RX-87  Douglas DC-3                                        (c/n  4541)

                                  

                                     Compañía Panameña de Aviación, S.A. (COPA)  was founded in 1947 as the National Airline
                                     of Panama.  It was initially funded and aided by Pan American, hence the PanAm style livery.
                                     A modest fleet of DC-3s was acquired to provide local service within Panama and also to San
                                     Jose in Costa Rica.  An ex C-47-DL. this DC-3 was civilianized as NC22449, and went soon
                                     after to COPA.. The rather poor shot above is from a postcard I gleaned somewhere.
                                     In 1952 it was reregistered HP-87 when the Panamanian  registry was changed.  Five years
                                     later is was sold to the French Air Force (L'Armee de L-Air), although was extensively
                                     overhauled by Servicios Aero-Technicos Latino American (SALA) in San Jose and briefly
                                     received the registration TI-1021.  Its French serial was 38592.  It was withdrawn from service
                                     in 1971 and was stored at the Chateudun Air Base.   Is it still there?