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LOCKHEED VEGA Model 5 NC9424
GONE TO CHILE
This airplane is a Lockheed Vega Model 5 (S/N 78; ATC #93)
manufactured during May 1929 by Lockheed Aircraft Corporation,
Burbank,
CA. It left the factory with a Pratt & Whitney
Wasp B engine (S/N 1554) of 425 HP. It was a five-place
airplane.
It sold on June 13, 1929 to United States Air Transport,
Inc., Washington, DC. NC9424 arrived at Tucson on June
15, 1929 flown by G.W. Bransom. He carried one passenger:
Clive Brown. Based at Newark, NJ, they were eastbound
from Los Angeles, CA to El Paso, TX in this brand-new airplane.
On July 5, 1929 the airplane sold to Washington-New York
Air Line, Washington, DC. They had it converted to
a six-place airplane under ATC #169 and sold it to Washington
Flying Service, Washington, DC on November 22, 1929.
The NASM record gives no hint as to its service between
November 1929 and when it sold on May 15, 1930 to Pan American-Grace
Airways, Inc. (Panagra), New York, NY. It was exported as of
July 1, 1930 and flown under U.S. registration in South America,
principally Chile. It was inspected periodically by
CAA examiners at Santiago.
Lockheed Vega NC9424, December 1932
(Source: Kalina)
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Photographs, above and below, shared with us by friend of dmairfield.org, Tim Kalina. It shows NC9424, at left, in Pan American-Grace Airways livery at rest outside a hangar with a trimotor lurking within. In the original picture, that rectangular form on the ground just to the right of center appears to be an underground fuel bowser. Pencilled on the back of the image is "Morón 12/1932" (Aeródromo de Morón, Argentina). Below is another image of NC9424 in Panagra livery, probably taken in Chile. Note the landing lights on the wings in the photo below. The lights appear to be missing in the photo above.
Lockheed Vega NC9424, Ca. 1930s ( Source: Kalina)
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An aerial view of the Panagra facility at Aeródromo de Morón is at the link. There is a Douglas DC-? on the ground near the center of the aerial view, and the square ramp in front of the third building from the bottom of the shot is the Panagra hangar pictured above. Upon magnification there appears to be an aircraft on the ramp in about the same position as NC9424 in the photo above. Another image of the airplane may be seen here. A wonderful collection of Panagra aircraft and locations in South America is at the link. There you will see other images of the Morón facility, and other Panagra aircraft.
NC9424 suffered an accident at La Palmos Airport, Lima,
Peru on May 8, 1935. Its license was cancelled in CAA
files as “washed out”. No further information.
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UPLOADED: 06/01/06 REVISED: 02/05/08, 03/13/16
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