Early American Airliners, And The Story Of The Lockheed "Connie" Constellation

A documentary about the history of U.S. early airlines, and the history of the beloved Lockheed "Connie" Constellation.
Commercial airlines initially struggled to get off the ground, but with help from the government, which awarded airlines contracts to deliver the mail, they soon began to flourish. Despite the Great Depression, air transportation experienced phenomenal growth and change from the late 1920s through the 1930s, before U.S. entry into World War II intervened.

As technology improved, aircraft evolved from World War I-style biplanes into sleek, high-performance modern airliners. A solid infrastructure took shape under government guidance through the Post Office and the Commerce Department, and regulatory reforms reshaped the industry.
Passenger service took root and grew, and air routes spread across the country. But because air travel was so expensive, only the wealthy and business travelers flew. The flying experience improved but remained an often uncomfortable adventure.
After World War I, many people began to operate commercial airlines. But every one of these early efforts failed because of high operating costs. Airlines could not make enough money carrying passengers or cargo. They needed financial help—subsidies—until technological and organizational improvements could enable them to become self-sufficient and profitable.

With the financial support provided by air mail contracts from the U.S. government, four large aviation holding companies soon arose. William Boeing and Frederick Rentschler of Pratt & Whitney formed the first and the largest, United Aircraft and Transport Corporation. Clement Keys formed North American Aviation and the Curtiss-Wright Corporation. Aerial photography pioneers Sherman Fairchild, Averill Harriman, and Robert Lehman created The Aviation Corporation (AVCO). While these consolidations promised greater efficiency, airlines still remained unprofitable without government help.

Boeing System Label
Aircraft builders William Boeing, Philip Johnson, Claire Egtvedt, and Eddie Hubbard created Boeing Air Transport (B.A.T.) in 1927 to fly the mail from Chicago to San Francisco. B.A.T. was so successful that it acquired Pacific Air Transport. By 1931 these two airlines, along with Varney Air Lines and National Air Transport, were operating as United Air Lines.

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The Lockheed Constellation ("Connie") is a propeller-driven, four-engined airliner built by Lockheed Corporation starting in 1943. Among the first aircraft that involved Kelly Johnson, the genius behind Skunk Works.
The first four-engine aircraft was produced by Lockheed. Upon its first flight, the chief test pilot remarked, "This machine works so well that you don't need me anymore!"

The Constellation series was the first pressurized-cabin civil airliner series to go into widespread use. Its pressurized cabin enabled commercial passengers to fly well above the worst weather for the first time, thus significantly improving the general safety and ease of air travel.

Several different models of the Constellation series were produced, although they all featured the distinctive triple-tail and dolphin-shaped fuselage. Most were powered by four 18-cylinder Wright R-3350 Duplex-Cyclones. In total, 856 were produced between 1943 and 1958 at Lockheed's plant in Burbank, California, and used as both a civil airliner and as a military and civilian cargo transport. Among their famous uses was during the Berlin and the Biafran airlifts. Three served as the presidential aircraft for Dwight D. Eisenhower, one of which is featured at the National Museum of the United States Air Force.
General characteristics

Crew: 5 flight crew, varying cabin crew
Capacity: typically 62–95 passengers (109 in high-density configuration) / 18,300 lb (8,301 kg) payload
Length: 116 ft 2 in (35.41 m)
Wingspan: 126 ft 2 in (38.46 m)
Height: 24 ft 9 in (7.54 m)
Wing area: 1,654 sq ft (153.7 m2)
Aspect ratio: 9.17
Airfoil: root: NACA 23018; tip: NACA 4412
Empty weight: 79,700 lb (36,151 kg)
Max takeoff weight: 137,500 lb (62,369 kg)
Zero-lift drag coefficient: CD,0 = 0.0211
Drag area: 34.82 sq ft (3.235 m2)
Powerplant: 4 × Wright R-3350-DA3 Duplex-Cyclone 18-cylinder air-cooled radial piston engines, 3,250 hp (2,420 kW) each
Propellers: 3-bladed constant-speed propellers
Performance

Maximum speed: 377 mph (607 km/h, 328 kn)
Cruise speed: 340 mph (550 km/h, 300 kn) at 22,600 ft (6,888 m)
Stall speed: 100 mph (160 km/h, 87 kn)
Range: 5,400 mi (8,700 km, 4,700 nmi)
Service ceiling: 24,000 ft (7,300 m)
Rate of climb: 1,620 ft/min (8.2 m/s)
Lift-to-drag: 16
Wing loading: 87.7 lb/sq ft (428 kg/m2)
Power/mass: 0.094 hp/lb (0.155 kW/kg)

#constellation #skunkworks #aircraft

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