06/03/2026
Its Gotcha day!!!!
Dodson International Air, the last of Lassie's cargo airline operators, operated DC-3s out of Covington, GA through the late 1990s and early 2000s. Lassie was parked in 2000 with engine problems and soon became derelict. The local FBO, Dixie Jet Services, sued Lassie's owners for non-payment, and the court awarded the FBO ownership of the C-47 in 2008.
James Lyle, a British businessman based in New York, and Clive Edwards, a noted UK aircraft restoration specialist, teamed up in January 2010 to restore a DC-3 to airworthiness for the 75th anniversary of the type's first flight in 1935, hoping to bring one to EAA AirVenture Oshkosh. On June 3, 2010, they completed the sale and the team raced to restore Lassie, then still in cargo colors, in just seven weeks. Working 17 hour days, 7 days a week, they ultimately succeeded, arriving in Oshkosh mid-week.
From 2010 to 2014, N74589 was known as Union Jack Dak in recognition of the Britannic roots of its owner. James Lyle had originally intended to sell the aircraft, but he greatly enjoyed flying N74589, particularly after historical research revealed that the DC-3 was actually a C-47, and, more importantly, a combat and D-Day veteran. He had her repainted in D-Day colors in advance of bringing Union Jack Dak to Normandy for the 70th anniversary of D-Day in 2014, where Dutch historian Hans de Brok told the team that Ed Tunison, the wartime radio operator, was still alive and well. Ed was quickly flown to Normandy to reconnect with his airplane, where he told the team that she was known as Placid Lassie during the war
In the fall of 2014, James Lyle continued to operate Placid Lassie for personal and commemorative flying, now based in Florida. In the interest of Lassie's continued preservation and airworthiness, he and Eric Zipkin, Lassie's chief pilot, set up the Tunison Foundation in 2017, shortly after Ed Tunison's passing in 2016.
You can continue to help Lassie by donating! It takes and army...and a lot of funds to keep her airworthy.
Www.tunisonfoundation.org/donate
