W.T. LARKINS MEMORIAL COLLECTION
No. 4180. Lockheed 049-46-26 Constellation (N74192 c/n 049-1980) California Hawaiian Airlines
Photographed at Oakland, California, USA, February 1953, by W.T. Larkins

Lockheed 049-46-26 Constellation

08/31/2007. Remarks by Jack McKillop: "This aircraft was ordered by the USAAF as a C-69-5-LO, s/n 42-94559 but the order cancelled at the end of World War II and this Connie was converted to a passenger aircraft for British Overseas Airline Corp. (BOAC). It was delivered on May 29, 1946 as G-AHEN, named "Baltimore" and went into service on August 31, 1946. The first BOAC Constellation transatlantic flight (London, England–Prestwick, Scotland–Gander, Dominion of Newfoundland–Dorval, Quebec, Canada) was flown by this aircraft on April 16, 1947.

The aircraft was severely damaged on January 8, 1951 while on a training flight at Filton Airport, Bristol, England. The aircraft hit a fuel storage building and suffered damage to the front of the aircraft, the main spar and the landing gear. The insurance companies paid BOAC US$244,000 (US$1.954 million in 2007 dollars) and the it was shipped back to the US as deck cargo for rebuilding. Using parts from C-69 c/n 1966, the aircraft was rebuilt, and was sold to Los Angeles Air Services registered N74192 in late 1951. Leased to California Hawaiian Airlines of Burbank, California, in 1952 and sub-leased at one time to US Airlines of New York, New York.

The aircraft was sold to the Israeli airline El Al of Tel Aviv, Israel, in October 1953 and reregistered 4X-AKD. It was damaged by fire at Lod Airport in Israeli on April 2, 1958 but was repaired until placed in storage in Tel Aviv by 1961. It was sold to Universal Sky Tours in February 1962 and registered G-AHEN. In April 1962, it was sold to the British airline Euravia and then to Britannia Airways on February 2, 1965 when Britannia Airways purchased Euravia. The aircraft sustained damage to the port tail plane at Heathrow Airport in October 1963 but this was repaired.

In April 1965, this Constellation was withdrawn from service and scrapped. It had 29,303 hours on the airframe when scrapped."


Created May 1, 2005