Historic WWII C-47 Normandy plane restored

Lake Charles, LA (KPLC) - A plane that carried paratroopers into Normandy during World War II has been brought back to life and is now on display at Chennault International Airport.

Seventy-six years ago, it flew over Normandy, but after four months of restorations, the C-47 is finally restored.

“This particular aircraft, this exact aircraft, as a matter of fact, flew over Normandy during D-Day,” said President and Founder of Landlock Aviation Services Tyson Grenzebach.

The C-47 aircraft was used heavily to transport troops and the wounded throughout WWII.

“It is in fact an iconic piece of aviation history, and it exemplifies our patriotism and how the country was protected during the war,” Grenzebach said.

Thanks to a historian named Van, the C-47, also known as the “Chalk-47,” was able to be restored as the original.

“He’s a historian that knows all about the history of Chalk-40 and the role it played in the war in aviation [and] provided all the details with regard to the actual livery - the colors, the design, the specific numbers the nose art with the four aces on the nose of the aircraft,” Grenzebach said.

Grenzebach described the opportunity to work on warbirds such as the C-47 as exciting as it gets.

“That’s where I get goosebumps all of sudden, you know,” Grenzebach said. “I tell people, we in aviation, aviators alike, we all kind of - we have this child-like passion for working on aircraft. And it doesn’t get any better than working on a historic piece like this.”

Grenzebach said this is just the start of historic aircraft that will be restored in the area.

“Got a lot of other great projects, just to give a little hint,” Grenzebach said. “There’s another one of these iconic warbirds that’ll be here at Chennault, probably by the month of November.”

They restored the aircraft with hopes of it touring the country in different airshows like the Chennault International Airshow.

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