Congo Republic – BAC-111 Aircraft – 1000 Francs – 2004 – Proof Silver Crown – Color – The British Aircraft Corporation One-Eleven, also known as the BAC-111, was a British short-range jet airliner of the 1960s and 1970s. Conceived by Hunting Aircraft, it was developed and produced by the British Aircraft Corporation when Hunting merged into BAC along with other British aircraft makers in 1960. The BAC-111 was designed to replace the Vickers Viscount. It was the second short-haul jet airliner to enter service. Due to its later service entry, the BAC-111 took advantage of more efficient engines and airline experience of jets. This made it popular, with over half of the sales at its launch being in the largest and most lucrative market, the United States. It was one of the most successful British airliner designs, and served until its widespread retirement in the 1990s due to noise restrictions.

Congo Republic – Douglas DC-3 Aircraft – 1000 Francs – 2002 – Proof Silver Crown – Color The Douglas DC-3 is an American fixed-wing, propeller-driven aircraft whose speed and range revolutionized air transport in the 1930s and 1940s. Because of its lasting impact on the airline industry and World War II it is generally regarded as one of the most significant transport aircraft ever made. Many DC-3s are still used to this day in all parts of the world.

Congo Republic – Junkers JU-52 Aircraft – 1000 Francs – 1995 – Proof Silver Crown – Color – Nicknamed “Tante Ju” (Auntie Ju) and “Iron Annie” by Axis and Allied troops, the Junkers Ju-52 was the most famous German transport of the war. The Ju-52 was built of corrugated metal skin and paid little attention to beauty, features of a typical Junkers design. Parts and pieces stuck out of the airframe, and the corrugated skin, though much stronger than fabric and metal tubes, created stronger air resistance. In April 1931, the originally single-engine Ju-52 prototype was fitted with three engines. Performance improved tremendously and production of the new model immediately began. The Ju-52 served as an airliner for many nations. Finland, Spain, Sweden and Germany were just a few. It served as a mail carrier in China, and, fitted with floats, hauled lumber in remote places in Canada. Its most common work, however, was done with the German Lufthansa. Equipped with luxuries like a typewriter and oxygen masks, the Ju-52 could fly from Berlin to Rome in eight hours over the Alps, an impressive feat for contemporary aircraft, let alone an airliner. The military potential of the Ju-52 was not overlooked by the Luftwaffe. It entered service as a troop transport and bomber. In the Spanish Civil War, the Ju-52 ferried some 10’000 Moorish troops from Morocco to Spain, and bombed Madrid while, quite embarrassingly, some Lufthansa Ju-52s were in the airport serving as airliners. Later in World War II, the Ju-52 served in every theater in which Germany participated. It dropped paratroopers in the Netherlands, Crete and later the Ardennes. It carried supplies to beleaguered troops in North Africa, Stalingrad and the Baltic states. The Ju-52 was slow and very lightly armed against fighters. As a result, it suffered horrible losses in almost all actions, especially over Crete, the Mediterranean and Stalingrad. Many types of replacement were built, but none was as popular or reliable as good old Auntie Ju. Right until the end of the war the Ju-52 was still soldiering on to help stave off defeat. The last Ju-52s went out of service with the Swiss Air Force in the late 1980s

Togo – Caravelle SE-210 Aircraft – 1000 Francs – 2002 – Proof Silver Crown – Color – The French SE 210 Caravelle, was the first commercial jetliner, a medium-range turbojet intended primarily for the continental European market. First flown on May 27, 1955, the Caravelle achieved sales of 282 aircraft, and a turbofan-powered variant was used for domestic routes by airlines throughout the United States.

Togo – Convair 440 Aircraft – 1000 Francs – 2003 – Proof Silver Crown – Color – The Convair 440 is an American airliner introduced in 1954 as a modification of earlier Convair airliners which had been produced during the late 1940’s. It is powered by two Pratt And Whitney R-2800-CB17 Wasp radial piston engines providing a top speed of 288 miles per hour. The Convair 440 carries a flight crew of two or three and up to 52 passengers or more than 12,800 pounds of freight in the cabin. Various Convair 440 aircraft are in service with the military forces throughout the world.

Togo – Douglas DC-4 Aircraft – 1000 Francs – 2002 – Proof Silver Crown – Color – The Douglas DC-4 is a four-engine, propeller-driven airliner developed by the Douglas Aircraft Company. It served during World War II, in the Berlin Airlift and into the 1960s in a military role. From 1945 on, it has become the workhorse of civil aviation, with many aircraft still operating all over the world.