Delta Convair CV-880-"Promo Film"-1960-Part l/ll

[ejdf870]

Sadly, most aircraft today travel under 6oomph.

[ejdf870]

Air time must've been cheap in the past.........

[IFLYWINGS]

I "was" a Test Pilot for over 40 Years, and I Crashed every aircraft I flew, of course they were paper airplanes, but hey its all I could afford !! Captain Crash - Test Pilot.

[tom211t]

The only thing that bothers me about today's aviation.. is that the technology is simplifying things so much, that old skill is going out of the window, I find that just a tad sad because those skills and the old way of flying is what defined a true pilot and skipper of the skies... But then again, i did hear David Learmount mention that there is extensive training to keep aviation skills fresh to all pilots..

[VHflyboy]

"setting a record... of 665 mph. But speed is only one facet of performance."

Yes, like fuel burn! lol

[vexviper]

I flew from Chicago to Los Angeles on a 707 back in 1968.

[prglg]

665 m/H = 1064 km/H!!! WOW!!!!

[contrerados]

It's not only the promising comfort of this plane, it's also the kind of passengers even though this is a comercial and things might appear far too idyllic, it's true. Today, while airliners fly longer and are safer, they pack passengers like sardines, food is disguting, and unfortunately, many passengers tend to be rude, let alone their unkempt appearance and contempt for decent clothing. I don't travel much because I have to save a lot to book in first class to feel the economy of the 60's.

[OSTARAEB4]

@contrerados I agree completely as I remember this type of plane and flying when I was a little boy!

[miguelmouta]

@contrerados Sorry, but what you are talking about ? Thats the world every mankind is building ...or not ?

[MrPaki1996]

this is so old but awesome!

[fordlandau]

this aeroplane is one of the fastest commercial jets ever built..over 600 knots !

[JeffGR4]

I just love this kind of stuff. Thanks a lot.

[matthiashaenni]

Ah that is cool!!!

[doubleslottedflaps]

omg that isle is WIDE ! were these equipped with an "OTTO-MATIC-PILOT" ?

[strangelove262]

Aww.. poor Convair. They had such high hopes for this plane! (no pun intended. seriously.)

[tonyde52]

@strangelove262 WHAT a WONDERFUL aircraft: really AHEAD of the times!

[Sting3733]

Wow, it really went that fast? Today's airlines don't even go that fast......

[CaptC4t]

@Sting3733 Today's aircraft are built to conserve fuel. After you get past all the high tech avionics the biggest difference between now and then is fuel efficiency.

[Sting3733]

@CaptC4t Yep, what a great time for aviation that was.

[Strahli]

damn! c-880, b-707, dc-8 these planes were all faster than nowadays airliners. technologys developing backwards

[qin286]

燃費バカ食い、操縦性悪い、煩雑な整備、騒音最悪、黒煙吐きまく­り・・・

よくもまあこんな旅客機をセールしたモンだね・・・

[jbjumpback]

Delta's Royal Jet Service - World class, second to none.

[SouthAfricanAirways1]

This was before my time, but it looks amazing!

I've flown the the 727 many times from 2003 - 2005, but this is before that, and its amazing!

[monte61]

@balboa62 You are so correct ! I flew round trip last week on Alaska Air on a 737-800 from Sacramento CA to Maui, hawaii. Small, cramped and terrible cabin service ! In 88 I flew on a NW DC-10 from SFO to Hawaii and they put us in first class on the way back(free upgrade !) ONLY wide bodie should be alound on longer flights.

[liteboy2004]

I never see

[1994DeltaAL]

I flew on a Delta CV-880 and the only comparison I could make with the acceleration on takeoff of the 880, would be to my 1966 Pontiac GTO burning rubber in 3 of 4 gears! The 880 would really set you back in the seat! One of Delta's CV-880's was purchased by Elvis Presley, named "Lisa Marie" and is permanently parked on display across from Graceland in Memphis, Tennessee.

[1994DeltaAL]

I flew on a Delta CV-880 from Idlewild (NYC) to New Orleans in 1962 and still have the ticket envelope advertising the Delta CV-880. The ad states: "Convair 880 JET - Cruises at 615 mph. All First Class. Royal Jet Service. Can operate from any airport serviced by DC-7's. Powered by GE CJ-805--3 jet engines"

Reportedly, these were the same engines that were on the military B-58 Hustler, only without the afterburners. The early Delta versions of the 880 were all First Class.

[RCAvhstape]

The golden age of air travel. High tech jets, dress standards, hot stewardesses who knew how to treat customers, no TSA goons...

[Shipocute]

@RCAvhstape Your right man! The deregulation crippled legendary airlines... that marked end of golden age of aviation. Just declined steeply... :(

[airdale001]

Flown on one by Delta from ATL to JFK,1971.A very sexy jet aircraft!!!

[LeonardRockstein]

Dumpy looking and 5 abreast ...no wonder iit got nailed by Boeing.

[gittys1982]

Good salon but where LCD TV ? )))

[CanadianMapleLeaf01]

@gittys1982 Had to be invented....

[mickbrown3621]

She was a beautiful, graceful aircraft. And I loved the hats the passengers wore back then - so camp!

[headley62]

Camp? How about the way people dress today?

Shorts, t-shirts with silly writing on them, sandals without socks. I'd call it crap.

[MerleOberon]

I'm glad I'm old enough to remember how flying use to be, no sweat suits on the passengers...

[twboi75]

I was hired by TWA in 1974 and flew on a C-880!! It was from Chicago to LA and let me tell you, working in the main cabin was noisy, there was barely enough room for two f/a's in the galley, however, it was a great a/c. I went to the 707 after our 880's were retired. Convairs were great airplanes...and yes...they were very comfy for the passengers.

[mcdonnell220]

Thanks SO MUCH for the post! I had heard that FAs didn't care for the Convairs, because of the small galleys. You got in just under the wire, as TWA retired them in '74!! :-)

[TWTR4EVER]

@twboi75 I graduated Kansas City Breech Academy in 1976, based in JFK International, I was never FAA qualified on the C-880/C-990 they were gone buy then but good all reliable the B707 & B720 were still very much in service, still in the early to mid 1980's TW#4 JFK/MIA & TW#5 MIA/JFK was operated with either a B707 or a B720 by then the backbone of the long haul flights was done with B747-100, B747-200 & L1011, still B707/B720 manage to stay in service until the mid 1980's! Good old reliable!

[mityno1]

As a kid, I remember the 880's to be the loudest and smokiest aircraft I have ever heard taking off.

The 880 got its name for its 600 mph cruise speed which translates to 880 feet per second.

Convair produced only 65 880's from 1959 to 1962.

I believe it was founder and CEO Eddie Rickenbacker at Eastern Air Lines who said he refused to buy the 880's because he would not buy a plane that had to carry water to inject into its engines. He bought the Lockheed Constellations instead.

[ampicoab]

You are absolutely correct about the smoke and noise. No commercial jet was as smokey as this one. But some of your other statements may not be as accurate. To my knowledge, the 880 did not have water injection. I always was told the "880" designation came from the red line top speed of .88 Mach, but I am not sure about this. I also believe that about 100 880's were built. Delta, Northeast, and TWA flew the 880. American flew the larger and faster Convair 990.

[mcdonnell220]

No water on the 880; just looked like it! 65 airframes built. The advertised cruise speed did translate to 880 feet per second.

[monte61]

@ampicoab THe 880 name was suggested by Howard hughes as it had a top speed of 880 feet per second. Over 600 MPH

[LottoWinner999]

@monte61 Some pilots said the Convair 880 could break the sound barrier and I believe them this was a fantstic engineered and well built airplane. If it can cruise at 665 MPH than it could break the sound barrier.

[tom211t]

@ampicoab They didnt have water injection.... thats why they chose the GE engines cos they had better power ratio and fule consumption than the P&W...

[westofthefields]

"The quietest distance between two cities." Man, they just don't write 'em like that anymore.

[TJDOZIER1]

I remember working on the old Convairs at LAX in the early 70's

Thanks for posting.