Originally Posted by
treadigraph
I got the impression that DC-3 was rather overbuilt which has contributed to its longevity - still a few in commercial operation at, what, 85 years since first flight? Most remaining airframes must be circa 80 years old, albeit the commercially operated may be Basler conversions. Think I noted an R-1830 powered survey DC-3 transiting through UK on FR24 earlier this year.
Only peripheral to what we are discussing, but hopefully of interest to our audience, is that a huge get-together of DC-3s is coming in Europe soon as part of the 75th D-Day celebrations, gathering and setting off from Duxford in the days leading up to 5 June there, and subsequently in France. I believe there is an escorted group of participants coming over the Atlantic from the US and Canada.
https://www.daksovernormandy.com/home/