AeroClassics AC411116

AeroClassics AC411116 replicates in 1/400 scale diecast the C-46F, registration N4718N, Northeast Airlines, circa the early 1950s.

Northeast Airlines

Northeast Airlines was an American airline that initially operated domestic services in the northeastern United States and later international routes. Founded as Boston-Maine Airways on July 20, 1931, a Pan Am contractor, rebranding as Northeast Airlines in November 1940, merged into Delta Air Lines in 1972.

Curtiss C-46 Commando

The Curtiss C-46 Commando is an American twin-engine transport aircraft that first flew on March 26, 1940, and entered service with the USAAC in 1940, designated the R5C in the US Navy/Marine Corps. It served in most World War II theatres of operation, most famously flying over “The Hump” (the Himalayas) to transport supplies to China from India.

At the time of production, it was the largest twin-engine aircraft in the world, with a cargo capacity twice that of the C-47 and three times its weight. It remained in service with the USAF until 1968, serving in Korea and Vietnam. Postwar, it saw limited use as an airliner due to high operating costs. Production ended in 1945 with 3,181 airframes completed.

It has a flight crew of three: two pilots, a navigator, and an optional loadmaster. It is powered by two Pratt & Whitney R-2800-51 Double Wasp 18-cylinder air-cooled radial piston engines, driving four-bladed Curtiss Electric constant-speed propellers, later replaced by three-blade Hamilton-Standard propellers.