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Stratocruiser
The Boeing 377 Stratocruiser was a large long-range airliner developed from the C-97 Stratofreighter military transport, itself a derivative of the B-29 Superfortress. The Stratocruiser's first flight was on July 8, 1947. Design features included passenger decks and a pressurized cabin. It could carry up to 100 passengers on the main deck plus 14 in the lower deck lounge; typical seating was for 63 or 84 passengers or 28 berthed and five seated passengers. The Stratocruiser was larger than the Douglas DC-6 and Lockheed Constellation and cost more to buy and operate. Its reliability was poor, mainly due to problems with the four 28-cylinder Pratt & Whitney R-4360 Wasp Major radial engines and structural and control problems with their propellers. Only 55 377s were built for airlines, along with the single prototype. One was converted into the Aero Spacelines Pregnant Guppy by John M. Conroy for NASA’s Gemini space program. Design and development The Boeing 377 Strat ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Aero Spacelines Pregnant Guppy
The Aero Spacelines Pregnant Guppy was a large, wide-bodied cargo aircraft built in the United States and used for ferrying outsize cargo, outsized cargo items, most notably components of NASA's Apollo program. The Pregnant Guppy was the first of the Guppy line of aircraft produced by Aero Spacelines. The design inspired later designs, such as the Jet engine, jet-powered Airbus Beluga and Boeing Dreamlifter. Development In 1960, NASA was using barges to transport increasingly large rocket components from manufacturers on the West Coast to test and launch sites on the East Coast, a method that was slow and expensive. Meanwhile, U.S. airlines were disposing of their obsolete Piston engine, piston-engined Boeing 377 Stratocruisers in favor of the newer jet-engined airliners. Aircraft broker Leo Mansdorf was stockpiling surplus Stratocruisers at Van Nuys Airport, Van Nuys for resale. Ex-United States Air Force, USAF pilot John M. Conroy realized that these aircraft could be modified ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Boeing C-97 Stratofreighter
The Boeing C-97 Stratofreighter is a long-range heavy military cargo aircraft developed from the Boeing B-29 Superfortress, B-29 and Boeing B-50 Superfortress, B-50 bombers. Design work began in 1942, the first of three prototype XC-97s flew on 9 November 1944 and the first of six service-test YC-97s flew on 11 March 1947. All nine were based on the 24ST alloy structure and Wright R-3350 Duplex-Cyclone, Wright R-3350 engines of the B-29, but with a larger-diameter fuselage upper lobe (making a figure of eight or "double-bubble" section) and they had the B-29 vertical tail with the gunner's position blanked off. The first of three heavily revised YC-97A incorporating the re-engineered wing (higher-strength 75ST alloy), taller vertical tail and larger Pratt & Whitney R-4360 Wasp Major, Pratt & Whitney R-4360 engines of the B-50 bomber, flew on 28 January 1948 and was the basis of the subsequent sole YC-97B, all production C-97s, KC-97s and civilian Stratocruiser aircraft. Between 19 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pan American World Airways
Pan American World Airways, originally founded as Pan American Airways and more commonly known as Pan Am, was an airline that was the principal and largest international air carrier and unofficial overseas flag carrier of the United States for much of the 20th century. The first airline to fly worldwide, it pioneered innovations such as Wide-body aircraft, jumbo jets and computerized reservation systems, and introduced the Boeing 707, first American jetliner in 1958. Until its dissolution on December 4, 1991, Pan Am "epitomized the luxury and glamour of intercontinental travel", and it remains a cultural icon of the 20th century, identified by its blue globe logo ("The Blue Meatball"), the use of the word "Clipper" in its aircraft names and call signs, and the white uniform caps of its pilots. Founded in 1927 by two U.S. Army Air Corps majors, Pan Am began as a scheduled airmail and passenger service flying between Key West, Florida, and Havana, Cuba. In the 1930s, under the le ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
BOAC
British Overseas Airways Corporation (BOAC) was the British state-owned national airline created in 1939 by the merger of Imperial Airways and British Airways Ltd. It continued operating overseas services throughout World War II. After the passing of the Civil Aviation Act 1946, European and South American services passed to two further state-owned airlines, British European Airways (BEA) and British South American Airways (BSAA). BOAC absorbed BSAA in 1949, but BEA continued to operate British domestic and European routes for the next quarter century. The Civil Aviation Act 1971 merged BOAC and BEA, effective 31 March 1974, forming today's British Airways. History War years On 24 November 1939, BOAC was created by the ( 2 & 3 Geo. 6. c. 61) to become the British state airline, formed from the merger of Imperial Airways and British Airways Ltd. The companies had been operating together since war was declared on 3 September 1939, when their operations were evacuated ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
British Overseas Airways Corporation
British Overseas Airways Corporation (BOAC) was the United Kingdom, British state-owned national airline created in 1939 by the merger of Imperial Airways and British Airways Ltd. It continued operating overseas services throughout World War II. After the passing of the Civil Aviation Act 1946, European and South American services passed to two further state-owned airlines, British European Airways (BEA) and British South American Airways (BSAA). BOAC absorbed BSAA in 1949, but BEA continued to operate British domestic and European routes for the next quarter century. The Civil Aviation Act 1971 merged BOAC and BEA, effective 31 March 1974, forming today's British Airways. History War years On 24 November 1939, BOAC was created by the (2 & 3 Geo. 6. c. 61) to become the British state airline, formed from the merger of Imperial Airways and British Airways Ltd. The companies had been operating together since war was declared on 3 September 1939, when their operations were eva ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
American Overseas Airlines
American Overseas Airlines (AOA) was an airline that operated between the United States and Europe between 1945 and 1950. It was headquartered in Midtown Manhattan, New York City. History American Export Airlines (AEA), commonly known as Am Ex, was founded in April 1937 as a wholly owned subsidiary of the shipping company American Export Lines. Transatlantic surveys were done with a Consolidated PBY-4 flying boat and in 1939 AEA placed an order for three Vought-Sikorsky VS-44 flying boats, dubbed 'Flying Aces', named after the parent company's Four Aces. That same year, AEA made an application to the U.S. Civil Aeronautics Board (CAB) for routes across the Atlantic from the United States to the United Kingdom, France, and Portugal. On July 15, 1940, in spite of strong protests by Juan Trippe, the president of Pan American Airways (PAA), President Franklin D. Roosevelt gave his approval to AEA for a seven-year temporary certificate to serve Lisbon (Portugal) from New York Ci ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Northwest Airlines
Northwest Airlines (often abbreviated as NWA) was a major airline in the United States that operated from 1926 until it Delta Air Lines–Northwest Airlines merger, merged with Delta Air Lines in 2010. The merger made Delta the largest airline in the world until the American Airlines Group#Merger proposals and plans, American Airlines–US Airways merger in 2013. Northwest was headquartered in Eagan, Minnesota, near Minneapolis–Saint Paul International Airport. After World War II, it became dominant in the trans-Pacific market with a hub in Tokyo, Japan (initially Haneda Airport, later Narita International Airport). In response to United Airlines' 1985 acquisition of Pan Am's Pacific routes, Northwest paid $884 million to purchase Republic Airlines and then established fortress hubs at Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport and Memphis International Airport. With this merger, NWA established the domestic network necessary to feed its well-established Pacific routes. Lackin ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Aero Spacelines Super Guppy
The Aero Spacelines Super Guppy is a large, wide-bodied cargo aircraft used for hauling outsize cargo components. It was the successor to the Pregnant Guppy, the first of the Guppy aircraft produced by Aero Spacelines. Five were built in two variants, both of which were colloquially referred to as the "Super Guppy". The Super Guppy is the only airplane to carry a complete S-IVB stage, the third stage of the Saturn V rocket. It did so several times during the Apollo program. Design and development The first Super Guppy, or "SG", was built directly from a retired USAF Boeing YC-97J Stratofreighter. The fuselage was lengthened to , and ballooned out to a maximum inside diameter of , the length of the cargo compartment being . The floor of the cargo compartment was still only wide, as necessitated by the use of the Stratocruiser fuselage. In addition to the fuselage modifications, the Super Guppy used Pratt & Whitney T-34-P-7WA turboprop engines for increased power and ra ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Aero Spacelines Mini Guppy
The Aero Spacelines Mini Guppy is a large, wide-bodied, American cargo aircraft used for aerial transport of Outsize cargo, outsized cargo components. The Mini Guppy is one of the Guppy line of aircraft produced by Aero Spacelines, alongside the Aero Spacelines Pregnant Guppy, Pregnant Guppy and Aero Spacelines Super Guppy, Super Guppy. Variants The Mini Guppy was produced in two variants. Mini Guppy The sole Model 377MG Mini Guppy was converted from a Boeing 377-10-26 (c/n 15937) and registered N1037V. An entirely new fuselage was fitted to the aircraft with a cargo bay measuring long and wide with a cargo floor; smaller than the cargo bay of the preceding Pregnant Guppy. Cargo was loaded through a hinged swinging tail. It retained the Pratt & Whitney R-4360 Wasp Major, Pratt & Whitney R-4360 engines of the Stratocruiser, though provisions were made for the installation of Allison T56, Allison 501 turboprop engines. The vertical tail was extended by , while a new wing ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pratt & Whitney R-4360 Wasp Major
The Pratt & Whitney R-4360 Wasp Major is an American 28-cylinder four-row radial engine, radial reciprocating engine, piston aircraft engine designed and built during World War II. At , it is the largest-displacement aviation piston engine to be mass-produced in the United States, and at the most powerful. First run in 1944, it was the last of the Pratt & Whitney Pratt & Whitney Wasp series, Wasp family, and the culmination of its maker's piston engine technology. The war was over before it could power airplanes into combat. It powered many of the last generation of large piston-engined aircraft before turbojets, but was supplanted by equivalent (and superior) powered turboprops (such as the Allison T56). Its main rival was the twin-row, 18-cylinder, nearly displacement, up to Wright R-3350 Duplex-Cyclone, first run some seven years earlier (May 1937). Design and development The R-4360 was a 28-cylinder (engine), cylinder four-row air-cooled radial engine. Each row of seven ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Boeing B-29 Superfortress
The Boeing B-29 Superfortress is a retired American four-engined propeller-driven heavy bomber, designed by Boeing and flown primarily by the United States during World War II and the Korean War. Named in allusion to its predecessor, the Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress, the Superfortress was designed for high-altitude strategic bombing, but also excelled in low-altitude night incendiary bombing, and in dropping naval mines to blockade Japan. B-29s dropped the atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, the only aircraft ever to drop nuclear weapons in combat. One of the largest aircraft of World War II, the B-29 was designed with state-of-the-art technology, which included a pressurized cabin, dual-wheeled tricycle landing gear, and an analog computer-controlled fire-control system that allowed one gunner and a fire-control officer to direct four remote machine gun turrets. The $3 and a half dollar cost of design and production (equivalent to $6769 billion in 400), fa ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Double-deck Aircraft
A double-deck aircraft has two decks for passengers; the second deck may be only a partial deck, and may be above or below the main deck. Most commercial aircraft have one passenger deck and one cargo deck for luggage and ULD containers, but a few have two decks for passengers, typically above or below a third deck for cargo. History Many early flying boat airliners, such as the Boeing 314 Clipper and Short Sandringham, had two decks. Following World War II, the Stratocruiser, a partially double-decked derivative of the B-29 Superfortress, became popular with airlines around the world. The first full double-deck aircraft was the French Breguet Deux-Ponts, in service from 1953. The first partial double-deck jet airliner was the widebody Boeing 747, in service from 1970, with the top deck smaller than the main deck. Boeing originally designed the distinctive 747 bubble top with air cargo usage in mind. The small top deck permitted the cockpit and a few passengers and nos ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
