Photographer Henry Tenby

Douglas DC-6B, C-GHLY was acquired by Conair from Delta Air Transport in Belgium. It's seen here being painted on July 6, 1975 with No. 46 on the tail prior to the installation of an external belly tank. Previous with Northwest Orient Airlines (N581) and Kar-Air in Finland (OH-KDB), it joining DAT in 1992 as OO-EVG and later OO-VGE. Conair's first DC-6Bs were ex-PWA CF-PWA (Tanker 41) and CF-PWF (tanker 42) bought in 1972 & fitted with 2,500 imp gal tanks. No. 41 crashed Aug 2, 1974, but many more DC-6s were purchased for fire contracts in BC, the NWT, Alaska etc. To Alaska in 2014 as N651CE.

K25 slide scan. Built 1958 as N581 for Northwest Orient. Kar Air OH-KDB 1965, DAT OO-VGE 1972, Conair C-GHLY 1973 and converted to aerial tanker, retired by 2005. Everts Air Cargo N501ZS 2013, ferried to Fairbanks 2014. Reregistered N651CE (2) had entered service as bulk fuel carrier by 2022.

On standby during the summer wildfire season. Previously operated by Kar-Air in the 1960s as OH-KDB. (See Photo ID: 195754.)

This DC-6 eventually went to Everts as N501ZS

The four Pratt & Whitney R2800 radials make a wonderful noise as Tanker 46 is making a left turn, preparing to drop its load of retardant on the first beginnings of the Parks Highway Fire. This fire eventually became a major wildfire, raging intensely for more than four weeks, during which it consumed 467 km² (115,500 acres) of forest south and east of Nenana. It wasn't until 1 Nov 2006 before it was officially declared "out". It was by far the largest wildfire in Alaska in 2006.

Tanker 46 relaxing in the nice Alaskan morning sun, still completely unaware of how busy the afternoon and evening would become following the outbreak of the Parks Highway Fire just a few hours later.

Out to pasture at Abbotsford with a line of retired S-2's in the background. Delivered new to Northwest Airlines as N581 in March 1958. Acquired by Everts, re-registered N501ZS and ferried to Fairbanks in 2014 for storage.