One of Europe’s last DC-3s to offer passenger flights will be grounded later this year. Richard Schuurman learns why the Dutch Dakota Association has been forced to cease operations
Inside the cabin, you need earplugs to be comfortable. But from the outside, the deep sound of the Pratt & Whitney Twin Wasp radial engines is like music. That sound, so familiar for more than four decades, will fall silent by mid-October when the Dutch Dakota Association (DDA) grounds its last Douglas DC-3. A special Market Garden scenic tour on Sunday, September 22, is anticipated to be the final fare-paying passenger flight for DDA’s PH-PBA (c/n 19434) Prinses Amalia, named after the eldest child of King Willem-Alexander and Queen Máxima and heir to the throne. A few follow-on flights with DDA staff and a farewell party on October 19 are to close the book.
Founded in March 1982, DDA has been an established name in classic aviation for four decades, with countless scenic flights not just over The Netherlands but across Europe. Celebrating the 80th anniversary of D-Day brought Prinses Amalia back to Normandy for the last time in June, flying hundreds of enthusiastic passengers over the …
