Surplus Navy RY-1 (BuNo 67798, ex 43-30570) used by Reynolds for his Boston Museum China Expedition in March 1948, trying to prove that Mt. Amne Machin was higher than Mt. Everest. This photo was taken the day before they left. The mission failed after a take-off accident at Peking on 31 March 1948. The aircraft was repaired and the group returned to Oakland. Note that this airframe is often incorrectly quoted as being c/n 50 (which in fact is ex RAF AL552).

Ballpoint tycoon Milton Reynolds took this Liberator Express to China hoping to prove that Mt. Amne Machin was higher than Mt. Everest. On take-off from Peking the aircraft was slightly damaged when its right main gear failed or was inadvertently retracted, as seen here. The party ran into problems with the authorities and escaped to Japan with the aircraft a few days later. This was allocated to the USAAF as C-87A 43-30570, but instead went to the US Navy as RY-1 BuNo 67798, in 1944. Became NL5151N in Feb 1948. To Frigorifico Ballnian Ltda. as CB-75 in 1951, then to Boliviana de Aviación as CP-575 in early 1964. Crashed at La Paz on 8 February 1964. Photo by: Jack Birns / Life