Aircraft of the flim "Air America"

[Alan in Vermont]

I just finished watching the 1990 film "Air America" on the tube. I think I once knew what the aircraft were that flew in that but CRS hits me bad right now.

I think the single engine craft were Pilatus Porters with a weak second guess of the Cessna Caravan. The twin engine, high tailed cargo haulers escape me though.

Any aviation buffs here who can refresh my memory?

[Roundnoser]

Perhaps a De Havilland Caribou?

[Phoenix]

The plane they get shot down in is a c-123
I was stationed at a c-130 base in the air force 25 years ago. We still had a few c123s

The smaller plane was a Pilatus PC-6

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Air_America_%28film%29

[Alan in Vermont]

My wife has MUCH better Google-Fu than I. After I searched, using what I thought was an appropriate search string(which obviously was NOT) sheused her own search string and hit it on the first try. Then she had to smirk about it. None for HER tonight!!

[Boz330]

The single engined airplane in the movie was a Pilatus Porter as someone pointed out. The actual airplane used by the CIA was a Helio Stallion. It was designed and built by the Fairchild Hiller people for the CIA. It was the size of the Porter but had 50% more horse power. It was one hell of an airplane but a bear to fly and there are only a couple left in the world. I have jumped out of one on several occasions and it will haul 13 people to 14,000ft and be back on the ground in 17 minutes. Takeoff and landing rolls are unbelievable. It was designed to take off and land on a postage stamp without the advantages of an aircraft carrier.

Bob

[462]

Phoenix,
Didn't know the C-123 was still flying then.

I had a few in-country C-123 flights back in '68 and '69 while stationed at Phan Rang Air Base. On the other side of the runways, from where I worked as an F-100 weapons mechanic, a C-123 squadron flew Ranch Hand (Agent Orange) missions.

[beagle]

Think most of the C-123s went to El Salvadore. They had a bunch still flying in 83-84./beagle

[Phoenix]

We had two that never seemed to leave the tarmac except during airshows. But we still had them. Also had one on pylons for show. Pope AFB. Fun times.

[montana_charlie]

I only saw Air America once, and it was a long time ago.

Maybe it was a C-123, and maybe it was a Caribou.
There were plenty of Caribous in service in Vietnam.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/De_Havilland_Canada_DHC-4_Caribou

The single engine job was something else.
I got to ride one when hitchhiking from Nui Ba Den mountain back to Tan Son Nhut.

As I stood waiting out in the middle of nowhere it landed on the PSP runway at Tay Ninh, using almost none of it - landing or taking off - and was the quietest plane I have ever heard running.

CM

[wallenba]

Opening scenes were a C119 flying 'Boxcar', the same type Jimmy Stewart flew in 'Flight of the Phoenix' I believe. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/C-119_Flying_Boxcar
The turbo prop single was a Porter http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pilatus_PC-6
Been a while since I've seen the flick, could be wrong.
Later scenes were the C123.

[BRobertson]

The single engined airplane in the movie was a Pilatus Porter as someone pointed out. The actual airplane used by the CIA was a Helio Stallion. It was designed and built by the Fairchild Hiller people for the CIA. It was the size of the Porter but had 50% more horse power. It was one hell of an airplane but a bear to fly and there are only a couple left in the world. I have jumped out of one on several occasions and it will haul 13 people to 14,000ft and be back on the ground in 17 minutes. Takeoff and landing rolls are unbelievable. It was designed to take off and land on a postage stamp without the advantages of an aircraft carrier.

Bob

The Porter was also used by the CIA/Air America, not just in the movie.
It was way more common than the Helio, and was far more beloved by the pilots!!

There was a Stallion that would come up to Yakutat, Alaska during the peak salmon season in the summers, during the 80's

It was owned by a family from Washington state that I believe had a bunch of nurserys/farms.

It was a neat aircraft, but our Porter that we had at the time was a real workhorse, hauling fish, moose hunters, etc!!

We had C-123' s in the Airguard here in Alaska when I was a member in the early seventies,

what a piece of **** they were!!!

Bob