The Model 415 became the C-74 "Globemaster" in the U.S. military and featured a long tubular fuselage with the cockpit at front and an unpressurized cargo hold at center. Interestingly, the pilot and copilot sat under individual canopies over the nose - no doubt a detrimental quality to communication and a "feature" that was soon lost on operational models. A tricycle undercarriage was once again used and the low-mounted wing mainplanes now carried two engines each, these engines driving large-diameter, four-bladed propellers. The tail was conventional, featuring a single vertical tail fin with low-set horizontal planes. The standard operating crew numbered five and dimensions included a length of 37.8 meters, a wingspan of 53 meters and a height of 13.3 meters. Empty weight was 39,100 pounds with a Maximum Take-Off Weight (MTOW) of 172,000 pounds. Its hold could carry 125 combat-ready infantry, light armored vehicles, medical litters with full staff or general cargo. Performance from the 4 x Pratt & Whitney radial engines (3,250 horsepower each), coupled to the streamlined design, offered speeds reaching 330 miles per hour, ranges out to 3,400 miles, a service ceiling up to 21,300 feet, and a rate-of-climb of 2,605 feet per minute.
Development of the aircraft proved slower than needed for the first unit was not unveiled until August of 1944 and a first flight not recorded until September 5th of that year. By this time, D-Day had occurred in northern France and opened war along a new front. The fifth C-74 aircraft completed was modified into what would become the DC-6 and this went on to serve militarily as the "C-118".
With the collapse of Germany in May of 1945 and the end of the Japanese Empire that September, the U.S. military abandoned many aircraft initiatives including its contract for fifty of the C-74. Fourteen aircraft were completed before the cancellation and this also affected Douglas' plans to convert the C-74 as a civilian passenger long-hauler (as the "DC-7", company "Model 415A"). C-74s served under the United States Army Air Forces until the air service portion was reworked to become the United States Air Force. One example saw service during the Berlin Airlift of 1948 (alongside C-47s and C-54s) and was pressed into service during the Korean War (1950-1953). In the latter commitment, the C-74 was used to ferry supplies from the American west coast to Hawaii while bringing back injured - it did not enter the formal theater of war.
While limited in procurement and lacking the needed spares, C-74s were eventually pushed to the brink so much so that the line was beginning to show its wear-and-tear by the mid-1950s. In 1956, the series was laid up at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base of Arizona and a bulk of the fleet was scrapped by 1965. A few ended their days in the civilian market but, sadly, non survived the test of time.
The C-74 had a chance to become an classic heavy-hauler of World War 2 but events dictated its reach in-the-field and limited production dictated its longevity in American service. The upcoming C-124 "Globemaster II" would go one to see much better numbers with 448 built and these serving the USAF until 1974.
Content ©MilitaryFactory.com; No Reproduction Permitted.