The DC-3 is considered one of the most iconic aircraft in aviation history. [Credit: Adobe Stock]
Key Takeaways:
The author, a former FAA inspector, recounts how she earned her DC-3 type rating, lamenting the later revocation of her certificates despite a recent resurgence of restored DC-3s.
Her training at Opa Locka Airport under instructor Hector Villamar involved a diverse class, challenging weather conditions, practical repairs, and an encounter with "narc agents" at a remote jetport.
She developed a deep and lasting fondness for the DC-3, accumulating 25 years of flying experience across the country and cherishing the unique memories and friendships forged with the "Gooney Bird."
Recently, there have been emails from groups all over the country who have rescued DC-3s and, after years of work, gotten them flying. My friend Barry Schiff was bragging about being asked to fly the newly restored corporate Wrigley DC-3 to Catalina Island in California.
No freighter, that one!
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Martha Lunken is a lifelong pilot, former FAA inspector and defrocked pilot examiner. She flies a Cessna 180 and anything with a tailwheel, from Cubs to DC-3s.
![The DC-3 is considered one of the most iconic aircraft in aviation history. [Credit: Adobe Stock]](https://www.flyingmag.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/FLY0326_3.3-Unusual-Attitudes-e1773840690827.jpeg)
