Classic Formation
3 Beechcraft 18’s
1 Douglas DC-3
Aircraft Type: Beech 18 (N21FS) + Beech 18 (N223CM) + Beech 18 (N184KP) + DC-3 (N431HM)
Operator: Hugo Mathys
Year of Manufacture: Beech 18 (N21FS) 1952 + Beech 18 (N223CM) 1952 + Beech 18 (N184KP) 1952 + DC-3 (N431HM) 1943
Powered by: Beech 18 (N21FS) Pratt & Whitney R-985 + Beech 18 (N223CM) Pratt & Whitney R-985 + Beech 18 (N184KP) Pratt & Whitney R-985 + DC-3 (N431HM) x 2 Pratt & Whitney R-1830-92.
Colour Scheme: Beech 18 (N21FS) Civil+ Beech 18 (N223CM) Civil + Beech 18 (N184KP) Civil + DC-3 (N431HM) Metallic with „Swissair“ Logo
Beech 18 (N21FS)
A-738/CA-138 3NM RCAF 1538 completed Mar52. Deliv to 6th Repair Depot RCAF Station Trenton 25Mar52. Classified there as Inactive Reserve 12Oct56. Reclassified there as Serviceable Reserve 13Dec57. Central Experimental & Proving Establishment (CEPE) at Uplands 1Feb58. Modif to 3NMT configuration 1Feb61 & assigned to Air Defence Command at CEPE Uplands 10Apr61. 6th Repair Depot Dunnville as Serviceable Reserve 7Apr64. Air Transport Command CEPE Uplands 17Jun64. Free issue to National Aeronautical Establishment, National Research Council, Ottawa on 17May65 and civil reg’d to them as CF-SKJ-X on 21May65. Photog Mar73 at Toronto with small titles “Government of Canada” above cabin door. It had two ports in the cabin ceiling and one in the nose for environmental air sampling. NRC regis canx 15Jul91 & reg’d C-FSKJ.
Krista Investments Ltd, North Vancouver, BC reg’d 11Feb92 as an experimental aircraft. Regis canx 17Mar92. Sold to Frank Borman (Apollo astronaut) dba Picacho Avn, Las Cruces, NM, on 10Mar92. Reg’d N21FS (FS for Frank & his wife Susan) 19Mar92. Restored as a 1942 AT-7 warbird (wearing bogus AT-7 tail marks
“121072”). Experimental CofA for exhibition purposes 13Apr92. Navigation turret dome installed 17Feb93 as per Beech drawings & flt test satisfactory. Standard CofA 18Feb93. Thomas A. Leatherwood, Paso Robles, CA BS 18Jan94. Best Twin Beech award at Oshkosh ‘94. OPM Avn Svcs ApS, Aarthus, Denmark BS 28Mar06 with 7,400 hrs TT. Aircraft Guaranty Title & Trust, Houston, TX BS 28Mar06. Air traffic incident 10Jun06 at Lufthavn Arpt, Stauning, Denmark with Cessna 172B D-EABD the aircraft is privately owned by Mr. Hugo Mathys, a Swiss owner of a medical company. in ‘2007. Delivered to Switzerland 22Apr07. ‘Danish Air Transport’, Nov08 as his personal aircraft. Nose art entitled “Great Danes.” Hugo Mathys based Grenchen, Switz. Aug10. Aircraft Guaranty Corp Trustee, Onalaska, TX reg’d 31Aug11. Hugo Mathys owns and operates her in Switzerland.
Beech 18 (N223CM)
A-873 / CA-223 3NM RCAF serial 2344 TOS 20Nov52 by Training Command. SR No. 25 Air Material Base 5Oct53. IR Stn Lincoln Park 11Jan57. WR Stn Lincoln Park Feb58. SR Lincoln Park 1May58. Stn Sea Island 2Jun58. ADC Stn Uplands 18Nov58. No. 412 (T) Sqdn Uplands 59. No. 104 K Flt Stn St Hubert 25Mar59. IR 6th Repair Depot 19Aug60. SR 6th Repair Depot Dunnville 27Feb62. TC St Jean 21May64. Modif to 3NMT Spec (exact date not known). TC at Camp Borden 23Sep64. To Bristol Aerospace, Winnipeg for magnetic particle inspection & spar reinforcement 15 May67. CFB Borden 18 May67. Redesig CT-128 Expeditor in ’68 by CAF. Canadian Forces Aerospace Technology School, Borden 25 Nov68. No. 402 Canadian Forces Technical Storage Detachment Saskatoon, Sask on 20Jan70. Pending disposal there from 6May70. Afdal 402 Sdn Saskatoon 6May70 & SOC.
CADC sold to Edmonton Public School Board, Edmonton, Albta BS 5Apr71. Camrose Booster Ltd (reportedly as CF-QWE but I doubt this) then sold to James H. Swartz, Vauxhall, AB BS 29Sep84. [An Airliners.net Jun87 Dan Pascoe photo at North Bay is labeled CF-QWE but that regis doesn’t show on the photo. A 20Jun87 photo at Hamilton Airshow clearly shows regis C-FSJH under the tail & under wing.] Regis C-FSJH allotted to James H Swartz 22Oct84. CofA issued 20Jun85. Reportedly operated by Western Canada Warbirds. Had 4,809 hrs TT during 14Jul92 inspection. Regis canx 24Oct97.
Swartz Holdings Ltd sold to Bruce A. Boese, Oakdale, CA BS 31Oct97 & reg’d same day as N223CM. CofA 12Feb98. Navigation turret dome installed 16Feb98 as per Beech drawings & previous approval for N21FS. Flt test satisfactory. Michael A. McIntyre, Los Gatos, CA BS 7Mar98. RCAF marks retained except 34 4 replace fuselage side letters SJ H straddling the Maple Leaf. Transf to McIntyre Family Living Trust, Michael A. & Charlene M. McIntyre trustees, 28Jan01. Stored at Stockton, CA Jan07 & subsequently purchased by Vintage Aircraft (Taigh Ramey), Stockton, CA. Regis N522HM reserved 16Jan09 by Taigh Ramey. Reportedly (Aug10) on delivered to Switzerland with new paint scheme and high grade avionics upgrade. Hugo Mathys, Grenchen, Switzerland owns and operates her in Switzerland.
Beech 18 (N184KP)
24 March 1952, Taken on strength at No.6 Repair Depot, RCAF Station, Trenton, Ontario. Bought up to Mk.3TM standard at No.6RD, issued to Air Transport Command on 24 March 1953. Delivered to RCAF Station Rockcliffe, Ontario by No.129 (AF) Flight on 25 April 1953, for use by No.412 (T) Squadron. With this unit to RCAF Station Uplands, Ontario on 18 October 1955. Loaned to CJS, Washington DC in March 1957. To Timmins Aviation at Dorval, PQ for overhaul on 10 November 1959, had 3075:45 airframe time when it arrived there. To Central Experimental & Proving Establishment detachment at CARDE (Canadian Armament Research and Development Establishment), Ancienne Lorette, PQ on 16 May 1960. Back at Timmins Aviation on 25 July 1960 for magnetic partical inspection and spar reinforcement. To Air Force Headquarters Practice Flight at Rockcliffe on 2 November 1960. With this unit to Uplands on 31 March 1964. Ownership passed to CFB Uplands on 20 May 1966. To storage at Saskatoon, Saskatchewan on 31 October 1966. Available for disposal there from 7 April 1967. Sold to Hamilton Aircraft Co of Tuson, Arizona. Registered as N16147. By 2001 registered as N184KP to Trojan Aircraft Services, Reno, Nevada. Delivered to Switzerland with new paint scheme and high grade avionics upgrade. Hugo Mathys, Grenchen, Switzerland owns and operates her in Switzerland.
DC-3 (N431HM)
DC-3 mark/tail number 42-24133 was built at Douglas Aircraft Company, Long Beach CA, USA, on 04/08/1943. It performed its first flight as a military transporter C-47A-45DL. 1945 it was sold to a Finance company, a year later to an Engineering company. At this time it was re-registered NC65266 and 2 panorama windows were installed. New registration mark/tail number NC6K in 1948.
In the following decades there were several owner changes within USA, however the aircraft stayed privately operated.
On 17 July 1982 the aircraft arrived in the UK and served as „movie star“and air show attraction. Sold to Air Atlantic it was parked at Coventry, Blackpool and Exeter and served as a spare part donor.
1986 the aircraft was bought by Classic Air, ferried to Switzerland and totally overhauled. With its new registration mark/tail number HB-ISC it took its first commercial flight in February 1987. From 2004-2006 it was operated on a commercial basis by Ju-Air (Switzerland). Since 2007 the aircraft is privately owned by Mr. Hugo Mathys, a Swiss owner of a medical company. 2010 it was transferred to Basler Turbo Conversions, Oshkosh WI USA and again totally overhauled including the removal of the panorama windows. Since its return to Switzerland it acts as the leading aircraft of the Classic Formation displaying at airshows across Europe.
Images: Classic Formation.
