Executive aircraft for the Montex Drilling Corp. Photo by John Stewart.

Ship #3, operated by the Bataafsche Petroleum Maatschappij. Crashed Muntok Bay, Banka Island on 2 Dec 1948.

Built in 1946.

The S-43 was flown by the Army, Navy and Marine Corps. This example served with VJ-1 at San Diego, but crashed about a year after this photo was taken, on 31 Dec 1938.

Attending a large air show and open house that the city of Oakland was sponsoring. You can see some of the crowd in the background. This Junior was manufactured 10 Jun 1931. In 1946/47 it was heavily modified by owner Harold Ladwig for show and exhibition work, to make it look much older than it was. Fabric and all faring were removed from the fuselage, a fake skid added to the nose, rear seat removed, and most amazingly the wing struts were removed and replaced with a kingpost and flying and landing wires. By the 1950s these modifications had been undone. As such this Curtiss Junior was still current by 2021, owned by Harry G. Hansen since 1987.

This camouflaged C-39 (we called it warpaint then) was taken in September 1941. This was close to the end of the red center national insignia use. The aircraft was from the Sacramento Air Depot and was plane number 20 of the 62nd Transport Group which had been activated in December 1940. The serial of the aircraft is not known. For that you would need to walk up close and inspect the data block below the cockpit. A C-39 has a DC-2 fuselage and wings, and a DC-3 tail unit, centre-section and landing gear. Thirty-five C-39s were built.

Ship #3, operated by the Bataafsche Petroleum Maatschappij. Crashed Muntok Bay, Banka Island on 2 Dec 1949.

The pilot's name on the plane is Aviation Cadet George H. Carter. The normal complement of a Navy squadron in 1939 was 18 planes, so this is a rare photo.

This a/c was exported to Mexico in September 1981. It is currently assigned to the Mexican Air Force as TP-104.

One of the world's most famous aircraft. This is Amelia Earhart's Lockheed 10, in which she unsuccessfully attempted to fly around the globe, and disappeared. This photo was taken only 3 days before she started her first attempt (westbound) from Oakland on 17 Mar 1937. That attempt ended a few days later when the aircraft ground-looped on take-off from Luke Field, Pearl Harbor, HI. It was shipped back to Oakland and repaired. Amelia then departed Oakland for her second attempt (eastbound) on 20 May 1937. But with her flight almost completed she disappeared at sea near Howland Island in the Central Pacific on 2 July 1937. On 19 Feb 1988 the FAA permanently reserved registration N16020 in the name of Amelia Earhart.

Ex US Navy 39303, one of 14 acquired by National Skyway Freight Corp. in June 1945. In February 1947 the company became The Flying Tiger LIne, but their fleet of Conestogas was soon phased out. At the time of the photo this example had been sold to the Tucker Motor Co. Fate unknown.

A ruthless scam! Although the International F-18, or F-17W, could carry up to six people, this machine was ill-prepared for a flight to Hawaii. It was entered for the Dole Air Race by stunt pilot and actor Frank Clarke who apparently acted that he intended to take part while owner Parkford and aircraft broker Charlie Babb tried to sell the aeroplane, in the words of writer Alan Herr, 'to some desparate aviator in search of fame and fortune.' It was certainly offered to Charles Kingsford Smith who was stunned. Miss Hollydale was either disqualified or withdrawn and Clarke and Babb left Oakland in it on 13 August. Photo from: California State Library

Apparently inspired by Lindbergh's Spirit of St Louis in name and design, the Dallas Spirit built by the Swallow company of Wichita was to compete in the Dole Air Race to Hawaii and then to continue to win a $25,000 prize for a Dallas - Hong Kong flight, as mentioned on the nose. After take-off from Oakland the crew, Erwin and Eichwaldt, returned with a technical issue. They took off again on 18 August, promising to look for the missing aircraft Golden Eagle and Miss Doran en route to Hong Kong. However, they crashed into the ocean themselves and perished. The second aircraft is the NAS Air King NX3070. Photo from: San Diego Air & Space Museum

El Encanto and NX914 Aloha before the start of the Dole Air Race. What became OAK airport received a 2140 m (7020 ft) runway for the event and the pilots preferred it over Mills Field (now KSFO). However, several planes crashed on take-off, including El Encanto. Photo from: San Diego Air & Space Museum

Would you fancy a flight to Hawaii - in this? Pilot Parkhurst and navigator Lowes were happy to be disqualified from the Dole Air Race due to insufficient fuel capacity, as their flight from Illinois had not gone well. The National Airways System company from Lomax, Illinois, built and sponsored this biplane which looks stubbier than either the Air King 1926 model, with two pairs of seats side by side in two cockpits, or the three-seat 1928 model. The lower wing had a longer span than the upper wing. The name City of Peoria was not worn. Photo from: San Diego Air & Space Museum