[Note: This post was triggered by a couple of (seemingly un-related) items this past week (1) A new (FlightSim) Library file of a fictional/what-if Delta (Convair 580) repaint, caught my attention (2) And, I've been lately re-reading Tintin's...🙂...Moon Rocket Adventures. The Belgian cartoonist Hergé's two books on "Moon" are quite remarkable and entertaining, in its (vivid) details and imagination, considering, he wrote/drew them (nearly) 2 decades before man actually landed on the moon! BTW, Hergé also knew how to (quite accurately and pleasingly) sketch 727/707 etc., and a few of his books have bits of aviation in them (e.g. Flight 714 to Sydney).]

Back to the post, now: The (San Diego based) Convair company was an aircraft manufacturer, that is a fascinating one. The company later expanded into rockets and spacecraft. And, personally, speaking, one of the most "claustrophobic" (space) things, I've ever seen (and actually peered into), was the Mercury Capsule, in the (Smithsonian) Air and Space Museum...the one in which, John Glenn, orbited the Earth, on February 20, 1962. The size of this spacecraft meant that Mercury astronauts could not be taller than 5 feet, 11 inches. The astronauts joked that “you don’t get in it, you put it on.” Imagine being sent into space, alone, in this confined entity, to orbit the Earth, for the first time, in the project, with one day's ration of sustenance (food + water + oxygen) - so, getting lost in space was not a livable option! John Glenn (and the Mercury capsule), after 3 successful orbits, were able to return to Earth (actually into the Atlantic Ocean, to be recovered), after just under 5 hours of flight time. It was Convair that had provided the propellant Rockets for that (milestone) Mercury Project!

The residues of the Convair Company now lies with Boeing (via McDonnell Douglas) and Lockheed Martin (via Lockheed).

Convair was also best known for its military aircraft (B-36/B-58 etc). As a manufacturers of the civilian Convair Series Airliners, it was in production business, for a short period (1947->1954), and unfortunately, it had to go against some of the most well-know competitors of the era, such as:

1. CV-240/340 -> (Meant to replace the "irreplaceable") Douglas DC-3
2. CV-440 -> (Competed with) Vickers Viscount
3. And, the quad-jets (CV-880/990) -> (Competed with) B707/DC8 [These Convair jets, looked beautiful, and could have been easily mistaken for 707s!]

The Convair propliner series were sturdy, reliable, and flexible (many are still operational today). This post shows a few images of the Convair 580: it was a conversion aircraft from Convair 440 with the famous (and powerful) Allison turboprop engines (the same engines that powered the C-130 Hercules). [Side Note: Allison is now owned by Rolls-Royce, and these engines (501-D/T56), are still being produced with the prestigious "RR" logo. Over 18,000 engines have been produced since 1954, logging over 200 million flying hours). The Convair 580 is a versatile aircraft (quickly convertible for pax or freight) that was/is unmatched by other twin-engine turboprops. A lot of Convair 580s are (likely) still flying today, most, of course, as freighters. So, here, below, please find a few lasting images of the (classic) Convair CV-580, in a few classic liveries. BTW, regarding scenery, the DD Design, Miami, is now available FREE (see Bargain Hunter's Shack). And, I also noticed the same file today, as the 1st upload, on the list of today's 50 files, on Flightsim.com. But, I cannot, yet, tell you more about its imagery and performance etc. (but, generally, I own several DD airports, and am happy with those products). The air-screenshots below are taken at DD KMIA, as backdrop.

Notes:

1. Delta, here, is fictional, but there is some evidence, Delta did operate Convairs in the 1950s.
2. This (Denver based) Frontier operated between 1950-1986. The new Frontier was founded, eight years later, in 1994, using the same name.
3. DHL had had used Convair 580s, in 1990s (in this darker shade Red color, compared to the original bright Red; DHL changed to its current (bright) "Yellow and Red" scheme in 2002,..only of interest, to the painters, maybe...).
4. The (Tucson based) Sierra Pacific, still operates, but, with two 737-500s.
5. Republic Airlines operated this N4822C registration (a CV-440(?)) in the 70s.
6. Air Chathams of New Zealand still maintains 3 CV-580s as airliners. It is the only (known) civil operator of the type.

Thanks for viewing!! Hope you enjoy! Good rest of the week!

[CalClassic(CV-580)/(FW)DD(KMIA)/REX]

The Convair 880: Any plane that's good enough for Elvis is good enough for me. 🙂

As soon as I spotted the Topic Title, I instinctively knew, it'd be a post from you, P-7878. Boy, you most certainly have a lovely and venerable collection of aircraft,and you take great kudos for displaying them so well too. No idea where you manage to corral such lovely liveries too.

Keep it up.👍

 

Alan:

Couldn't have said it better....🙂....So, there you go, below, a SIM image, since you seem to be an Elvis Fan...("Lisa Marie" imprint is towards the front of the plane)....

Thanks for leading me on a bit...the former Delta 880 (purchased by him and rechristened after his daughter) now resides (is preserved) in Graceland, I understand, and, his, other plane, a Lockheed Jetstar, (in contrast) named "Hound Dog II", is also there, looks like....lifestyle of the rich and famous...! I've been to Tennessee, a couple of times, but, never got to visit Graceland....(If I ever get another chance to visit, Alan, I'll surely convey your regards...🙂...)

Rick:

Thanks!

You may not believe, it took me <15 mins to collect these liveries/images, and I didn't even have the CV-580, CalClassic, base plane, here...(I did have the other (smaller) CV variants),...the Delta (fictional) 580, made me go there. If you wish, just pay a visit to CalClassic, even if you'll not use those planes/repaints...you'll see that the "kudos" really goes to those folks, there, not me...

We underestimate the work done by the silent "worker" bees, in our SIM...(we know a couple around here...🙂...)

Of course, my other "Flying Tiger" CS707 to North Pole was not a 10min job....but, to find that Tiger (707) repaint right here in the Library, was so gratifying, thought about and done already, by someone else! I was settled on the Airline, so, I was looking for the livery...(btw, the painter, there, Jan Kees Blom, I've mentioned, if you check today, has contributed "1543" files to the Library here, simply incredible...!)

Edited April 29, 20206 yr by P_7878

The CV-580 came from North Central to Republic including Herman, the duck. A few were 240's and were converted to 580's. That Alison 501 was a power making mutha! Northwest inherited them with the Republic merger. 1989-90 retired.

Edited April 29, 20206 yr by NWATech
spelling...

23 hours ago, NWATech said:

The CV-580 came from North Central to Republic including Herman, the duck. A few were 240's and were converted to 580's. That Alison 501 was a power making mutha! Northwest inherited them with the Republic merger. 1989-90 retired.

NWATech: Thanks for the vivid recollections...!!

Truly spoken like one, who must have been clearly (and closely) associated with these planes....🙂....

And, now, it's also clear to me, that some of these Convair planes took the route to NWA as (Convair -> North Central -> Republic -> NWA)...surely, there were many, as you've pointed out, but, I was particularly able to track/see the N4882C Republic, shown in one of the screenshots above......

Curiously, my search, took me, first, to an eBay site, for Postcard images of:
"Airline NORTHWEST Convair CV-580 N4822C S/N 377"

One offer is for $4.44 Free Shipping....🙂...

Another offer on same eBay for the same postcard image, cites:
"Convair CV-580 N4822C sn 377 Northwest Airlines vintage postcard with cornerwear surfacewear"
This one costs, higher, $11.90....plus Shipping: $4.06...!

[Agree, this is "vintage"...so the "cornerwear/surfacewear", are surely acceptable....and, the (NWA) livery picture(s), there, indeed, look "vintage" and "collectible" for Convair aficionados...!]

Edited April 30, 20206 yr by P_7878