Canadair CL-21: a short-lived planned replacement for the DC-3

Interesting. I have Flying Review International magazines from the 50s and 60s, and the DC-3 replacement was a big topic. What will it be, etc. With 20/20 hindsight, I award the title to the Boeing 737.
 
Mock-up of the nose section of the Canadair CL-21.

Source:
Ron Pickler & Larry Milberry - "Canadair - The First 50 Years" (Canav) ISBN 0921022077
 

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During the 1940s, 1950s and 1960s, Canadair, CASA, Convair, deHavilland, Dornier, Douglas, Fokker, Hawker-Siddeley, Lockheed, McDonnell, Martin, NAMC, Pilatus, SAAB, Shorts, etc. all proposed "DC-3 replacements" but could not compete with the low cost of military-surplus Douglas and Curtiss transports.
 
The main reason why DC-3s and C-47s remained in service for so long is mainly due to two reasons; their availability, and their reliability. The aircraft were available in such large numbers in the years following the Second World War that you could buy a few for a dirt cheap cost. Their reliability was down to two major factors; their availability and their simplicity. Spares were in huge supply and the aircraft were relatively easy to maintain.

The only two aircraft (in my honest opinion) that can be called DC-3 replacements are the HS.748 and the Convair 240 series, however, these aircraft aircraft came nowhere near close enough to the DC-3, and only truly replaced them in mainline service.
 
Wyvern said:
The main reason why DC-3s and C-47s remained in service for so long is mainly due to two reasons; their availability, and their reliability. The aircraft were available in such large numbers in the years following the Second World War that you could buy a few for a dirt cheap cost. Their reliability was down to two major factors; their availability and their simplicity. Spares were in huge supply and the aircraft were relatively easy to maintain.

The only two aircraft (in my honest opinion) that can be called DC-3 replacements are the HS.748 and the Convair 240 series, however, these aircraft aircraft came nowhere near close enough to the DC-3, and only truly replaced them in mainline service.
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Also, it was built early in the stressed skin era, and designers weren't really sure how strong the airframes were, and aircraft such as the DC-3 were overbuilt.
 
Maiwand1880 said:
Wyvern said:
The main reason why DC-3s and C-47s remained in service for so long is mainly due to two reasons; their availability, and their reliability. The aircraft were available in such large numbers in the years following the Second World War that you could buy a few for a dirt cheap cost. Their reliability was down to two major factors; their availability and their simplicity. Spares were in huge supply and the aircraft were relatively easy to maintain.

The only two aircraft (in my honest opinion) that can be called DC-3 replacements are the HS.748 and the Convair 240 series, however, these aircraft aircraft came nowhere near close enough to the DC-3, and only truly replaced them in mainline service.
Click to expand...
HS.748? Not really; Fokker F-27/FH-27/FH-227 was the true turboprop successor to the DC-3 for many carriers in North-America, Europe, Latin America, Australia and parts of Africa and Asia.
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Woops. Forgot about the F-27 and its variants. :oops:
 
Really hard to replace the DC-3.

Might add the DHC-8 (and DHC-7) as another possible candidate for the role, but those didn't show up until 1983 for the Dash-8 and 1975 for the Dash-7.

And of course, as an unpressurized airframe the DC-3 has a lot less wear and tear on the fuselage so they can keep flying just short of forever.


royabulgaf said:
Interesting. I have Flying Review International magazines from the 50s and 60s, and the DC-3 replacement was a big topic. What will it be, etc. With 20/20 hindsight, I award the title to the Boeing 737.
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Agreed. Massive numbers built, massive numbers still in service. In fact, there are still a few jurassic-era 737-200s in service in the Canadian Arctic due to their gravel kits and skinny engines.
 
Might one argue that the Ilyushin Il-12 and IL-14 were DC-3 replacements, given that the airliner they supplemented / replaced was the Lissunov Li-2, the Soviet-made DC-3?
 

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