As the wing began operations, only four Consolidated B-24D Liberators, two Statocruisers and four Pan American Clippers were available to move supplies to Africa from Natal. The South Atlantic route was given the highest priority for heavy transport aircraft. American Airlines began to operate the first Douglas C-54 Skymasters from Miami to Natal, and Consolidated C-87 Liberator Express aircraft began to join the fleet, and 26 aircraft were in use on the transatlantic segment by the end of the year. Operation Torch In the preparation for Operation Torch, the wing participated in the movement of five groups of light and medium bombers to provide immediate reinforcement after the amphibious landings in North Africa. Reinforcements for Twelfth Air Force also ferried their planes via the South Atlantic Wing's routes. As winter weather set in, light and medium bombers destined for England were encountering severe problems navigating the North Atlantic Ferry Route and were diverted to the South Atlantic. By December, the North Atlantic route was also closed to heavy bombers, so reinforcements for Eighth Air Force also ferried their planes via the South Atlantic Wing's routes. By February 1943, facilities were available at Dakar, Senegal so that heavy bombers could fly there directly from Natal, cutting two or three stops off their route. By the spring of 1943, the North Atlantic route was again opened for bombers. Expanded operations The spring of 1943 saw the first movement of fighter aircraft through the wing's routes, as five groups of Lockheed P-38 Lightnings were ferried to fighter and photographic reconnaissance units. Although the North Atlantic Route remained open to a limited extent in winter of the war's following years, most aircraft were diverted to the South Atlantic during this period of adverse weather. Unit moves along the wing's routes continued into 1944, but ferrying operations shifted more toward the movement of individual replacement aircraft movements as the war progressed. Not all traffic was eastbound. Ferry pilots returned after making their deliveries, and a few "war weary" planes were also returned. However, the largest segment of passenger traffic westbound was aeromedical evacuation of wounded soldiers. No planes were dedicated to this mission, and evacuation got off to a slow start in early 1943. The wing was also responsible for the air transport of certain strategic materials, whose scarcity and need justified rapid transportation. In particular beryl, a mineral used in the manufacture of delicate