Western Air Express Douglas M-2

The Douglas M-2 mail plane flown by Western Air Express brought the first regular mail and an occasional passenger to Albuquerque. At this time, the few passengers brave enough to fly could be “bumped” if the mail load was large enough to load the plane. The Logs at Oxnard Field have a Douglas M-2 first landing on June 19, 1929. Other M-2’s that records show landed here NC1489, NC1490 and NC1491.

On April 18, 1977 a restored Western Air Express replica, NC15, stopped to be refueled at the former 7-Bar airport on Albuquerque’s west side and remain overnight while en route from Los Angeles (LAX) to the Smithsonian Institue in Washington D.C. to be added to the collection. The plane is on display in the main downtown Smithsonian on the Mall.