta on the DC6, then changed planes and flew on a 707 to Tx.
Beautiful old bird -- and a grand old lady! I've always loved the DC-6! I flew on one when a child, many years ago, from L.A. to my grandparent's farm for the summer, in Kansas. I love those old engines. I'm not surprised they're still flying, they probably always will. NO computers to mess things up! Happy landings, DC-6!
The kids can have their jets! There is just something magical about seeing, then hearing one of these majestic old aircraft come to life. The DC-6 shows a lot of it'as heritage from it's "baby sister" the DC-3. No plane ever built will match the DC-3 or it's record first as an airliner then as a military transport. The sad part is that av gas is reportedly getting harder and harder to obtain and that may be the only thing that will ground these grand aircraft for good.
It’s actually the reverse. It was a military transport and then for civilian transport. It was because of the war so many could be cheaply purchased by airlines and used primarily as a regional transport.
@@The_ZeroLine The DC-3 resulted from a marathon telephone call from American Airlines CEO C. R. Smith to Donald Douglas, when Smith persuaded a reluctant Douglas to design a sleeper aircraft based on the DC-2 to replace American's Curtiss Condor II biplanes. The DC-2's cabin was 66 inches (1.7 m) wide, too narrow for side-by-side berths. Douglas agreed to go ahead with development only after Smith informed him of American's intention to purchase twenty aircraft. The new aircraft was engineered by a team led by chief engineer Arthur E. Raymond over the next two years, and the prototype DST (Douglas Sleeper Transport) first flew on December 17, 1935 (the 32nd anniversary of the Wright Brothers' flight at Kitty Hawk) with Douglas chief test pilot Carl Cover at the controls. Its cabin was 92 in (2,300 mm) wide, and a version with 21 seats instead of the 14-16 sleeping berths of the DST was given the designation DC-3. There was no prototype DC-3, and the first DC-3 built followed seven DSTs off the production line for delivery to American Airlines. (From Wikipedia - en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Douglas_DC-3).
how is AV gas getting harder to get? there are a lot of aircraft that still use it like the Cessna 172, the worlds most popular trainer. AV gas will be around for as long as there are piston engines in the sky.
@@wedgie502, I got that from a story about a company operating out of Alaska that was having some difficulty in obtaining AV gas and were having to use their piston planes less and less.
Espectacular ver una restauración así.... Donde pones el cariño, corazón y ojo al detalle!! 👏👏👏👍
I find it somewhat amazing that in 1958 Douglas and any airline, would build from an order a piston powered airliner when airlines were all focused on the jet age...awesome restomod!
This was one of last (or the last) DC-6s that have been build. The jet age started shortly after that. /Frank
Mechanical artists fantastic restoration!!!!! I wish Red Bull would do this to a Connie.
I have the good fortune of being a dc6 cargo FE survivor of the Mia Ne corner.
Congratulations on a major achievement. She is a beauty.
Really neat aircraft and story. Thank you