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Restoring the Super Constellations

One of the last missions of the Lockheed L-1649A Starliner, which now sits stripped bare in a hangar at the Auburn-Lewiston Airport, was to transport cattle. Its final flight, in the early 1980s, was its arrival in Auburn from Florida.

Only 44 Starliners were built, between 1956 and 1958, and were the cream of the legendary Lockheed Constellation series. The planes carried passengers until 1966, when many of them were turned into cargo planes.

“It was a milestone in airlines,” said Michael Austermeier, Lufthansa project manager for the restoration. “It allowed Lufthansa back to the North American routes.”

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Our company has been approached by Lufthansa Technik to do some work on this airplane. I am traveling to Portland, ME to evaluate and quote the workscope. They have provided all the necessary technical data, and we have added the Lockheed L1649A to our FAA-Approved capabilities.

After reviewing the manuals and the drawings, it is not much different than a C-130 Hercules.

Pictures to follow.

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I heard and read about that project before. Truly inspiring to see people with such passion restoring these classic airliners.

I can't wait to see that one in the air, and, hopefully, fly it one day. Despite my well-known passion for three-holers, I'd still say that the Super Constellation was the most beautiful airliner around.

Flying the Breitling Connie last year was a great experience, but that airframe never served as an airliner, but as a troop transport, and thus has a rather spartanic interior.

A Connie with a fully restored airliner interior would just be the icing on the cake.

Ah that sounds like a fine project indeed

There's a Connie out back amongst the hangers at JNB that is getting restored. I haven't been able to get close enough as yet to have a proper look or get pics.

Glad that people care enough to do this.

I do wonder whether there will be enough desire to preserve some of today's types by enthusiasts in the future....

Once it's complete, hopefully she'll stay in the US and make the airshow circuit. Like this one...

http://www.airlinehistorymuseum.com/connie.htm

cornish wrote:I do wonder whether there will be enough desire to preserve some of today's types by enthusiasts in the future....

Desire yes, but with the amount of aircraft being scrapped and parted out, there may not be examples left for them to restore.

Hello from Portland, Maine. Drove up to Auburn to see the Connie today. The one that is in the hangar is recognizable only to the die-hard aficionados. There is scaffolding all around her. The fuselage is in various shades of FR primer. Lots of Cleco's (temporary fasteners to hold the skin in place), all over the fuselage and the wing planks. LH Technik has a first class operation going, and they are plodding along to their AUG 2013 test flight date. I have to go out again tomorrow to talk to the German staff to discuss the work scope, and I will take more pictures with a better camera.

Some pictures... Crappy light. There are two 1649s here, one is outside and has the designation "Hotel." When the technicians need to go out to it, they say they are going to "Hotel Hell."

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One oh Hotel on the ramp, and another one of the nose of the restoration project.

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I don't think there will be any shortage of most common types in derelict condition when it comes time for someone to want to preserve them.

There are 707s rotting all over the world.. There are 727s still flying freight every night, 737-200s are still running around, or derelict.

I am sure there are BAC-111s sitting somewhere rotting, same with HS tridents, not sure if any examples of a Comet exist.

I know of an old Airborne Express SUD Caravelle rotting at CMH, I think the Dassault Mercure has pretty well been wiped off the earth.

I am kind of curious what happened to the thing Dornier was building to compete with the 737 but never flew. My girlfriend got a tour of the factory and saw at least 2 of them complete enough to be identifiable shortly before they went bankrupt. That would be an interesting restoration project if they weren't broken up.

Royally pissed, some images made it, others didn't.

A Bit of history on N7316C:

---Current registration - N7316C

---Delivered to TWA June 1957 as L1649A N7316C "Star of Tigris"

---Last passenger service with TWA on September 9, 1960

---Converted to freighter by Lockheed Air Service and returned to TWA November 21, 1960

---Leased to Alaska Airlines January 1962 and sold to them December 31, 1962

---Converted to a bulk fuel oil carrier in 1968

---To Red Dodge Aviation November 16, 1968

---To Prudhoe Oil Distributing Company December 2, 1968

---Possibly leased to Interior Airways in 1969

---Stored at Anchorage, AK by April 1972

---To Westair September 9, 1974 and flown to Kenai, AK for storage during winter 1974-75

---To Onyx Aviation November 14, 1975

---To Burns Aviation January 17, 1976

---Abandoned at Stewart Airport, NY after arriving from Le Bourget on July 26, 1976

---To Maine Coast Airways (Maurice Roundy) on May 23, 1983

---Restored and flown to Auburn-Lewiston Airport, ME on November 9, 1983

---Stored at Auburn-Lewiston Airport adjacent to Maurice Roundy's home

---Maurice plans on flying aircraft on the US airshow circuit and restoration underway in August 2002

---Sold to Jim Thompson, a Florida land developer, and registered to him on April 19, 2006

---Still on Maurice's property at the Aurburn-Lewston Airport in August 2006 and restoration is continuing at a slow pace under his direction

---Returned to Maurice in early 2007 due to non-payment

---Aircraft, along with N974R and N8083H, sold at auction on December 18, 2007 to Lufthansa Berlin-Stiftung

---An extensive restoration of the aircraft is underway at Auburn-Lewiston Airport by Lufthansa. Expected completion date is August 2013

Just an update...

We've completed four of the trailing edge sections and shipped them back to Auburn. The customer is very happy not only with the quality, put the precision of the documentation.

This is just a reminder of when this Connie was put together:

The funny thing is that back then LH preferred the DC-6/DC-7 from Douglas.
But Douglas demanded full cash payments up front, which LH didn´t have at this time. So LH approached Lockheed instead, who accepted installment payments.

Jan

miamiair wrote:Just an update...

We've completed four of the trailing edge sections and shipped them back to Auburn. The customer is very happy not only with the quality, put the precision of the documentation.

This is just a reminder of when this Connie was put together:

What specific work are you carrying out on the aircraft?

halls120 wrote:What specific work are you carrying out on the aircraft?

Rebuilding all the wing trailing edge panels, leading edges, wing-to-body fairings, some of the empennage.

Just went to see the old girl again. A bit different when the temps are in the single digits...

Here's a detail: when the airplane takes off on its born-again flight, it will depart Auburn and fly to Bangor. The runway at Auburn is too short for it to land on. So the choice is get the takeoff or the landing? Take-off...

So she can get out but not back in? That's the opposite of what I'd expect. What's limiting?

ShanwickOceanic wrote:So she can get out but not back in? That's the opposite of what I'd expect. What's limiting?

Something about the brakes and the runway length.

Back again, more items to do: gear doors, flaps, and now, what will require the most craftsmanship, the cowlings...

Just because it is a Connie thread...

Some pictures:

View of the crown, looking forward:


Looking through the top of the fuselage:


Jr. getting a tour of the right wing:


Right wing showing new wing planks:


Right wing:

Clecos are wonderful things.

An "After" photo:

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Almost looks like a new build. Fascinating photos, keep them coming

Inboard flap "before" photos

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One more "before" photo:

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