Northwest Orient Airlines Lockheed L-1049E Super Constellation (1:200)

As a response to the Douglas DC-4 Lockheed developed the Constellation. As more powerful engines were developed the Constellation was stretched 21 feet and improvements made resulting in the L-1049G Super Constellation. The development of the L-1049G improved range with the addition of wing-tip tanks. The more powerful engines made it necessary to use large propellers that required the aircraft to sit quite high off the ground. A triple tail was developed because the size of a single tail would have been too large to fit in any hangar.

Northwest Airlines was founded in 1934 and in 1946 was renamed Northwest Orient Airlines. In 1953 Northwest placed an order for 6 Lockheed L-1049Gs making them the launch airline for this aircraft. The order was reduced to 4 with the first arriving in December 1954. In 1956 Douglas announced the long-range DC-7C which meant the end of the L-1049 was near. In 1958 the (4) L-1049Gs were sold to LAV (Linea Aeropostal Venezolana) with Northwest's former N5175V c/n 4577 fleet number 175 becoming YV-C-ANE.

Specifications for the 3 Lockheed L-1049 variants

First Flight - July 14, 1951

Production - 564 for commercial airlines and military

Crew - 4 Cockpit Crew, 4 Flight Attendants

Standard Seating - 95 passengers

Performance
Powerplant - 4 x Wright R-3350-DA3 Turbo Compound 18-cylinder super-charged air-cooled radial engines producing 3,250 hp (2,424 kW) per engine
Fuel Capacity
L-1049C - 6,550 US gallons
L-1049G & H - 7,750 US gallons w/tip tanks
Fuel Burn
L-1049C w/ maximum fuel load - 4 engines / 432 gph (108 gph /engine)
L-1049G w/ maximum fuel load - 4 engines / 500 gph (125 gph /engine)
L-1049H w/ maximum fuel load - 4 engines / 696 gph (174 gph /engine)

Maximum Cruising Speed
L-1049C - 734 mph (352 kts)
L-1049G & H - 366 mph (318 kts)
Normal Cruising Speed
L-1049C - 314 mph (273 kts)
L-1049G & H - 311 mph (270 kts)

Service Ceiling
L-1049C - 23,200 ft
L-1049G & H - 22,800 ft

Range
L-1049C - 4,760 miles w/maximum fuel
L-1049C - 2,880 miles w/maximum payload
L-1049G - 4,815 miles w/maximum fuel
L-1049G - 4,165 miles w/maximum payload
L-1049H - 3,463 miles w/maximum fuel
L-1049H - 1,890 miles w/maximum payload

Weight
Empty
L-1049C - 70,083 lbs
L-1049G - 73,016 lbs
L-1049H - 69,326 lbs
Maximum Take Off
L-1049C - 133,000 lbs
L-1049G & H - 137,500 lbs

Dimensions
Length
L-1049C - 113 ft 7 in
L-1049G & H - 116 ft 2 in
Wingspan
L-1049C - 123 ft
L-1049G & H - 123 ft 5 in
Height
L-1049C & G & H - 24 ft 9.4 in