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Douglas C-53-DO Skytrooper · N872A · Southern Airways

Douglas C-53-DO Skytrooper illustration in Southern Airways livery Illustrative image; it may differ from the actual aircraft.

Douglas C-53-DO Skytrooper

DC3-7403Unknown
RegistrationUSN872A
Verified aircraft dataagainst the official civil aviation registerWhat does this badge mean?We checked that this aircraft’s registration, serial number and model match the official civil aviation register: FAA (United States), data as of Oct 8, 2026.That makes its identity more reliable. The verification expires after 12 months: if the register stops confirming it, the badge disappears.How we verify
OperatorSouthern Airways
3operators
0incidents
0accidents
0logbook years
0photos

Douglas C-53-DO Skytrooper. Has operated for Southern Airways, Braniff Airways and United States Army Air Forces.

Vuelopedia is a work in progress: it currently holds about 30% of the information we expect to have by the third quarter of 2027. Although we use only official, highly reliable sources, some aircraft data and history may still contain errors or inaccuracies. We work hard to clear every anomaly from the records using specialized verification tools.

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Technical data

Country of registrationEstados Unidos
MSN7403
VerificationIdentity verified against the official register of FAA (United States) · Oct 8, 2026

The model · Douglas DC-3

Figures for the DC-3 variant, the most representative of the family

Length19.7 m65 ft
Wingspan29.0 m95 ft
Height5.2 m17 ft
Range2,540 km1,371 NMWith a typical passenger load
Cruise speed339 km/h183 ktMach 0.32
Service ceiling7,100 m23,294 ft
Maximum take-off weight11,431 kg25,201 lb
Maximum payload3,781 kg8,336 lbIts 21 passengers with baggage would weigh about 2.1 t; the rest is fuel and cargo
Typical capacity21 passengersUp to 32 in a high-density layout
Endurance7 h 30 minAt cruise speed, non-stop

The type first flew in 1935 (91 years ago) · About 607 units built · Production ended in 1942

Figures for the type, not for this particular aircraft: each variant and each configuration changes something. They are shown in both systems used in aviation.

The full story of the Douglas DC-3 Compare this aircraft

Flight logbook

Under research

Aircraft chronology

Operators

—
Southern Airways
Registration N67SA
—
Braniff Airways
Registration NC49556
—
United States Army Air Forces
Registration 42-15886

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This page was last updated on October 10, 2026

APA

Vuelopedia. (2026, October 10). Douglas C-53-DO Skytrooper · N872A · Southern Airways. Retrieved October 17, 2026, from https://vuelopedia.org/en/aircraft/DC3-7403

MLA

“Douglas C-53-DO Skytrooper · N872A · Southern Airways.” Vuelopedia, Fundación Poderia, 10 Oct. 2026, vuelopedia.org/en/aircraft/DC3-7403. Accessed 17 Oct. 2026.

Chicago

Vuelopedia. “Douglas C-53-DO Skytrooper · N872A · Southern Airways.” Fundación Poderia. Last modified October 10, 2026. https://vuelopedia.org/en/aircraft/DC3-7403.

Harvard

Vuelopedia (2026) Douglas C-53-DO Skytrooper · N872A · Southern Airways. Available at: https://vuelopedia.org/en/aircraft/DC3-7403 (Accessed: 17 October 2026).

BibTeX

@misc{vuelopedia_en_aircraft_dc3_7403,
  author       = {{Vuelopedia}},
  title        = {{Douglas C-53-DO Skytrooper · N872A · Southern Airways}},
  publisher    = {Fundación Poderia},
  year         = {2026},
  date         = {2026-10-10},
  url          = {https://vuelopedia.org/en/aircraft/DC3-7403},
  howpublished = {\url{https://vuelopedia.org/en/aircraft/DC3-7403}},
  urldate      = {2026-10-17},
  note         = {Accessed 2026-10-17}
}

Wikipedia

{{cite web |url=https://vuelopedia.org/en/aircraft/DC3-7403 |title=Douglas C-53-DO Skytrooper · N872A · Southern Airways |website=Vuelopedia |publisher=Fundación Poderia |date=2026-10-10 |access-date=2026-10-17 |language=en}}