Thread: The First Air Force One

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and how it got its name
http://m.youtube.com/watch?feature=share&v=ehwvZXVKmPU

Cool deal! I heard Uncle Bob was the Crew Chief on that one!!!!

Originally Posted by Dave Severson

Cool deal! I heard Uncle Bob was the Crew Chief on that one!!!!

He was too old already, didn't make the cut....

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I flew on a Super G once, I guess that dates me.

Thanks for the link Charlie. I didn't know that. The collision they speak about must not have been terribly bad? The plane seems pretty intact for a mid air collision?

Originally Posted by 40FordDeluxe

Thanks for the link Charlie. I didn't know that. The collision they speak about must not have been terribly bad? The plane seems pretty intact for a mid air collision?

Listen to the first part of the recording again, Ryan. It was "....a near mid-air collision...." and they didn't mention how close the two planes were to each other. A very interesting story, to say the least.

Thanks Charlie, I knew the first AF One was a Connie, but had no idea it was still around in any form.
I actually do have quite a few hours logged riding in Connies, though not this one. All of the ones we used were turned into beer cans long ago.

Originally Posted by cffisher

and how it got its name
http://m.youtube.com/watch?feature=share&v=ehwvZXVKmPU

I took a guided tour of the Reagan Library last week and the tour guide told this story. The whole museum/library is quite impressive!

TWA was headquartered in KC, and their central maintenance facility was out adjacent to the airport in the northland. There's a large, active group of former TWA people in the area, and they've been instrumental in the National Airline History Museum which is down at the old airport by the river in the down town area, and in finding and restoring a Constellation which is once again airworthy. I've only seen it flying over the area once, but it's still a beautiful sight in flight.
One of the stories that used to go around, back in earlier times, was that the pilot of a Connie was always under 50 years old, because it was too much tail for an old man..... Uncle Bob may be able to confirm or deny the historical accuracy of that tale

Originally Posted by rspears

One of the stories that used to go around, back in earlier times, was that the pilot of a Connie was always under 50 years old, because it was too much tail for an old man..... Uncle Bob may be able to confirm or deny the historical accuracy of that tale

Sounds like yet another fallacy promulgated by a certain political entity who shall remain nameless.................no such thing as "too much tail"....

downtown airport by the river---didn't twa or continental put one in the water there???

Originally Posted by jerry clayton

downtown airport by the river---didn't twa or continental put one in the water there???

Jerry, back in the day they said that the Kansas City's Municipal Airport was one of the most hated airports by pilots in the continental US because the main approach from the NNE comes in over a hill with the end of the runway near the bottom of a bluff, and the SSW end is very close to the Missouri River. It's location is in a spot where the river makes a near 160 degree bend, so there's water on both sides, too, and as they extended the runways over the years going closer to the river was the only option. Landing from the south passengers got instructions on water landings, just like on the coasts. Pilots hated it because from the north they had to skirt low over the hill top and then drop down quickly to use the whole runway, and from the south they came in low over the river and had to skirt the dikes surrounding the entire south end, and again drop down to make use of the whole runway. Takeoffs were not liked either, as they needed to get airborne quickly and gain altitude to clear the bluffs or the dike. I think that a TWA Connie came in during a heavy rain in '65, hydroplaned on the runway and broke into three pieces as it slid over the dike to the river, but amazingly all passengers survived. They no longer allow the bigger planes to use the old Muni airport. Lots of the bigger planes, including presidential & VP flights, use New Century, the old US Navy Air Station near Olathe/Gardner.

checked my airline history sources---July 1, 1965 , Continental 12 from Lax

This all reminds me how old I am. My first airline flight was on a DC-3 from Peoria, IL to the NORAD facility in Madison, WI while I was in AFROTC. The second was on a Martin 404 when I flew from Peoria, IL to a job interview in Omaha, NE.

Oh Wow...

I was a Crew Chief on the last of the EC121's. Stationed in Keflavic Iceland on the NATO Base which is now the International airport. We sent the last one to the bone yard at Davis Monthan Air Force Base in 1979. I remember we spent a ton of time making our baby beautiful for its retirement . This one was special because it had the tail number 121. It was a pretty crappy day and the 121 was ready to take off on its final flight to the museum. It taxied out lined up on the runway and started rolling hard. Just before rotation the nose gear snapped right in half. Ground to stop where she burned to the ground. We dug a big hole and put all the tools for the squadron in it and pushed the plane in behind it with a dozer. Back then we were the Aerospace Defense Command and shut down the squadron to usher in the new AWACS Squadron.

Boy it seems like a different lifetime ago... Thanks for posting that up. http://fas.org/man/dod-101/sys/ac/ec-121.htm
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