Shortly before the attack on Pearl Harbor, the U.S. military appropriated all four of Catalina Air Transport's passenger planes, which consisted of two Douglas Dolphins and two newly-purchased Lockheed Lodestars.
I've been researching the fates of these planes, none of which ever returned to Catalina, although most of them survived the war.
After being requisitioned by the Army (I assume the airline was reimbursed), Lockheed Lodestar NC33616 (pictured) was sent to the RAF and, from there, to the Free French in North Africa.
She apparently served out the war there and was finally written off on June 11, 1946, in Asmara, Ethiopia.
I will divulge the fates of the other three planes in future postings.
