[tplan]

The C46 came along later, and had reliability problems at the start. I checked, and the first C46 didn't reach the AAF until May, 1942, meanwhile, almost 1,000 C47s were built in 1941, and over 5,000 in 1942. C47 didn't take as much maintenance or use as much fuel, and was a good performer. So the Commando became a supplement to the C47 fleet.

My Dad flew for the first time when he was taken from Fort Dix to Nevada for a nuclear test in the 50s. They went in C46s. They were much delayed as two of the aircraft assigned to them crashed, while two two others missed the mission with mechanical problems. Dad always said flying in them bothered him more than the bomb.

 

[tplan]

The C46 never was commercialized for airline use, because be the time the war ended, the 4 engine C54 (DC-4) was available in quantity and better suited and the twin-engine airliner was a diminishing market.

Oh, it saw some airline use. If nothing else, this crash database confirms that: http://www.airdisaster.com/cgi-bin/aircraft_detail.cgi?aircraft=Curtiss+C-46

 

[tplan]

I do not think the airplane was certified for scheduled airline service in the US, charters, freight, and private use as for instance carrying passengers to your resort require a less stringent class of certification. Foreign operations were not governed by US regulations

They may not have had the 1950s equivalent of part 121, but one crashed at MDW and another right outside EWR, and they were used for some time in passenger service around the world. Along with the freight, charters, etc., and along with a lot of ex-C47s. not everyone could afford the new, four engined airliners after the war.

 

[tplan]

Went out of the airplane business fairly quickly, that is. I just passed some of their corporate offices last night; they're still around.