WWII Berlin Airlift C-54 flies after touch-up and blessing

By Trey Youngdahl

Mena was the host of a historic WWII-era Douglas C-54 that was successfully refurbished by Crider Aircraft painting and returned to the skies. 

The Douglas C-54 Skymaster is a four-engined transport aircraft used by the United States Army Air Forces in World War II and the Korean War. The C-54 Skymaster was derived from a civilian airliner, the Douglas DC-4. Besides transport of cargo, the C-54 also carried presidents, prime ministers, and military staff. Dozens of variants of the C-54 were employed in a wide variety of non-combat roles such as air-sea rescue, scientific and military research, and missile tracking and recovery. This plane was most commonly used during the Berlin Airlift, and it hauled coal and food supplies to West Berlin. After the Korean War this model continued to be used for military and civilian uses by more than 30 countries. These models were also one of the first aircraft to carry the President of the United States, the first being President Franklin D. Roosevelt during World War II (Wikipedia). 

This particular C-54 was flown in the Berlin Airlift. The Berlin Airlift was a military operation enacted when the soviet union cut off food and supplies to West Berlin during WWII. Several C-54s like this one flew from bases in England and western Germany with a massive airlift of food, water, and medicine to the citizens of the besieged city.

Tim Choppa, owner of the plane, is the president of the Berlin Airlift Historical Foundation (BAHF). The organization was founded in an effort to honor and share the story of the Berlin Airlift. This C-54 is the second to be owned by the BAHF. The original, which was affectionately named The Spirit of Freedom, was destroyed after four tornadoes ripped through South Carolina in April 2020, taking the aircraft. The current plane was acquired after seeing it during one of the several shows they do yearly. 

“We happened to spot this plane on the other side of the field of new Smyrna Beach (Georgia). We heard that it was gonna be scrapped or something,” Choppa said. “We knew we had to have it. There are only two in working order in the United States.”

The plane was purchased in August 2020 and was sent to Crider Aircraft Painting to be painted with the original scheme of the BAHF’s former C-54. 

“It was a pleasure to meet everybody and visit Mena. Roger Crider always does good work.”

The plane is now a museum, flying across the country to educate people about the heroism of the Berlin Airlift, and will be named The Spirit of Freedom after its predecessor.
(EDITOR’S NOTE: See more photos of the C-54 interior, as well as the CMA blessing on our Facebook page.)

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