C-47 Restoration Project at Camp Toccoa Flying Along

By Phil Hobbs, WNEG Radio, Toccoa

In Toccoa-Stephens County, “Project C-47” is making progress at Camp Toccoa at Currahee.

In 2017, members of the Camp Toccoa at Currahee Project has had the vintage World War II C-47 aircraft since May 2017.

The plane is like the kind paratroopers from the 101st Airborne used to jump into Normandy on D-Day.

Camp Toccoa Project President Gary Bellamy said the aircraft is an important component to the history of 101st Airborne.

Bellamy said at the time, these types of World War II planes are extremely hard to find because most who have them don’t want to sell.

However, the Camp Toccoa Project was able to find one by doing some online research.

Camp Toccoa vice-president and construction coordinator Patrick Hall said in 2017 a magazine article led the volunteers from Camp Toccoa to Alabama where they traded a bulldozer donated by local businessman Rick Phillips for the plane that was manufactured in March of 1943 in Long Beach, California.

Hall said the plane’s previous owner delivered the plane to them.

“He put it on five flatbed tractor-trailers. He had all of the permits and liability. (Stephens County Sheriff) Randy Shirley sent an off-duty deputy down to escort them. They met up at the Alabama-Georgia line and they were here two hours early. It sat for almost two years until we were in a position to get the foundations poured because we did not want the airplane to move once it is tied down, and Southern Auto Paint out of Gainesville donated all of the paint for the airplane.”

Hall said it took a couple of years to get the plane ready for repair.

According to Hall, they were able to get the plane painted, and through a connection with the Elk’s Lodge, they also got a free set of tires.

He said Steve Lathan was able to bring a huge piece of machinery that he uses for logging to move the plane to its present location near the entrance of Camp Toccoa.

So far, they’ve also been able to put the windows in, which were donated by Plexiglass, and Piedmont Plastics of Buford manufactured the actual windows.

Bolt Depot out of Massachusetts donated all of the fasteners for the windows, and donated bolts, nuts, and washers to put the wings on.

Hall says volunteers and contractors have been great to contribute time and money not only to this project but the total Camp Toccoa experience.

“This weekend was great. We were able to get the brackets made. Stovall Machine Products out of Gumlog and Patterson Pump helped us get all of that done. The airplane is tied to the foundation,” Hall said. “Hopefully, the first weekend in October we can start adding in the control surfaces like the wings and the vertical and horizontal stabilizer. We have been contacted by Lockheed out of Marietta and we hope to have some gentlemen from the C-130 program come help us one weekend. They are familiar with the sheet metal process to get the wings back in shape.”

Hall said Camp Toccoa always appreciates monetary donations and looks forward to the day when visitors will be able to board the C-47 and walk all the way to the cockpit as they hope to put together as close to what paratroopers jumped out of on D-Day.

MJ Kneiser contributed to this story.