First Day Issue Stamp Cache Envelope Enclosure Constellation Classic American Ai

Description: First Day of Issue Stamp Cache Envelope and Enclosure The Constellation The Classic American Aircraft 32¢ Dayton OH Jul 19 1997 Classic American Aircraft Lockheed Constellation "Lockheed's elegant "Connie" looked fast even when still. Beloved by passengers and and pilots alike, it performed well on both national and international routes. It also served as the military's first airborne early warning aircraft." The four-engined Lockheed Constellation had been originally conceived before the war as a commercial airliner and then taken over as a transport for the U. S. Army Air Force (USAAF). Larger, faster, and more sophisticated than the Douglas aircraft, it offered the advantages of a pressurized cabin plus more adequate range for transatlantic operation. in consequence, and after the war, it became standard equipment with major airlines, being 'stretched to thed to carry more passengers in the Super Constellation versions with more powerful engines. Some models, such as the Royal Air Maroe Connie, were designed to carry extra baggage and freight in a detachable under belly Speedpak. Still others, like the L- 049D/H Super Constellations, were equipped as specialized freighters. Upon retirement from airline service, a few former Air Pratice and Air-India machines were converted for air-sea rescue duties. The last of the Connie family were the 45 L-1649A Starliners which were equipped with a new wing design and increased fuel capacity. Unlike the DC-4, which received an extensive work-out on military transport duties during the second World War, the Constellation did not make its mark in the field of air transportation until the war was actually ended, even though it had not been imagined as an aircraft for military purposes. It quickly showed a great potential for development following its entry in the first generation of airine service in 1946, and eventually more than 500 members of the Constellation/Super Constellation/Starliner family were built for civil customers. It had performed so perfectly in military use that even after the war, many hundreds more were built for military duties of various kinds and for several nations. To list details of all the capabilities of all the many versions of the "Connies' is much to great a task for the brevity of this cachet stuffer copy so we will provide here the statistics for the Model 049. This 'Connie' was powered by four 2,200 hp Wright R-3350-C18-BA3 eighteen-cylinder radial engines, each of which drove a 15 foot, 2 inch diameter three-blade propeller. The wingspan was a full 123 feet with a wing area of 1,650 square feet. Length of the aircraft was 95 feet and two inches with a gross weight of 98,000 pounds. The typical cruising speed was about 313 miles per hour at 20,000 feet and typically had a range of slightly more than 2.250 miles with a maximum payload of 18,423 pounds. The first flight date is listed as January 9, 1943 by John W. R. Taylor, and Kenneth Munson in History of Aviation, published in 1972 by Octopus Books Limited, London. Not all planes were detectable with certainty from the ground by even many experts, particularly in the early days of commercial aviation. The family of Connies were, however, quite distinctive as no other major aircraft of the day had such a unique silhouette with triple tail fin assembly. Additionally, there were few aircraft of the time that featured four engine mounts (one exception, however, wasthe Avro York, which gave fine service to struggling peacetime operators). This aircraft is number thirteen (row four of five, far left position) in the setenant of 20 that honor classic American aircraft that was issued July 19, 1997 at Dayton, OH, site of the world's largest aviation museum. It is interesting to note that Orville Wright. at 72, piloted a C-69 'Connie' during his last flight. Features: • First Day of Issue Stamp Cache Envelope and Enclosure • Made in USA Condition: Pre-Owned Good

Price: 24.95 USD

Location: Humble, Texas

End Time: 2025-01-05T23:22:53.000Z

Shipping Cost: 4.25 USD