September 2013 FOTM - Brazil in WW-II

Joao! Why didn't you tell us? Well, I guess you just did. It seems that I do recall hearing something about Brazil supporting or helping Patton in North Africa during World War II but I had no idea about the extent to which they worked in and across the Atlantic. Thank you for the education and the opportunity to fly some historic routes.

So after some video card difficulties over Angel Falls last month, I ended up in Canaima. After a restless overnight I loaded up a retro Army Air Corps repaint of an EMB-190 and headed off to sunny Trinidad! (pict1) (pict2) (pict3)

Don't hate me but ... I don't like flying DC-3s in the sim. They are too slow! But I can tolerate DC-4s for a reasonable period of time. So as we neared September first I readied a DC-4 to re-fly this historic supply route. With a crew of five working, we removed all but two rows of seats from an old Aerovias DC-4. Then we slid in several pallets of virtual, historic cargo and supplies and set off on a (basically) 2,100-mile flight to Natal, Brazil. (pict4)

The loading and checking and customs took the better part of a day and we departed after lunch. (pict5) (pict6)
This meant that our first overnight was in French Guiana. (pict7) (pict8)
The next day I was able to complete the 1,200 miles to Natal, averaging about 200 knots. (pict9) (pict10) (pict11) (pict12) (pict13) (pict14) (pict15)

The crews spent the night unloading and refurbishing the old DC-4 back to it's original condition. I spent the week in Natal exploring the museums and history and, frankly, just enjoying some beach time. Then I loaded up an EMB-190 and headed to Rio before connecting on to Sao Paulo. (pict16) (pict17) (pict18)

Joao, THANK YOU SO MUCH for the fascinating history lesson. Hanging with this group certainly makes each one of us a little bit smarter and better-informed. I am looking forward to your next feature.