View allAll Photos Tagged ExecutiveTransport
The Lockheed L-12A Electra Junior was a sleek twin-engine aircraft introduced in the late 1930s as a smaller, faster version of the famous Electra. Designed for business travel and regional airline service, it quickly became popular for its speed, reliability, and elegant art-deco styling. During the Second World War, many were adapted for military use as light transports and reconnaissance aircraft. With its polished aluminium finish and distinctive twin tail, the Electra Junior remains a shining example of 1930s aviation design and craftsmanship.
Seen taxiing to a stand at London Southend Airport. The aircraft seen is seen carrying Don Diablo titles he is performing at the V Festival in Hylands Park Chelmsford.
N7079G started life as an A-26C Invader (44-35562) before being re-manufactured as an On Mark Marketeer circa 1960, with lengthened nose, tip tanks, 11 passenger interior and RH side entrance door.
A6-PFC is one of several aircraft in the fleet of Abu Dhabi Amiri Flight. This is a carrier that is responsible for transporting high-ranking government officials and senior members of the royal family in Abu Dhabi.
Just one of many nice movements I was fortunate to encounter while spotting during my stay in Singapore.
KORF (Norfolk International Airport) - 16 OCT 2025
"PAT 326" from Davison Army Air Field (KDAA) - Fort Belvoir, VA overflying the field, en route to Charlottesville-Albermarle Airport (KCHO).
This aircraft is part of the US Army Priority Air Transport Battalion (USAPAT). USAPAT's mission is to provide the senior Army leadership and key government officials with fast, long-range and professional executive transportation throughout the world.
As World War II was coming to a close, aircraft manufacturers worldwide anticipated the switch back to civilian production, but in far greater numbers than before the war: thousands of pilots trained during the war would want to keep flying. North American Aviation, in particular, anticipated a postwar boom: thousands of former P-51 Mustang pilots who, unable to support their favorite aircraft, would want the next best thing. Thus, North American began working on the NA-145 Navion.
The Navion was deliberately designed to resemble the P-51, using a similar wing and tail design, but sat four and used a tricycle landing gear design. It had good speed and range for its class, and North American sold them reasonably cheap, hoping to attract buyers. However, even though the Navion sold pretty well, it was not to the extent North American had initially desired, and selling them below cost meant that the company was losing money on the NA-145. The Navion also faced stiff competition with Beechcraft and Cessna's better-established (and cheaper) products.
North American returned to their roots—military contracts, namely the F-86 Sabre—and sold the Navion design to Ryan aircraft. Ryan would produce more Navions until 1951, when it sold the design, this time to the Navion Aircraft Company, which only made the aircraft. Navion went out of business in 1965, by which point 2,634 aircraft had been built—a fair number, considering the competition. Efforts have been made to restart production, and the Navion, though nowhere near as common as its competitors, remains in decent numbers worldwide.
The U.S. Army and Air Force soon became interested in the aircraft, and over 200 were bought as the L-17. From 1948 to 1957, they were used as liaison aircraft, with some aircraft being used as forward air control and causality evacuations during the Korean War; a few were used as light executive transports. After being phased out in 1957, many were sold off to private owners.
This Navion was built as a civilian aircraft in 1947, but after it was acquired by Planes of Fame in 1996, it was painted as an L-17A of the U.S. Army in the early 1950s. Given the five-star shield on the nose and the marking style, this plane would've been assigned to the personal use of Gen. Omar Bradley, the last five-star U.S. military general to date.
KORF (Norfolk International Airport) - 05 OCT 2025
"King Air Two Victor Alpha" climbing out from RWY 5 en route to Winchester Regional Airport (KOKV). Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin was at nearby Naval Station Norfolk for a celebration of the US Navy's 250th Anniversary. President Trump and many other dignitaries were in attendance at the event as well.
Registered to Raytheon Aircraft: N71970
Year of Manufacture: 2007
Delivery to Commonwealth of Virginia Department of Aviation: 16 AUG 2007 as N2VA
Hex Code: A18F2D
Seats: 11
Engines: 2x Pratt & Whitney Canada PT6A-60A
After the success of the A-20 Havoc, Douglas Aircraft began design of a successor, with an eye towards an aircraft that also would be able to replace the North American B-25 Mitchell and Martin B-26 Marauder as well. Using the A-20 as a model and drawing on experience with the deHavilland Mosquito as well, famed aircraft designer Edward Heinemann came up with a light bomber design that could be flown by a single pilot. Though similar to the Havoc, the XA-26 Invader had a slightly wider fuselage, larger tail, and laminar-flow wings for better stability in dives. Since Douglas could build on the A-20’s success, testing went smoothly and the US Army Air Force was suitably impressed by its maiden flight in July 1942.
By this time, however, units in the Pacific had demonstrated the lethality of purpose-built low-level attack aircraft with massive forward armament, so the USAAF asked Douglas to develop the A-26 into a strafer as well. Douglas responded with two variants: the A-26B, with a solid gun nose that could carry anything from machine guns to a 75mm antitank gun, and the A-26C, with a glass nose for medium-altitude bombing. The noses themselves could be quickly exchanged to switch A-26Bs to A-26C bombers, and vice-versa. As in the A-20, a crew of three was provided, with the flight crew (the pilot and navigator/bombardier) forward and the gunner in a separate compartment in the rear, controlling both the remote dorsal and ventral turrets. A-26Cs could carry two guns in the nose, but these were deleted in production variants for four wing-mounted machine guns, which were also included in A-26Bs.
Douglas’ commitment to building transport aircraft and the modification of the XA-26A to the B/C dual variant delayed introduction to service until September 1944 in Europe, by which time the A-26 would be operating from newly-liberated bases in France and Italy. Though it arrived late, the A-26s in Europe saw significant action in the Battle of the Bulge and the final drive into Germany, operating mostly as medium bombers and occasionally as night interdiction aircraft. It showed enough potential that, much as Douglas had hoped, it replaced the A-20, B-25, and B-26 in USAAF service, remaining in postwar production.
Though the A-26 had seen World War II service, most of its combat record would be after that war—namely in Korea. The 3rd Bombardment Group, based in Japan in June 1950, saw its A-26s rapidly deployed for Korean service, and undertook the first US Air Force attack on North Korea itself. The A-26 force was quickly augmented by aircraft deployed from the United States, and these undertook bombing sorties in the battles to hold the Pusan Perimeter and in the Inchon invasion. As the Korean War became a stalemate, and due to the interdiction campaign happening in North Korea, Communist forces were forced to resupply mostly at night, and the USAF A-26s in theater were switched to night interdiction operations. These were extremely dangerous in the mountainous Korean Peninsula, to say nothing of the danger from ground fire. Usually, A-26s would operate in hunter-killer teams, with one aircraft using a wing-mounted searchlight to illuminate a target while the other made its attack. A-26s also bookended the Korean War by becoming the last USAF aircraft to attack targets in North Korea, just before the armistice was signed.
By the time of American involvement in Southeast Asia, the A-26 had been redesignated B-26 (this had happened during the Korean War, but it was generally referred to by its former designation). RB-26Cs were among the first USAF aircraft deployed to the area, in 1960, first seeing service under Operation Farm Gate, supporting Royal Laotian Army forces against Pathet Lao guerillas. Later, Farm Gate was expanded to South Vietnam as well and B-26C bombers were deployed for service as well—despite their age, the Invaders were liked for their easy handling and long loiter times, both valuable and necessary in counterinsurgency warfare. (The USAF was not the first nation to use Invaders in Vietnam—the French had used them during the siege of Dien Bien Phu in 1954.)
Age caught up to the force by 1965, and after a number of fatal crashes caused by metal fatigue, the B-26 force was grounded. They were then modified to A-26K Counter-Invaders, with new engines, reinforced structure, and wingtip fuel tanks (and further confusing the matter by readopting the attack designation). Returning to Vietnam in 1966, A-26Ks would remain in service until 1970, gradually replaced by gunship AC-130s, and turned in an excellent performance in the counterinsurgency role. The last A-26 did not leave USAF service until 1972.
A total of 2452 Invaders had been built, and besides its American and French service, others were used in African colonial wars (namely in Angola and Nigeria) and by Indonesia in its invasion of East Timor in 1976, the last time A-26s were used in combat. The CIA also used them in covert operations, especially in the failed Bay of Pigs invasion of 1961. A good number of A-26s were sold as surplus after the Vietnam War and were subsequently converted to firefighting aircraft. Though most of these have been retired in recent years, it ensured that there would be significant numbers of flyable Invaders left. Today, 96 aircraft remain in museums and in private collections.
A-26B 44-34713 was delivered to the USAAF in July 1945, just before World War II ended, but remained with the postwar USAF, converted (and redesignated) as a B-26C. It is not known if 44-34713 saw service in Korea, but in 1954, it was loaned to the French Armee de l'Air for combat duty in Indochina--later known as Vietnam. After flying in Indochina for a year, it was returned to the USAF and went into storage at Clark AFB in the Philippines; in 1958, it was declared surplus and sold off to a private owner, who turned it into an executive transport. It briefly appeared in the James Garner and Natalie Wood romance movie "Cash McCall" in 1960.
In 1963, 44-34713's second career as an executive transport truly began, when it became the second A-26 to be converted to an On-Mark Marksman. The Marksman conversion was a major alteration to the standard A-26 airframe, removing all military vestiges, changing the interior wing spar to a circular one to improve passenger comfort, a larger rudder, pressurizing the aircraft, adding loading stairs through the former bomb bay, and streamlining the upper fuselage. The nose was extended to accomodate luggage, while the cockpit windows were replaced by those from a DC-6. The result was an almost completely new aircraft. From 1963 to 1987, 44-34713 flew with a number of owners as a Marksman.
As there were not many A-26s left by the late 1980s, in 1988, 44-34713 was obtained by the National Warplane Museum in Geneseo, New York. (As it is listed briefly as property of the Wayne County Sheriff's Department in Michigan, it may have been seized.) 44-34713 was due to be restored back to its appearance as an A-26, and the Marksman nose and canopy was replaced by an A-26 gun nose. Restoration went no further than that when it was acquired by a new owner in Texas in 1992, and by 2002 it was stored at Las Cruces Municipal Airport, New Mexico.
And there 44-34713 has remained. It is still owned, possibly by Southwest Aviation, and restoration work may still be proceeding, though the desert sun has taken its toll on the aircraft over 20 years. It still wears the dark blue scheme of its last owner as a Marksman, dating from 1984.
I had seen this aircraft on Google Maps (while looking for a nonexistent F-100), and initially had decided against a side trip to see if I could get a decent picture. It was a spur of the moment decision, and it paid off, not just with 44-34713, but also the PV-2 present at Las Cruces. I didn't know it at the time, but with this picture and one taken a few days later in Phoenix, I have photographed two out of three known remaining On-Mark Marksmen
After the success of the A-20 Havoc, Douglas Aircraft began design of a successor, with an eye towards an aircraft that also would be able to replace the North American B-25 Mitchell and Martin B-26 Marauder as well. Using the A-20 as a model and drawing on experience with the deHavilland Mosquito as well, famed aircraft designer Edward Heinemann came up with a light bomber design that could be flown by a single pilot. Though similar to the Havoc, the XA-26 Invader had a slightly wider fuselage, larger tail, and laminar-flow wings for better stability in dives. Since Douglas could build on the A-20’s success, testing went smoothly and the US Army Air Force was suitably impressed by its maiden flight in July 1942.
By this time, however, units in the Pacific had demonstrated the lethality of purpose-built low-level attack aircraft with massive forward armament, so the USAAF asked Douglas to develop the A-26 into a strafer as well. Douglas responded with two variants: the A-26B, with a solid gun nose that could carry anything from machine guns to a 75mm antitank gun, and the A-26C, with a glass nose for medium-altitude bombing. The noses themselves could be quickly exchanged to switch A-26Bs to A-26C bombers, and vice-versa. As in the A-20, a crew of three was provided, with the flight crew (the pilot and navigator/bombardier) forward and the gunner in a separate compartment in the rear, controlling both the remote dorsal and ventral turrets. A-26Cs could carry two guns in the nose, but these were deleted in production variants for four wing-mounted machine guns, which were also included in A-26Bs.
Douglas’ commitment to building transport aircraft and the modification of the XA-26A to the B/C dual variant delayed introduction to service until September 1944 in Europe, by which time the A-26 would be operating from newly-liberated bases in France and Italy. Though it arrived late, the A-26s in Europe saw significant action in the Battle of the Bulge and the final drive into Germany, operating mostly as medium bombers and occasionally as night interdiction aircraft. It showed enough potential that, much as Douglas had hoped, it replaced the A-20, B-25, and B-26 in USAAF service, remaining in postwar production.
Though the A-26 had seen World War II service, most of its combat record would be after that war—namely in Korea. The 3rd Bombardment Group, based in Japan in June 1950, saw its A-26s rapidly deployed for Korean service, and undertook the first US Air Force attack on North Korea itself. The A-26 force was quickly augmented by aircraft deployed from the United States, and these undertook bombing sorties in the battles to hold the Pusan Perimeter and in the Inchon invasion. As the Korean War became a stalemate, and due to the interdiction campaign happening in North Korea, Communist forces were forced to resupply mostly at night, and the USAF A-26s in theater were switched to night interdiction operations. These were extremely dangerous in the mountainous Korean Peninsula, to say nothing of the danger from ground fire. Usually, A-26s would operate in hunter-killer teams, with one aircraft using a wing-mounted searchlight to illuminate a target while the other made its attack. A-26s also bookended the Korean War by becoming the last USAF aircraft to attack targets in North Korea, just before the armistice was signed.
By the time of American involvement in Southeast Asia, the A-26 had been redesignated B-26 (this had happened during the Korean War, but it was generally referred to by its former designation). RB-26Cs were among the first USAF aircraft deployed to the area, in 1960, first seeing service under Operation Farm Gate, supporting Royal Laotian Army forces against Pathet Lao guerillas. Later, Farm Gate was expanded to South Vietnam as well and B-26C bombers were deployed for service as well—despite their age, the Invaders were liked for their easy handling and long loiter times, both valuable and necessary in counterinsurgency warfare. (The USAF was not the first nation to use Invaders in Vietnam—the French had used them during the siege of Dien Bien Phu in 1954.)
Age caught up to the force by 1965, and after a number of fatal crashes caused by metal fatigue, the B-26 force was grounded. They were then modified to A-26K Counter-Invaders, with new engines, reinforced structure, and wingtip fuel tanks (and further confusing the matter by readopting the attack designation). Returning to Vietnam in 1966, A-26Ks would remain in service until 1970, gradually replaced by gunship AC-130s, and turned in an excellent performance in the counterinsurgency role. The last A-26 did not leave USAF service until 1972.
A total of 2452 Invaders had been built, and besides its American and French service, others were used in African colonial wars (namely in Angola and Nigeria) and by Indonesia in its invasion of East Timor in 1976, the last time A-26s were used in combat. The CIA also used them in covert operations, especially in the failed Bay of Pigs invasion of 1961. A good number of A-26s were sold as surplus after the Vietnam War and were subsequently converted to firefighting aircraft. Though most of these have been retired in recent years, it ensured that there would be significant numbers of flyable Invaders left. Today, 96 aircraft remain in museums and in private collections.
A high school in southern Phoenix, Arizona seems an odd spot to find an A-26, but that is where 41-39221 ended up. Delivered around 1944 to the USAAF, it remained in service with the postwar USAF, and was likely retired in the mid-1950s. 41-39221 was purchased in 1963 by the Southern Natural Gas Company of Birmingham, Alabama as an executive transport. This was likely when it was converted to an On-Mark Marksman. The Marksman conversion was a major alteration to the standard A-26 airframe, removing all military vestiges, changing the interior wing spar to a circular one to improve passenger comfort, a larger rudder, pressurizing the aircraft, adding loading stairs through the former bomb bay, and streamlining the upper fuselage. The nose was extended to accomodate luggage, while the cockpit windows were replaced by those from a DC-6. The result was an almost completely new aircraft. Only eight aircraft were converted.
41-39221 flew as an executive transport until 1979, when it was bought by the Garrett AiResearch Company; the nose section was swapped out for various turboprops as a testbed. It flew with Garrett and Allied Signal until 1992, when 41-39221 was finally retired and grounded. It was then donated to South Mountain High School's aerospace technology program, and placed on display at the front entrance.
I had been meaning to photograph 41-39221 for quite awhile, but it wasn't until a very hot June 2022 (hot even by Phoenix standards) that I finally got the opportunity. The aircraft is well-maintained, though the "N26GT" registration is spurious; the catspaw on the tail references South Mountain's mascot.
There are only two of the On-Mark Marksmen left, and without even meaning to, I got to see both of them within the space of a week.
Pima Air & Space Museum - Tucson, Arizona - 29 DEC 2014
1949 Lockheed VC-121A Constellation "Columbine" 48-614 in the markings of the 7167th Special Air Missions Squadron, Wiesbaden Air Base, Germany, 1951.
After the commercial success of the L-049 Constellation, Lockheed produced a slightly improved version designated L-749. This aircraft attracted the attention of the U.S. Air Force, which bought ten of them for long-range VIP transports and designated them VC-121A. The new transports proved to be very popular and regularly carried high-ranking Generals and Presidents.
Dwight D. Eisenhower had two different VC-121As assigned as his personal transports at different times. This aircraft was the first. It served him during his time as the SHAPE commander in the early 1950s. All of Eisenhower's Connies were called "Columbine" after the state flower of Colorado. The second VC-121A served "Ike" when he was President of the United States. Eisenhower also used one of the larger L-1079 (VC-121E) Connies as his third "Columbine" during his second term as President.
History
Built by Lockheed, Burbank, California and delivered to the US Air Force on February 4, 1949.
Feb 1949: To 1600th Air Transport Group, Westove AFB, Maine.
Dec 1950: To 1254th Air Transport Squadron, Washington National Airport, Virginia.
Jan 1951: To Lockheed Air Service, Idlewild International Airport, New York for installation of VIP interior.
Apr 1951: 7167th Special Air Missions Squadron, Wiesbaden AFB, Germany. Used by General Eisenhower as his personal transport.
Dec 1952: 7415th Air Base Group, Orly Air Field, France.
Nov 1956: To Lockheed Air Service, Idlewild International Airport, New York.
Feb 1957: 1298th Air Transport (Special Missions) Squadron, Washington National Airport, Virginia.
Dec 1959: 7101st Air Base Wing, Wiesbaden AFB, Germany.
Jun 1967: To Davis-Monthan AFB, Tucson, Arizona for storage.
Jun 1968: Dropped from inventory as surplus.
1972: Loaned to Pima Air & Space Museum by National Museum of the United States Air Force.
Technical Specifications
Wingspan: 123 ft
Length: 95 ft 2 in
Height: 23 ft 8 in
Weight: 72,000 lbs (loaded)
Max Speed: 330 mph
Service Ceiling: 25,000 ft
Range: 2,400 miles
Engines: (4) Wright R-3350 radial engines, 2,200 hp each
Crew:4
Passengers: Up to 60
A separate arm of Lockheed Aircraft, LAS operated from Ontario, California, and specialized in the conversion of airframes. In the late 1950s, the company created the Super 26 which utilized just the wings, engines, tail, and landing gear of the Invader. A new fuselage with a pressurized cabin that was 22 feet long and six feet high was built and this could carry six-to-nine passengers. Constellation windows and cockpit sections were utilized and the first example, N5052N, flew in mid-1960. Apparently only one was built and the hulk finally wound up with Air Spray in Canada as a parts source.
The modifications in detail-
Increased interior height by raising the fuselage top ( looks like a foot above the normal A-26 ) - and - deepening the belly ( by 6 to 9 inches - starting with a fairing at the nose landing gear well / forward bomb bay lower-partial bulkhead ) carrying this height section aft to the break in the parallel longitudinal reference ( tapering to the tail ).
Increased the interior cabin length by adding what appears to be a 6 foot " plug " in the fuselage aft of the wing. This configuration is remarkably similar to the L.B. Smith Tempo II conversion design. With the incorporation of the " ring spar " to replace the rear wing spar carry-through structure, the interior would be open from the rear face of the forward wing spar, all the way back to the rear pressure bulkhead ( behind the rear-most cabin side window ).
LAS was said to have used Constellation L-1049 Super G cabin windows in conjunction with pressurization. These can be identified by the square shape with generously rounded corners as seen on the aft fuselage ( 4 on each side, includes the entrance "Airstair" to starboard and the escape panel opposite ) and the pair below the right wing. The oval windows above the wing appear to be horizontally sectioned from the side window size. The cockpit windshield appears to be the normal A-26 curved units but with small cockpit side windows, both incorporating heavier framing to withstand pressurization loads. This configuration can also be found on the L.B. Smith Tempo II conversion.
A newly designed fiber glass nose with considerable length and contour revisions over the standard A-26. The added length of the nose was certainly increased to compensate for the added fuselage length aft of the wing. This would bring the C. G. back to the correct location and aerodynamically improve the shape. An added benefit would be an increased capacity to carry luggage and baggage in the nose along with the aft compartment.
A half-dome transition shape to the aft end of the cabin top to blend with the standard A-26 tail section. Note how the vertical stabilizer leading edge blends into a horizontal dorsal spine, ending at the half-dome transition. These shapes can be found on the On Mark Marksman " C " configuration. As the LAS Super 26 preceded the Marksman series, it seems that there were many design elements used by the various conversion companies, especially those operating from the San Fernando Valley area of California. It must be noted, however, that On Mark Engineering dominated the A-26 Invader conversion business, and was successful beyond measure compared with their competition.
Note: inset photo is for comparison only, (it is A-26C-20-DT 43-22494, converted to JDB-26C Invader). N5052N was an A-26C-55-DT.
Pima Air & Space Museum - Tucson, Arizona - 29 DEC 2014
On display at the Pima Air & Space Museum as part of "The Boneyard Project: Return Trip", where a selection of artists created works on military aircraft. This aircraft is marked "Andrew Schoultz Spy Tiger, 2012".
The C-140 is a military version of the Lockheed Model 1329 light jet transport. The prototype Jet Star was first flown on Sept. 4, 1957, only 241 days after design completion. Production began in 1960.
Although the majority of those produced were built for the civilian market, the USAF bought 16 Jet Stars as C-140As and Bs, the first of which was delivered in late 1961. Five C-140As were assigned to the Air Force Communications Command for use in evaluating military navigation aids and operations. Eleven C-140Bs were assigned to the Military Airlift Command for operational support airlift. Six of them were flown as VC-140Bs on special government and White House airlift missions by the 89th Military Airlift Wing at Andrews Air Force Base, Md.
To AMARC as CL0007 on July 13, 1987.