Wednesday, March 24, 2010

More Plane Pr0n

AirPigz is becoming my "go-to" site for excellent plane pr0n of late.  Today's subject is the Lockheed Super Constellation... for which we went to Airpigz to get a view of those massive flame-belching Wright R-3350’s from inside a Connie during take-off.  That particular video was interesting as all get-out, but it was the associated videos (thank you, YouTube!) that really floated my lil boat.  Here are a couple:



And this spectacular night take-off...



The voice-over in the first video observes that every era has its iconic aircraft and the Connie was one such in the 1940s and '50s.  I can vouch for that fact.  

Those of you who have been with me for a while know that I attended the third, fourth, and fifth grades at the DoD dependent school on Orly Field... the USAF portion of Orly International Airport in Paris.  That was back in the day when kids had a LOT more freedom than they do these days and my schoolmates and I would often spend our lunch hour in the snack bar in the international terminal, where we would eat lunch while watching passengers boarding or deplaning from the airliners of the day... chief of which were the Connie and the Boeing 377 Stratocruiser... essentially a civilianized B-29.  It's easy to tell which was the more beautiful bird...

The Stratocruiser.

The Super-Connie.

Fat and ungainly versus lithe, sleek, and sassy.  They simply don't make 'em like that any longer... and I wish to Hell I would have had the opportunity to fly in a Connie.  Alas, my piston-engine airliner experiences were limited to DC-3s and DC-7s.  More's the pity.

And there ya have my nostalgia fix for the day.

10 comments:

  1. I've never seen one outside of video and photo, but there is no denying that the Connie is a truly glamorous aircraft. Ditto for the DC-3 and 7, IMHO. The 377/C-97 not so much.

    These kind of posts make me nostalgic for an era I never experienced.

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  2. It was a GREAT era, BR. One can get all nostalgic for lotsa reasons and you don't necessarily have had to have been there. Perhaps our Greatest Era, come to think on it.

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  3. Buck, yeah a beautiful aircraft, one of my favorites. When I was station at NAS Memphis (most Navy enlisted personnel who are in the Aviation Rates went there back in the day) there was a reserve VW squadron there, they flew the WC-121 which was a militarized version of the Super-C. They were fun to watch on the weekends coming and going, mostly they did landing pattern work. I got a tour on one once as well and I was "excited" the whole time I was aboard. And You know what I mean!!

    Beautiful, simply beautiful.

    BT: Jimmy T sends.

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  4. Slight nitpick, which BR alluded to...the 377 wasn't so much a civilianized version of the B-29/B-50 as it was of the C-97, which was basically a B-50 with two fuselages joined together.

    That said, the Connie > 377. No question.

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  5. You had such an interesting childhood. I loved the plane pron.

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  6. Me neither. But I did get to ride in a DC-6B (and as a kid, got invited into the flight deck), a DC-3, and a FORD TRIMOTOR!

    (also Goodyear Blimp, which I hear is a rare distinction)

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  7. Jimmy: I had the opportunity to watch EC-121s in the way-back, as well. Never got a ride on one or ever been inside one for that matter, though.

    Noted, Mike. You trying to take my Pedant Trophy away or sumthin'?

    Lou: I was VERY fortunate as a child but my experiences were kinda common for milbrats in my cohort.

    JTG: A ride in the Goodyear blimp IS a big deal... as is a trip in a Trimotor. WOW!!

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  8. Buck,Iost my cy, but there is an ABSOLUTELY HILARIOUS "EC-121" tape made by some EC-121 "College Eye" drivers in Thailand circa '67-68 that you just GOTTA hear. Pay you to root around some. I've been unable-but haven't really dedicated myself to it.

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  9. I'll look for that, Virg. Thanks!

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  10. The Connie has always been a favorite of mine too.

    There was one stationed at DaNang when I was there ('66-'67). It was outfitted with all the bulges, bubbles, and wires necessary for radio frequency interception.

    My brother name a dog after the Connie! He names all his dogs after airplanes...he works as a mechanic for Continental today.

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