The Constellation was the first commercial transport plane to travel at 300mph and was the last of the great American propeller-driven airliners. When the advances of commercial flight made it necessary for the President to have a plane, the Constellation was also the first plane to be designated as Air Force One, commencing with the Eisenhower administration. The military adapted the plane for its further use in the 1950s and 60s by modifying it for radar and using it as an aerial extension of the Distant Early Warning Line, and in aiding in the rescue of downed aircraft in Southeast Asia. In addition, The Military Air Transport Services (MATS) used a fleet of 70 C-121s from 1948 to 1967. There are fewer than 17 Constellations worldwide today.

Recently Marty Batura and the pros from Worldwide Aircraft Recovery, Ltd., arrived to reassemble our Super Constellation. It would have been challenging enough just to put a plane the size of the Connie together if everything was new and in good shape. However, the wings had been cut off at the wing roots, the landing gear and engines had been disposed of years ago and all of the hardware to put the tail and other major parts back on were long gone. Some years ago, Jim Leech lead a team to Florence, South Carolina to retrieve replacement gear and engines removed from a Navy WC-121 with little assurance they would fit a civilian version.

The Worldwide team, with the able assistance of our own Rich Breckenridge, got right to work positioning the fuselage in order to reattach the wings. Marty fabricated eight wing attach splices that were absolutely works of art. The Dover AFB Sheet Metal Fabrication Branch added just the right bend to four of them and in less than three days they were on the airplane. Next the landing gear was to be fitted but a huge problem became evident. One of the massive landing gear trunions that carries the load from the gear to the fuselage was too badly exfoliated to use. We were at an impasse. TSgt. Clarence Cole from the 512th EMS Fabrication Branch came to the rescue by grinding away all of the corroded metal and building it back by using high tech aluminum welding. In just over 24 hours the piece was returned, it looked brand new and it fit perfectly.

Soon the gear was back in place for the first time in over 15 years and the mounting of the four engines followed. Now we have several years worth of restoration to turn a civilian Super Constellation into an Air Force C-121.

Ironically most of the handful of Constellations still flying for civilian preservation operations were former
military planes converted to look like civilian versions. Due to the fact that this was the only Connie we had a reasonable chance of acquiring we are going to do the opposite. The Military Air Transport Service (MATS) flew over 70 of the graceful C-121s for many years. The last were retired from National Guard units and Navy patrol units many years ago. Within a few years ours will be ready to take its place on the ramp with the other important airlifters that our dedicated volunteers and contractors have helped preserve. 

Received into collection in October 1997.