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Description
| Manufacturer: | Douglas | |
| Base model: | DC-6 | |
| Designation: | DC-6 | |
| Equivalent to: | R6D-1 C-118B | |
| Basic role: | Commercial Transport | |
| First Flew: | 1946/06/29 | |
Specifications
| Length: | 100' 7" | 30.6 m | |
| Height: | 29' 1" | 8.8 m | |
| Wingspan: | 117' 6" | 35.8 m | |
| Wingarea: | 1,463.0 sq ft | 135.9 sq m | |
| Empty Weight: | 53,623 lb | 24,318 kg | |
| Gross Weight: | 97,200 lb | 44,081 kg | |
Propulsion
| No. of Engines: | 4 | ||
| Powerplant: | Pratt & Whitney R-2800 | ||
Performance
| Cruise Speed: | 328 mph | 528 km/h | 285 kt |
| Climb: | 900 ft/min | 274 m/min | |
| Ceiling: | 29,000 ft | 8,838 m | |
Recent comments by our visitors
| John Ewing Fairbanks, AK | I have recently learned that a fluids system or perhaps a component within a fluids system on the DC-6 operates at a mere 2.5 psi. Can anyone tell me what this particular component or system is? Help would be greatly appreciated.
John 08/13/2008 @ 21:08 [ref: 22451] |
| Miles W. Rich Johns Creek, GA | Growing up in the Quad Cities of Illinois and Iowa, I flew on many United DC-6 and DC-6B aircraft as well as a few flights on Northeast and American DC-6B's. The American DC-6 that lost a prop was the Flagship Arizona, I believe, and the incident happened over Avon, Colorado, very close to Vail, long before the ski area was built. Someone asked when United retired the DC-6. Except for a few DC-6's that were sold first leased and then sold to Delta, and a few lost in accidents, all the Sixes remained in service until 1968, when there were quickly replaced by B737-222's beginning on April 28, 1968. All but three aircraft were removed from service by Thanksgiving of that year; however, three DC-6B's, N37572, N37577, and N37581 soldiered on for another year and a half flying the SLC-ELY-EKO-RNO-SFO route with the last flight taking place on February 28, 1970. United kept their DC-6's in service longer than the other carriers because they skipped ordering Turboprops, and opted for the 737 instead of the DC-9 which was available over two years earlier. The 47 Viscounts that United operated were acquired in the Capital merger and were used east of Omaha to primarly operate former Capital short distance routes, although UA cities like CID, MLI, DSM, SBN, FWA, and TOL did see them along with the DC-6's. 02/19/2008 @ 08:07 [ref: 19723] |
| Bob , WA | I Fly for a Virtual Airline and I am the Chief Pilot for the DC-6 .Looking for information about the fuel tanks for flight planning.
Question.Does the DC-6 have unusable fuel 12/19/2007 @ 14:36 [ref: 18971] |
| Bob , WA | I Fly for a Virtual Airline and I am the Chief Pilot for the DC-6 .Looking for information about the fuel tanks for flight planning.
Question.Does the DC-6 have unusable fuel 12/19/2007 @ 14:35 [ref: 18970] |
| Mike , CA | Does anyone remember when United Airlines retired it's DC-6 fleet? 10/28/2007 @ 05:34 [ref: 18323] |
| jim russell fairbanks, AK | i have exc footage of dc-6 available on dvd or tape for sale.i worked around these round motors for the past 16 years . c-46 video available as well . all of this video is shot in alaska.
02/13/2007 @ 14:31 [ref: 15505] |
| Hatman , CA | I flew a United DC-6 from Oakland to Midway via Denver in the summer of 1955 as a 6 year old. I can still remember somehere west of Chicago the pilot announcing we would be taking a 100 mile detour around some thunderclouds (in those days you flew at cloud level). From Midway we transferred onto a United DC-4 to Willow Run near Ann Arbor, Michigan. Unitedretired its DC-4s a year later. 08/02/2006 @ 20:34 [ref: 13787] |
| Bruce Scottow Los Angeles, CA | I worked for Mackey International Airlines from 1973 to 1978. The commuter airline was based in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida and served the Bahamas and British West Indies from FLL, MIA and PBI.
Virtually all aircraft we operated were with CAB Part 121 "exceptions," allowing us permission to fly larger, non-commuter aircraft. 44-passenger Convair 440s were the mainstay of our fleet but we inaugurated DC-6 service (later upgraded to DC-6Bs) beginning c. 1975. Even then, the DC-6 was already an old-timer, but for us it was a big event, what with THREE in the cockpit and TWO flight attendants onboard, plus our only flights we served food (sandwiches - pretty hot stuff for a "commuter carrier," we thought)! With five across seating, it was our "wide body." I think we seated about 88 or so - twice our CV-440 equipment. Once in while we operated DC-6s to Freeport or Nassau, but usually put them on our 3x weekly service between FLL/MIA and on to Providenciales and Grand Turk in the Turks & Caicos Islands. I recall a rumor that our original DC-6 was ex-American. The aircraft supposedly lost a chunk of its fuselage wall (and one of its passengers) when a prop spun off its shaft and cut into the aircraft somewhere over Arizona sometime during the mid-1950s. It was patched up and eventually found its way to us. Not sure if that's all true but I'm sure it made for some white knuckle flyers on Mackey Int'l! My best to all you airliner fans! Bruce Scottow 02/02/2006 @ 12:54 [ref: 12394] |
| Pat Patteson Molalla, OR | DC-6’s Now and Then.
DC-6's are still flying regular schedules and making money in Alaska. According to the November 2005 issue of AOPA Pilot Everts Air Cargo and Everts Air Fuel of Fairbanks is flying several DC-6's as well as Curtis C-46 "Commando" aircraft. Everts owns 40 large reciprocating-engine-aircraft to keep 13 of the two types it has chosen flying. Both types use variants of the R-2800 engines. Everts Air Cargo flies cargo and Everts Air Fuel specializes hauling fuel into the Alaskan bush. The Everts Air Fuel DC-6's can carry loads of 5,000 to 6,000 gallons of fuel, depending on the distance to be flown. The article reports that "Last year, during the winter oil-field exploration season, one of Everts DC-6 tankers single handedly moved more than one million gallons of diesel fuel on the North Slope of Alaska, much of it to temporary ice and gavel runways built by the oil companies at their drill sites." "Everts Air Cargo moves whatever Can't be poured into a tank. Everything from bypass mail to snow machines and groceries, from pampers to canned goods and potato chips, is moved to remote villages on a regular basis with the DC-6 airplanes on scheduled runs." I too remember flying in both DC-6's and DC-7's United Airlines "Red Carpet Service". (With real Red Carpets, outside on the ramp at the bottom of the stairs) on a couple of trips when I was about 9-12 years old. The most memorable Fiery exhaust coming from the DC-6 engines at night as we battled though a thunderstorm while my infant brother slept soundly in a United Airlines "Bassinette" attached to the cockpit bulkhead. Back then, after the flight, the Captain invited me into the cockpit to have a look around and the “Stewardess” (only cute females back then) presented me with my Own “Junior Pilot’s Wings”. What a treat for a kid. (Wish I still had the Wings) I have since gotten my Private License, but, That was flying. Pat Patteson Molalla, Oregon 11/09/2005 @ 20:38 [ref: 11652] |
| John Crowley Seattle, WA | Hey There,
My first airplane ride was a United DC-6 in 1958. I was 18 months old. Hey, I did a few more rides on UAL DC-6s when I was old enough to remember the ride. This was one HOT airplane. I got a major kick out of watching the engines come too life, the props spinning, and the exhaust flames at night... pretty impressive stuff for a kid!! Well, here I am 46 years later, and now a I've flown on the 707, 727, 737, 757, DC-10, L1011 and Airbuses. To me the DC-6 and DC-7 are the best airplanes I've ever flow on. John 07/23/2005 @ 03:05 [ref: 10812] |
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