Modern air travel is a commonplace, almost taken-for-granted activity. How different it was in 1909 when people came from far and wide to the Klappenbergse Heath to see the first plane take off from Dutch soil. The first Dutch aircraft the “Spin” from Anthony Fokker flew its maiden flight a short two years later. Before the First and Second World Wars air travel was comparable to the position space travel is now: high-tech and unattainable to all except a privileged few.

The Flying Dutchman Foundation plans to recapture the romance of air travel; anchoring their campaign on the restoration of the DC-4 Skymaster and enabling this grand venture to be shared with the public. The DC-4 is a potent long-distance passenger plane from the pre-jet era. The first of the four-engine aircraft, it played an important role in the post-war development of airlines worldwide. It boasts a truly international flying heritage with strong roots to KLM – the airlines post-war fleet consisted entirely of DC-3 and DC-4 aircraft.

This legendary aircraft will play a pivotal role in bringing back the atmosphere of the ground breaking pioneering days of aviation. The Flying Dutchman Foundation has already acquired a DC-4. The ZS-AUA was built in 1946 and is in good condition. After a short period of restoration, the aircraft will soon fully comply with the latest aviation standards qualifying it for Dutch registration and suitable for the safe transport of passengers to historically significant locales across the globe.

Technical Data DC-4 Skymaster 

Propulsion: 4 × Pratt & Whitney R-2000, 1450 pk (1081 kW)

Topspeed: 450 km/h

Range: 6839 km

Ceiling: 10.000ft (without supplemental oxygen)

Length: 28,6 m

Width: 35,8 m

Passenger capacity: 50 passengers in businessclass lay-out.