Convair CV-240 family

{| |} The Convair CV-240 was an American airliner produced by Convair from 1947 to 1954, initially as a possible replacement of the ubiquitous Douglas DC-3. While featuring a more modern design, the 240 series was able to make some inroads as a commercial airliner and also had a long development cycle which resulted in a number of civil and military variants. Although reduced in numbers through attrition, the "Convairliners" in various forms continue to fly into the 21st century.

Design and development

The design began life in a production requirement by American Airlines for a pressurized airliner to replace the classic Douglas DC-3. Convair's original design, the unpressurised Model 110 had two engines and space for 30 passenger seats. It first flew on July 8, 1946. American deemed the design to be too small and the aircraft NX90653 was therefore used by Convair for development work for the 240 series before being broken up in 1947.

Convair's revised design "Super 240," the pressurised and stretched Model 240 was developed to accommodate 40 passengers. As the "Super 240" morphed into the CV-340, and CV-440, the limit to piston-engine performance was reached and the next developments centered on conversion to jet turbine power that resulted in a longer life cycle for the type.

Operational history

The first 240 flew on March 16, 1947, and production aircraft were first delivered to American on 29 February 1948. 75 were delivered to American, with another 50 going to Western Airlines, Continental Airlines, Pan American Airways, KLM, Swissair and Trans Australia Airlines.

A CV-240 was the first private aircraft used in a United States presidential campaign. In 1960, John F. Kennedy used a CV-240 named Caroline (after his daughter) during his campaign. This aircraft is now preserved in the National Air and Space Museum.

After the aborted negotiations with TWA and Eastern for "Super 240" orders, the production of the 240 series was temporarily halted. In response to a United inquiry, however, Convair redesigned the Super 240, calling it the CV-340. United ordered 55, and more US orders came from Braniff, Continental, Delta, Northeast and National. Other orders came from abroad, and the CV-340 proved popular in South America. The CV-340 earned an enviable reputation for reliability and profitability, and was developed into the CV-440 Metropolitan, the final piston-engined variant of the "Convairliners."

Kelowna Flightcraft Ltd. currently holds the type certificate for this aircraft.

Variants

Civil variants

landing at Manchester (Ringway) Airport in 1954]] at Copenhagen (Kastrup) Airport in 1968]] . This example was converted from a CV-340]] converted with Rolls-Royce Dart turboprop engines]]

Model 110: Unpressurized prototype with seats for 30 passengers.

CV-240: Initial production version. Powered by two Pratt & Whitney R-2800 engines.

CV-240-21 Turboliner: turboprop-powered conversion fitted with Allison T38 engines. It became the first turboprop airliner to fly in the United States (on December 29, 1950), but problems with the engines resulted in development being terminated and the prototype being converted back to piston power.

CV-340: built for United Airlines and other operators including KLM, was basically a CV-240 lengthened to hold an additional four seats. The wing span was also extended for better performance at higher altitudes. The CV-340 replaced the DC-3 in United service. The airline flew 52 340s for 16 years without a fatality. KLM operated the type from spring 1953 until mid 1963. Many CV-340 aircraft were converted to CV-440 standard. CV-440 Metropolitan: CV-340 with improved soundproofing and an option of weather radar. Maximum weight rose to 49,700 lbs. An optional increase from 44 to 52 passengers was facilitated by the replacement of the carry-on luggage area with two more rows of seats, marked by the addition of an extra cabin window. This option was taken up by several airlines including Lufthansa and SAS. Convair CV-580: conversion from Convair CV-340 or CV-440 aircraft with two Allison 501 D13D/H turboprop engines in place of the piston engines, an enlarged vertical fin and modified horizontal stabilisers. The conversions were performed by Pacific Airmotive on behalf of the Allison Engine Company. Convair CV-640: conversion from a Convair CV-340 or -440 with Rolls-Royce Dart turboprop engines in place of the piston engines. The conversions were performed by Convair.)) Environmental Research Institute of Michigan (ERIM), later Veridian and then General Dynamics Advanced Information Systems (CV-580s N51211 and N51255) Honeywell International, Everett Washington (CV-580 N580AS) National Research Council (Canada) (CV-580 C-FNRC) Raytheon, Tucson Arizona (CV-580 N580HH) University of Washington, (CV-580 N3UW)

Military operators

;

Royal Australian Air Force - Two CV-440 Metropolitans (RAAF serial A95-313 and 353) were in service with RAAF from 1956 to 1968.

* No. 34 Squadron RAAF

; : CV-440 & CV-580 ;

Royal Canadian Air Force/Canadian Armed Forces (Canada) CV-540s were re engined with T56 turbo props with 412 Squadron

; : CV-580 ; : CV-440 ;

Aeronautica Militare Italiana CV-440 Metropolitans

; :

Paraguayan Air Force: CV-440/C-131D

;

Sri Lanka Air Force - CV-440

Other operators

; Federal Aviation Administration

Accidents and incidents

January 22, 1952: American Airlines Flight 6780 crashed in downtown Elizabeth, New Jersey in the first fatal accident after a record 840,000 safe flying hours.

September 16, 1953: American Airlines Flight 723 struck radio towers and crashed near Albany, New York. All 28 on board were killed.

June 19, 1954: A Swissair Convair CV-240 crashed due to fuel starvation in the English Channel near Folkestone.

March 20, 1955: American Airlines Flight 711, a Convair CV-240, struck the ground during final approach in Springfield, Missouri. Of the 35 people aboard, there were 22 survivors.

July 17, 1955: Braniff International Airways flight 560, a Convair 340 (N3422), struck a gas station sign while on final approach to Chicago Midway Airport. The aircraft then crashed through the airport boundary fence and came to rest upside down. A total of 22 of the 43 people on board died.

June 16, 1958: Cruzeiro do Sul, a Convair 440-59 registration PP-CEP flying from Florianópolis to Curitiba-Afonso Pena was on final approach procedures to land at Curitiba when it was caught in downdrafts. The aircraft descended and struck the ground. Of the 26 passengers and crew aboard, 21 died. June 24, 1960: A Convair CV-340 operated by Real Transportes Aéreos crashed into Guanabara Bay. All five crew and 49 passengers were killed. The cause was undetermined.

December 17, 1960: A USAF C-131 Samaritan crashed due to fuel contamination shortly after take-off from Munich-Riem Airport downtown Munich, Germany killing all 20 on board as well as 32 on the ground in an accident known as the 1960 Munich Convair 340 crash.

22 December 1962: a Varig Convair CV-240-2 registration PP-VCQ, flying from Rio de Janeiro to Brasília via Belo Horizonte-Pampulha descended below the prescribed altitude while on final approach to Brasília, struck trees, skidded and fell to one side. One crew member died.

November 20, 1964: Flight 267V, a Convair CV-340 (SE-CCK), operated by Linjeflyg, crashed during an approach at Ängelholm. In instrument conditions, the crew abandoned the set procedure and began the landing too soon. The reason for this must have been that the crew allowed themselves to be misled by an arrangement of lights peculiar to the airfield with which, apart from certain information received during the approach, they were not acquainted. A total of 31 people were killed.

28 January 1966: Lufthansa Flight 005 crashed on landing after an approach in low visibility to Bremen, Germany. All 46 passengers and crew on board lost their lives.

March 5, 1967: A Lake Central Airlines CV-580 crashed near Marsailles, Ohio when a runaway prop disintegrated. All 38 on board were killed.

December 24, 1968: A total of 20 were killed when Allegheny Airlines flight 736 crashed near Bradford, Pennsylvania.

January 6, 1969: Allegheny Airlines Flight 737 crashed near Bradford, Pennsylvania, killing 11.

January 25, 1970: A CV-240 from the Mexican Government carrying journalists crashed into into a hill, killing all but one of the 20 people on board.

September 27, 1973: Texas International Airlines Flight 655, a Convair CV-600, crashed near Mena, Arkansas, killing 11 persons.

March 13, 1974: A film crew for Wolper Productions filming a National Geographic history of Australopithecus at Mammoth Mountain Ski Area was killed when the Sierra Pacific Airlines CV-440 exploded on take off from Eastern Sierra Regional Airport in Bishop, California killing 35 on board including 31 Wolper crew members, although not Wolper himself. The filmed segment was recovered in the wreckage and was broadcast in the television show Primal Man. The National Transport Safety Board (US) has never been able to determine the cause of the crash.

October 27, 1975: A CV-440 operated by Transporte Aéreo Militar crashed into the Cerro Colorado volcano during takeoff, killing all four crew and 63 passengers on board. The aircraft was carrying military officers and their families.

October 20, 1977: Six persons were killed, including three members of the southern rock band Lynyrd Skynyrd when the Convair CV-240 they were aboard, crashed near a forest in Gillsburg, Mississippi. The probable cause of the crash was fuel exhaustion and total loss of power from both engines. The pilot, co-pilot and the band's assistant road manager were among the dead. Some 20 other passengers survived, some with terrible injuries.

January 9, 1983: Republic Airlines flight 927 landed at Brainerd, Minnesota, right wing down, veered to the right until the right propeller struck a two to three ft snow bank. The blade separated from the engine and penetrated the cabin, killing one passenger.

September 8, 1989: Partnair Flight 394 Convair 580 LN-PAA crashed into the sea near Hirtshals, Denmark after the tailfin suffered severe vibration due to it being attached to the fuselage with fraudulent bolts; the vibration caused a rudder hard-over. All 55 occupants were killed.

October 3, 2003: A Convair 580 freighter, ZK-KFU, after severe icing caused the aircraft to stall and enter a spiral dive, crashed into the sea near Paraparaumu, New Zealand. The aircraft subsequently suffered an in-flight breakup. Both pilots were killed.

August 13, 2004: An Air Tahoma Convair 580 freighter (N586P) crashed during approach to landing at Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport, Covington, Kentucky, killing the first officer. The cause of the crash was fuel starvation as a result of improper fuel cross-feed application. September 1, 2008: An Air Tahoma Convair 580 freighter, N587X, conducting its first flight following a maintenance "C" Check, immediately after departure from Columbus's Rickenbacker International Airport, crashed in Pickaway County, Ohio. The crew had declared an in flight emergency and was attempting to return to the departure airport. Reports indicate the flight was also being used as a training flight for the first officer. All three occupants, the captain, first officer and a company pilot observer, were killed in the crash or post-crash fire. A recently released NTSB report blames elevator trim cables reversed during maintenance as the cause of the crash.

July 31, 2010: A Conair Convair 580 (C-FKFY Tanker 48) crashed while fighting a forest fire. The crash was in the Jackass Mountain region in southwestern British Columbia, Canada.

Specifications (CV-240)

See also

References

;Notes ;Bibliography

Frawley, Gerald. "Convair CV-540, 580, 600, 640 & CV5800", The International Directory of Civil Aircraft 1997/98. Fyshwick ACT: Aerospace Publications, 1997. ISBN 1-875671-26-9.

Gradidge, Jennifer. The Convairliners Story. Tonbridge, Kent, UK: Air-Britain (Historians) Ltd, 1997, ISBN 0-85130-2343-2.

Wegg, John. General Dynamics Aircraft and their Predecessors. London: Putnam, 1990. ISBN 0-85177-833-X.

External links

Convair CV-240, National Air and Space Museum

C-131 Samaritan factsheet, National Museum of the United States Air Force

C-131D Samaritan, March Field Air Museum

C-131 Samaritan

C-131 Samaritan, The Aviation Zone

Gunships, The Aviation Zone

BBC News Article about Convair CV-440

Aero News Network Article about Convair CV-440

CV-240 Category:United States airliners 1940-1949