Visiting Manchester Ringway during a charter flight from Nottingham (Tollerton) to London (Hendon). The 1938-built control tower and hangar is in the background.

Ex RAF FD906 and South African AF 6802. "RMA George Brackley" served BEA from October 1950 until April 1960. It is being loaded with Northern Ireland's night mail bound for Belfast (Nutts Corner) airport.

Ex RAF Dakota 3 FZ625 serving with 271 Squadron. Flown by Braathens from 11 July 1947 until 20 January 1964. The full titling on its cabin roof reads "Braathens South American & Far East Airtransport AS" - normally contracted to Braathens SAFE.

Delivered to RAF as Dakota 3 KG437 in February 1944 serving until sale to BOAC in January 1946 and transfer to BEA in August 1946. It is operating the daily morning Liverpool-Manchester-London (Northolt) scheduled service. To Autair in 1961 and Martins as PH-MAG in 1965.

Ordered as 42-93534 and delivered in Montreal to the RAF June 13, 1944 (KG644), this Dakota flew as G-AJPF after April 1947. Back to Montreal February 1951, it became CF-CUC for Imperial Oil. Photographed after retirement, the aircraft would next fly with Minesearch Surveys and Hudson Bay Air Transport before going to the USA as N47CE July 1985. It would unfortunately crash in a stall/spin accident during training May 22, 1989.

This C-47A was one of two Dakotas operated by British Nederland based at RAF Bovingdon near Hemel Hempstead. It served the airline from March 1948 until November 1950. It is visiting Speke Airport with racegoers for the 1950 Grand National horse race.

Ex USAAF 42-24003 and RAF FD944 serving 511 and 512 Squadrons before storage in November 1946. Bought by Sabena in April 1947 and served them until October 1969 when sold to the Nigerian Air Force as 306.

Delivered to RAF in January 1944 serving with 512 and 575 Squadrons. Bought by BOAC in April 1946 and transferred to BEA in September 1946. Crashed near Saddleworth, Oldham, Lancs on 19 August 1949 on initial approach to Ringway.

Ex RAF FZ647 and TC-EKE. Served Ethipian Airlines from August 1966 until retired in 1991. It is being towed to the apron for its first service of the day.

Built as C-47A 42-92392 but passed to RAF as FZ631. Bought by Qantas in 1949 as VH-EAN, later VH-EBF and VH-EBU. Sold to Trans Australian as VH-SBD in 1960. Latterly VH-BPA but broken up at Cairns in 2009 because of corrosion. From Qantas 50 years ago.

What a beautiful Dakota sitting in the middle of nowhere near the Croatian-Slovenian border. The former Yugoslav air force's 71253 commemorates an Allied landing ground for supplying Tito's partisans, hence her RAF Mediterranean markings.