In September 1949 the Nationalist Chinese government had forty CATC aircraft evacuated to Kai Tak. Note the flying boat - a Sunderland? This C-46, construction number unknown, was shipped from Hong Kong to the USA in October 1952. Another C-46, c/n 22451 / 2560 was registered as XT-524 in Tawain at some point. That one was ex XT-850 and B-850. Photo by: Howard Sochurek / Life

CAT was in the frontlines of the struggle against communism in Asia for decades. In 1948 it operated as CAT-MOC for the Chinese Ministry of Communications. Photo by: Jack Birns / Life

Other identities of this airframe: 44-078413, XT-T508, N8410C, B-860, B-912. The aircraft was still active in Vietnam in 1971. Sold for scrap at Tainan, Taiwan in 1974. Photo by: Jack Birns / Life

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

Leased from AirExplore.

Delivered to China Air Lines as B-1866 in 1979. Reregistered as B-18255 in 1999. Crashed into the sea killing all 225 people on board near the Penghu Islands, Taiwan in 2002. It broke up in mid-air as a result of a faulty repair following a tail strike on landing more than 20 years earlier. An episode of the Air Crash Investigation TV series was made about this crash.

Delivered to China Air Lines as B-1866 in 1979. Reregistered as B-18255 in 1999. Crashed into the sea killing all 225 people on board near the Penghu Islands, Taiwan in 2002. It broke up in mid-air as a result of a faulty repair following a tail strike on landing more than 20 years earlier. An episode of the Air Crash Investigation TV series was made about this crash.

Delivered to Cathay Pacific as VR-HKG in 1979. Reregistered as B-HKG in 1997. Withdrawn from use at Victorville, CA in 1998 and scrapped in 1999.

Delivered to Pan Am as N904PA in 1979. To JAL as JA8165 in 1983 then to Kalitta Air as N747CK in 2007. Withdrawn from use as Oscoda, MI in 2012 and scrapped in 2021.

Identity unknown

Being restored. Identity unknown.

Previously marked as 476 and 4766. Repainted as 476650 since my 2008 photo.

First noted at the China Aviation Museum in 1996. Had been refurbished since my 2008 photo.

First noted at the China Aviation Museum in 1996.

First noted at the China Aviation Museum in 1991. Previously marked as 476, later 476650.