Happy New Year!

We’re looking ahead to 2026 with high hopes and renewed energy. Winter is a season of recuperation and restoration for the aviation community, and we’re glad to see so many aircraft receiving the care and attention they need to continue operating at their best.

You may notice that this email looks a bit different—we’ve transitioned to a new platform in the new year. This change allows us to streamline our operations and dedicate even more resources to members resources, events and aircraft support.

As always, if you have ideas on how we can better serve you and our community, I’d love to hear from you.

We also have some exciting events and special “gift-giving” opportunities planned for the year ahead, so stay tuned!

Clear skies,

Maria J. Morrison

Have questions, comments, or ideas? Email MariaJeanMorrison@Gmail.com

DC-3 Society
2474 Walnut St. #185
Cary, NC 27518

As we begin 2026, we’re excited to be supporting and covering all major DC-3 and C-47 movements as aircraft emerge from winter restoration and prepare for an active year ahead.

We’re closely following the Tunison Foundation’s Placid Lassie, where a dedicated team of volunteers is preparing this historic C-47 for a strong airshow season with jump operations. Their recent volunteer recognition hangar day—complete with generous meals and community support—highlights the spirit and dedication that keeps these aircraft flying.

In South Florida, Florida Air Cargo continues its impressive operations at Opa-Locka, maintaining and flying its fleet of DC-3s. On January 22, DC-3 N138FS departed Fort Lauderdale for Nassau, drawing attention with its striking white livery and remarkable history dating back to 1943. Today, this aircraft continues its legacy through reliable cargo service across the Bahamas.

We’re also proud to welcome one of our newest AOO-level members, the Mainliner DC-3. Built in 1945 and recently relocated from Van Nuys to Oxnard, this beautifully restored aircraft—now operated by California Aeronautical University—will play an important role in education and aviation heritage preservation.

Additionally, Vaerus Jet Sales’ C-47 recently completed winter maintenance, and we look forward to seeing her on the airshow circuit and at business aviation events this year. Reflecting on their work behind the scenes, the Vaerus team recently shared:

“When you choose purpose over pressure, relationships over hurry, and integrity over convenience… the right outcomes still show up. Sometimes they’re even better.”

Their words capture the dedication and values that drive so much of the work happening quietly across our community.

Looking ahead, we are thrilled to share that planning is underway for our inaugural DC-3 Society DC-3 Fly-In. This two-day event is expected to welcome more than 300 members, crew, and partners from across the DC-3 community. Day one will feature a focused conference on DC-3 maintenance, operations, airworthiness, training, and education. Day two will be open to the public, with multiple DC-3s on display, a formation flight, special activities, and a crew showcase.

Stay tuned—we’ll be announcing the date and location soon.

We look forward to sharing more updates as these legendary aircraft take to the skies throughout 2026.

We think the Spirit of Douglas crew is having an absolute blast on their global journey! Huge thanks to Society member Chris Hicks for the brilliant idea to recreate an epic shot originally captured by fellow member Nick Kanakis—flying over one of the Seven Wonders of the World, the Pyramids! Check out this amazing photo!

Modern Day DC-3 Indiana Jones right here!

Continued: "Douglas DC-3 N760 at the California Science Center" by Adam Estes

The story of this DC-3 begins at the Douglas Aircraft plant in Santa Monica, just northwest of downtown Los Angeles, where it was built as construction number 03269. On January 26, 1941, the aircraft was delivered to Transcontinental & Western Air (later Trans World Airlines (TWA)) as NC1944. Even before the United States directly entered WWII following the attack on Pearl Harbor, many DC-3s originally purchased for domestic airlines were impressed for miliary duties, and that only would increase in the following year. However, domestic travel routes continued, even under wartime restrictions, and unlike many DC-3s, NC1944 was never flown in military service, spending the Second World War in TWA’s fleet.

TWA’s DC-3s, however, would still contribute to the war effort by flying military personnel and cargo across the continental United States. With the end of WWII in 1945, the postwar economic boom in the United States led to an increase in the number of airline passengers, and NC1944 continued to plod the skies of America, alongside thousands of surplus C-47s converted into civilian airliners. This period from the late 1940s and early 1950s also saw the widespread introduction of new pressurized, four-engine airliners such as the Lockheed Constellation and the Douglas DC-6, which could fly faster, higher, and carry more passengers and cargo than the pre-war DC-3s could, which would see the DC-3 being increasingly used as a regional carrier or as an executive transport.

On November 3, 1950, NC1944 was sold by TWA to aircraft broker W.G. Spillman of Burbank, California. Eleven days later, on November 24, Spillman sold the aircraft to the Union Oil Company of California (Unocal), which created the gas station brand 76. Now registered as N1944, the aircraft was fitted with a plush interior for Union Oil executives to fly in comfort to conduct business. Additionally, scientists and engineers of Unocal used the aircraft to travel to various locations that offered new sources of oil and gasoline for the company to sell. On June 30, 1963, the aircraft was re-registered with the FAA as N760 and continued to be in service for Union Oil of California.

As the 1980s approached, the aircraft itself was nearly 40 years old at a time when business jets became more affordable for companies such as Union Oil to purchase or charter for their purposes. Yet, the aircraft still held historical value, so on December 15, 1982, Douglas DC-3 N760 was donated to the California Museum of Science & Industry (now the California Science Center) in Los Angeles’ Exposition Park. At the time N760 was retired, it had accumulated nearly 48,000 flying hours and had flown 10 million miles without incident. Additionally, Unocal also donated a Ford F6 fuel truck and a Clark CK20 aircraft tug to be displayed with the DC-3, which was given the name “Spirit of Seventy-Six”. During the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles, the California Aerospace Museum was opened next to the California Museum of Science and Industry, with an emphasis on the Golden State’s role as a major contributor to the aviation industry. However, the design of the museum building was not intended to accommodate the DC-3, and so the aircraft was left outdoors in Exposition Park, exposed to the local weather. 

Douglas DC-3-362 (c/n 3269, N760) marked 'Spirit of Seventy Six' on display at Exposition Park, Los Angeles, December 1991. (André Gerwing via Wikimedia Commons)​

After nearly 20 years on display at Exposition Park, Douglas DC-3 N760 was transported to Hawthorne Airport in December 2001 and placed on loan from the newly renamed California Science Center to the Western Museum of Flight. Upon arriving at Hawthorne, the Western Museum of Flight’s volunteers, many of whom were retirees of Northrop Aircraft (which was headquartered at Hawthorne), restored the aircraft, but lacked the hangar space to move it indoors. In 2006, the Western Museum of Flight relocated from Hawthorne Airport to its present-day location at Torrance Municipal Airport/Zamperini Field. This new location, however, left no room for the DC-3 to be displayed. Instead, it would be loaned out to another museum: the Flight Path Museum and Learning Center.

Douglas DC-3 N760 at the Flight Path Museum and Learning Center, Los Angeles International Airport. (Flight Path Museum and Learning Center photo)  

Located in the former LAX Imperial Terminal on the south side of one of the world’s busiest airports, the museum offers visitors a remarkable glimpse into Los Angeles’ aerospace history, with exhibits on the evolution of LAX from its establishment in 1928 as Mines Field to its present-day status as a worldwide hub for travel and commerce, former and current airlines, and local aerospace manufacturers. The Flight Path Museum prided DC-3 N760 as being the sole aircraft on its premises, and offered guided tours of its interior to visitors until the COVID-19 pandemic caused the interior tours to cease. On most days, the DC-3 would be facing Boeing 747-400Fs of Kalitta Air having cargo loaded and unloaded, and be in view of departing airliners and cargo aircraft. By that point, however, the exterior of the aircraft began to show its age yet again, and around this time, the California Science Center began finalizing the design work on the upcoming Samuel Oschin Air and Space Center.  

Photos above, taken by Adam Estes:

Top: "Spirit of Seventy Six" at Los Angeles International Airport.

Middle: The nose section of N760, with the Museum in the background.

Bottom: Rear-end view of N760.

In 2025, DC-3 N760 was returned to Exposition Park in several portions, with the outer wing panels, ailerons, and propellers being transported in the spring, while the remainder of the aircraft, including the fuselage, center wing section engines and nacelles, and the tail surfaces, were all transported as one unit. Currently, DC-3 N760 “Spirit of Seventy-Six” remains disassembled, sitting in what was part of the museum’s outdoor patio table area. It sat with two other aircraft, Grumman F11F-1 Tiger BuNo 138608, which has since been installed in the new Samuel Oschin Air and Space Center building, and Northrop T-38A Talon 59-1603/NASA 963, which was also loaned to the Western Museum of Flight.

Photos above, taken by Adam Estes:

Top: Tail of N760 at the California Science Center, Los Angeles

Middle: Fuselage and wings of N760 at the California Science Center

Bottom: Fuselage of N760 at the California Science Center

It is the intention of the California Science Center to have DC-3 N760 be refurbished and then brought into the new Samuel Oschin Air and Space Center to be reassembled for permanent indoor display. There it will be at the center of the Air and Space Center’s Korean Air Aviation Gallery, which will also feature, among other aircraft, the nose of a former Korean Air Boeing 747-400. Currently, the California Science Center has not yet issued an official opening date for the Samuel Oschin Air and Space Center, but with three major sporting events being hosted in LA, from the FIFA World Cup 2026, to Super Bowl LXI in 2027 and the 2028 Summer Olympics/Summer Paralympics, it is likely that the new Air and Space Center, which is now externally complete, will be open to the public by then, and Douglas DC-3 N760 will have a permanent home in what promises to be the largest air and space museum in Los Angeles, a fitting place for this aircraft to inspire future generations to come.

Below: Artist’s rendering of the completed Korean Air Aviation Gallery of the Samuel Oschin Air and Space Center, with Douglas DC-3 N760 featured prominently on the ground floor. (California Science Center)

EPISODE 8 IS HERE

If you'd like us to publish your event on the DC-3 Society website events page, please make sure to send details of the event in advance to: globalmedia@dc3society.org

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