| Rick Lewis, e-mail, 07.03.2023 16:54 You may not remember me but I lived around the corner from you when you lived on east 38th terrace in Independence. In fact, I mowed your lawn the summer of 1970 just before I started high school. One day you arrived home from a flight while I was mowing. You got out of your car wearing your captain’s uniform & carrying your flight bag and suitcase. A short while later you came out the back door and wearing a pair of shorts and put a large steak on the grill. I remember thinking “what a life that must be!” I began reading everything I could put my hands on that had to do with flying. I entered college 3 years later and began flight training along with my regular studies. By graduation I had earned my private certificate & instrument rating.
Although my college major took me in a different career path I am still an active pilot. I am retired now after spending most of my career in logistics management for several major companies.
Not sure if you will even see this but thought I would share and also thank you for inspiring me to pursue my love of flying.
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| GrahamClayton, e-mail, 01.01.2023 05:33 Is it true that Howard Hughes, the controlling shareholder in TWA, wouldn't let Covair sell any 880s to airlines that competed directly with TWA?
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| Jodi Roy-Harsany, e-mail, 11.11.2022 21:12 My father, Paul Roy, was a flight engineer on those same flights for General Dynamics. I still have the brochure with the F16 on the cover. I wonder if you ever flew with him.
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| David, e-mail, 06.04.2022 02:57 1. The Con Vere 880 Was Fastest Passenger Air Inner of it Time in 01/01/1959 . top Speed of 615 M.P.H Or Mack-08079.
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| Jeffrey A Schnur, e-mail, 28.09.2021 01:35 Concerning the TWA Convair 880, what was it's range?
Did they ever use it to fly from NewYork {JFK} to Denver?
What TWA routes did it serve?
I flew on it once {JFK to Philly}
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| Jeff Jarvis, e-mail, 06.05.2016 07:57 My first ride on a jet was on a Delta Convair 880 from New Orleans to Chicago in June, 1962. We loved the DC-6/7 and the Connies, and we didn't know what to expect. At departure time we wondered when they were going to start the engines, then we felt a slight bump and realized we were moving! Only then did we notice the faint hum that sounded kind of like a Hoover vacuum cleaner. We turned onto the runway and stopped, and after a few seconds we heard a shrieking roar develop with lots of black smoke coming from under the wing, he released the brakes and we were pinned back in our seats. Real soon he rotated and we proceeded to climb at a really steep angle. I looked ay my brother and said something about our beloved prop airliners being finished! And, so they were... After an hour and 55 minutes we were at our gate in O'Hare. I rode many more times on the 880 after that, mostly on Delta, and once on TWA too, but I never got to fly it. I flew the DC-3, DC-4, DC-6, DC-8, DC-10, 707, 727, 747 and A300-600, and liked them all (except the Airbus), but that first ride on the 880 was special. BTW, the CJ805-3 does NOT use water injection. The black smoke is due to the engine design, and the CJ805-23B on the 990 was also a smoker. Burner can changes can eliminate most of that. In the early years, the JT8D also put out a lot of smoke, then the new burner cans were installed in the early '70s and the smoke mostly disappeared.
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| Bob White, e-mail, 19.03.2016 23:52 The CV-880 was a well-designed and well-built aircraft.Convair invested considerable expense and effort in design,construction and testing of the CV-880.Unfortunately,the plane was not a hit with airlines and its niche of being faster,quieter,and more comfortable than its competitors failed to create demand.Even sadder,there has been little interest in preserving the few remaining airframes of this great american airliner.
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| Eike Hahn, e-mail, 06.04.2015 17:13 Hello! Thank you for all the info about the convairs and the Lisa Marie and your sympathy for this wonderful aircraft. Could anybody say, when was the very last flight from "880 Echo Papa" and who was the pilots?
And I looking for the pilots who flew for Elvis and like to have a eMail Interview for an german Elvis clubmagazine! Please feel free to write me at eikehahn(at)web.de
Thanks again and have a great time!
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| tom usrey, e-mail, 27.02.2015 09:06 I flew the 880 as copilot and up graded on as captain in 1968. was a beautiful ac to fly was with twa 25 yrs
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| john zaeske, e-mail, 12.02.2015 22:17 My favorite airplane to fly at TWA
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| Luiz Sergio Pinto Guedes, e-mail, 12.02.2015 00:24 When the Convair-880 had its first flight, I was 10 years old, but I remember the report in the magazine Popular Mechanics, and it was a great happening. Congratulations to the General Dynamics, Convair Division 11-february-2015
Luiz Sergio Pinto Guedes
Avenida Bartolomeu de Gusmo 46 apt 911-D, Embar, 11045-400, Santos, SP, Brasil
telephones 55-13-32279281, 55-13-991737222
lspguedes@hotmail.com
Skype lspguedes@hotmail.com
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| capt CHARLES LEAK DAL, e-mail, 01.08.2014 04:39 BEST LANDING AIRCRAFT EVER-DIDN'T EVEN FEEL TOUCH-DOWNS HAIRY ON ENGINE OUT TAKE-OFF AS V1& V2 WERE ABOUT THE SAME. SEE CRASH IN ATL
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| Dan Jenkins, e-mail, 09.07.2014 21:55 I flew the 880 for Delta as an FE and FO in 1970 and 1971. My introduction to commercial aviation. I have only good memories of that wonderful machine.
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| kurnia, e-mail, 16.03.2014 04:46 how length runway for these CV 880 M ?
*help
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| jerry diez, e-mail, 08.01.2014 21:41 I owned and operated a Convair 880-22 (N55NW) hauling meat out of Miami to Venezuela. I converted the airplane from a passenger interior to a bulk freighter in 27 days at Miami International and on day 28 we were already operating our first flight between Miami and Puerto Orzaz (Ciudad Bolivar) with 55.000 lbs. of beef, strapped down with 5G nets. I leased with an option to purchase the airplane at at incredible low price and the maintenance reserves were also very low, so with jet fuel in Miami at $0.34 a Gallon (1977) and much lower in Venezuela, the operation was profitable even returning empty. I was a young 707 piloto then but never flew the 880 as captain, however I flew right seat from the beggining, a real hot airplane. Our 880 was the first four-engine jet to land in Puerto Ordaz and Barquisimeto, Venezuela and it was fun coming into those runways. Our heavy take-offs were from MIA and we rolled 10,200 feet (accelerate-stop_ out of the 10.500 foot Runway 09L. A remarkable airplane, strong, low maintenance, although a handful to fly. It was the first jet I owned, so N55NW holds a special place in my heart. It ended down in Maiquetia, Venezuela and I saw often when I lived and flew out of there a few years ago.
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| Daniel Sproat, e-mail, 30.09.2013 05:00 My father was part of of the Propulsion Group on the 880 project. Bernie Simons, chief project engineer, was a good friend.the engines ran a little rich- so they were smokey. They did not use water injection like the first DC-8s and 707s. They didn't need extra power to get up.
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| BJ Smith, e-mail, 13.02.2012 04:52 I flew the CV880 as a stew for Delta in HOU from 5/65 for 2 years (with a brief stint in ATL on the 8). DL didn't rename stews as f/a's until 1974. At the time I flew DL, all the ship numbers were in the 900s -- Elvis' plane would have been ship 904, and definitely NOT 804, because by that time, DL had DC-8s, and THOSE were numbered in the 800s.
The CV880 was an AWESOME bird! One experience I remember vivdly was approching JFK -- we were very close to touchdown, when, all of a sudden we shot up at a VERY sharp angle -- the plane before us had not cleared the runway.
As I remember it, the CV880 was the pilot's dream! And for me -- so beautiful a bird, and so awesome to work.
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| BJ Smith, e-mail, 13.02.2012 04:43 I flew the CV880 as a stew for Delta in HOU from 5/65 for 2 years (with a brief stint in ATL on the 8). DL didn't rename stews as f/a's until 1974. At the time I flew DL, all the ship numbers were in the 900s -- Elvis' plane would have been ship 904, and definitely NOT 804, because by that time, DL had DC-8s, and THOSE were numbered in the 800s.
The CV880 was an AWESOME bird! One experience I remember vivdly was approching JFK -- we were very close to touchdown, when, all of a sudden we shot up at a VERY sharp angle -- the plane before us had not cleared the runway.
As I remember it, the CV880 was the pilot's dream! And for me -- so beautiful a bird, and so awesome to work.
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| john e wallace, e-mail, 27.11.2011 13:36 The 880 had the same engines as the B-58 Hustler. Like all other early jet airliners it was designed when fuel was $.25 was a lb. The bean counters would go nuts today. Black smoke was from water injection. Not the ideal aircraft for noise abatement either.
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| David Ellis, e-mail, 13.11.2011 19:41 I was fortunate enough to fly as an S/O instructor and later as a F/O on Delta's CV-880s. Probably the most responsive engine response (variable stators) and attitude stable aircraft on final approach thet I ever flew; 3000 pph per engine in cruise and final approach was a good staring point.
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| Don Kaufman, 07.10.2011 17:43 Worked for Northeast at IDL, LGA and MIA... Started with them on the DC 3's, then DC 6B, then Viscount finishing on the 880's... Fond memories, golden years,we had Captians, Co-Pilots, Flight Engineers and Stews..We looked forward to going to work... the Golden Years.. dgk
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| ron strauss, e-mail, 12.05.2011 03:51 My correct email rstrauss@cfl.rr.com
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| Ron Strauss, e-mail, 12.05.2011 03:49 I flew the CV880 880M 990 all were great planes.Also flew the Lisa Maria for Elvis 1975 77.Iam giving talks on flying Elvis for free. 386 453 6575
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| Bryce McDonald, e-mail, 25.04.2011 04:27 In 1980/81 I was working for Cav-Air FBO at Ft. Lauderdale executive airport. I helped with the ground handling of an aircraft I remember to be the Lisa Marie. If anyone has any info that could confirm the aircraft being there at that time I would very much like to hear from you. I fueled the aircraft and operated the start cart. I remember the smoke when she started and the trail she left on takeoff.
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| Greg S, e-mail, 02.04.2011 20:27 As a young boy growing up in Cleveland, I remember watching 880's takeoff from Hopkins airport in the 1960's and early '70s. One takeoff sticks vividly in my mind. A Northeast Airlines 880 departed and layed down a smokescreen that blew my father and me away. After the aircraft had turned and was departing the area, the black smoke came boiling across Brookpark Road, on the boundary of Hopkins airport, where cars would line up to watch the big jets takeoff and land. It was amazing. The things they fly today are too sterile. Give me the smoke and noise of those early jets. Those were real airplanes!
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| Ray Jensen, e-mail, 12.03.2011 06:33 I worked at DL operations ord 1959-1992 worked all the ground handeling jobs on the 880, including loadplanner
later became a crew scheduler and scheduled the ord base
880 pilots. I think this was the sharpest looking aircraft in the DL fleet
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| Richard Hinkley, e-mail, 22.02.2011 03:36 I flew engineer and copilot for 3 0r 4 years on the 880 for Delta. You could tell it was around by the black exhaust smoke on takeoff. Only bad flying characteristic was Dutch roll. After a while it never happened to you. A little cross control eliminated it. Or you could turn on the yaw damper after takeoff, but not during. You could drop it out of the sky with main landing gear speedbrake and spoilers but it was easy to catch the cabin and have to slow the descent rate. Some controllers didn't realize you were going to be doing about 160 knots on approach and would get you to close to the guy ahead of you. No slats. Had instant power with single spool engines.
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| Gary Walter, e-mail, 14.02.2011 01:59 Elvis Presley's CV-880 was ship 804 which was purchased from Delta Airlines... It presently sits across the street from Graceland in Memphis Tn. at the E.P. museum. I was with Delta from 1962-1995 and flew on this plane out of ORD and also out of DTW between 1962-and 1968.
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| Ken, e-mail, 11.02.2011 17:56 Worked operations for DL 1969-2001. If you could put it in the cargo bins, this acft would get it off the ground. Best airliner I ever flew in. Thanks for the memories
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| John zeigler, e-mail, 11.02.2011 01:12 Worked for DL 1963-2001. Great plane agree with what you all said above .
I was even hijacked when traveling as a non rev
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| Jim Davenport, e-mail, 05.02.2011 02:43 I flew the 22M model...had been a testbed for FAA until they gave it to the navy. It was converted into a tanker for the F-18 test and development program and later used for other tests out of Patuxent NAS, MD. I was a contract pilot for Flight Systems, Inc. at the time. Enjoyed the airplane.
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| James, e-mail, 31.01.2011 08:06 Does ELVIS have thee last remaning non derelict cv880 on earth? thank you EPE for keeping up a legend two to be exact!
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| Freedom Fighter, e-mail, 12.01.2011 23:07 Elvis' own pet bird. You can still find this beauty in Graceland.
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| richard f. green, e-mail, 11.01.2011 00:09 I flew the CV-880 with T.W.A. during my 33 year career; best handling of the eleven types I experienced; very sensitive and was a dream to fly; no leading-edge devices resulted in very high approach speeds but marvelous landings; best commercial aircraft in my estimation.
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| Anton Castrillo, e-mail, 26.12.2010 19:59 I flew the CV-880-22 as Captain with LANICA (Nicaraguan ailines) from July 1971 to to the end of 1977. I logged 4800 hours. Simple put: the best jet I have ever flown. I was trained by TWA in Kansas City, MO. It felt like a fighter plane. Good memories!
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| TOBY CANLAS, e-mail, 16.12.2010 01:46 Convair 880 Civil Air Transport , 1963 . The best aircaraft I ever flew in the Far East. Sleek and Fast.
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| Brian Rose, e-mail, 12.12.2010 04:55 I was an air traffic controller at LAX 1971-1973. TWA flew some CV880's. To the controllers they were called "water wagons" due to the water injection used on takeoff, thus creating a teriffic smoke trail from each engine.
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| Janet Walmsley, e-mail, 15.11.2010 01:34 ah, the convair 880.....as a reserve f/a out of ny, i was assigned to cover a flight out of ord and lucky enough to fly this beauty.....what a great aircraft......"thanks for the memories"
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| David Oakes, e-mail, 08.10.2010 09:19 Fine Aircraft. Had the pleasure to work on the assembly line in San Diego. My job was to crawl up inside the wing section and tack rag the whole inside which was used as the fuel cell. Interesting design
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| M. Mangan, e-mail, 29.09.2010 22:36 I flew the CV-880 back in 1959 for Northeast Airlines. I was on it for two years as a cleck airman and line pilot. We introduced Jet travel to the East Coast-Florida market.M.
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| Ed Brent, e-mail, 08.09.2010 15:20 My father flew the Convair 880 in the mid 1960's. He loved it in every way. He said on a go around with the wheels up when you added full power the jet would throw
the crew back in their seats like a fighter jet. The aircraft responded to the slightest touch much like a sports car would. Glad to see this site promoting the Convair 880. Remember Elvis had one also.
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| Ed Woerle, e-mail, 11.08.2010 20:38 Anyone touring Graceland in Memphis can see/tour Elvis' 880, N880EP "Lisa Marie". It is said that this is the only aircraft The King felt safe in. Notice that the paint scheme is basically the original Delta fuselage stripe with the "TCB" emblem on the tail.
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| Mickey Small, e-mail, 10.08.2010 05:10 My father Jess Small was a career Delta Pilot and flew the
880.
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| christopher s. moran, e-mail, 22.03.2010 03:02 I FIRST FLEW ON A CONVAIR 880 IN 1962 FROM JFK(IDLEWILD) TO NEW ORLEANS. I WOULD LOVE TO GET MY HANDS ON ANY MEMROBILIA(I HOPE I SPELLED IT RIGHT), THAT MIGHT BE AVAILABLE.
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| Earl Ballard, e-mail, 14.03.2010 14:00 Flew the 880 for Delta for 5 years. Fun to fly and my favorite airliner.
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| jetompkins, e-mail, 05.03.2010 03:22 I flew a cv880m in corporate configuration for General Dynamics in Fort Worth, Texas, from 1978 to 1982 out of Carswell AFB, Texas. We flew back and forth to Brussels Belgium every weekend for 4 years in support of the NATO F16 program. Great airplane. We cruised at .78M and could get 8 hours out of the airplane. Stopped at Gander eastbound and Bangor westbound. Last trip was in l982.
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| Hank Longerman, e-mail, 31.01.2010 20:17 As you can see by my E-mail I am an 880 fan. I loved that airplane. Everytime TWA had an aircraft sub because the 707 from LAX was down the Convair arrived at least a half hour early. Banging on that door for the flt attendant to open it was like hitting solid steel. I had read that TW8815 was saved from the cutting torch in Victorville and was to be preserved then I never any more about it. I hope that some group did follow through.
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| Jim Dodds, e-mail, 29.01.2010 05:22 The nices one flying was Civil Air Transport.(CAT)
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| Marcelo Adrin Alejandro, e-mail, 20.02.2009 00:03 do yuo know if any conviar 880 or 990 are remain in comercial or anther services ?
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| Gerson Chavarria, e-mail, 03.12.2008 18:16 Thanks for the 3 view draw.
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| L Taylor, e-mail, 10.09.2008 16:07 Hi. I was wondering if you could direct me to a source where I can find a copy of a flight checklist for this aircraft. Thanks
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| IPLAYLOUD, e-mail, 22.06.2008 18:47 Growing up under the incoming path to JFK, you could always tell an 880/990 in the distance....the smoke trails from all 4 engines was a give-away.
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| CW Mitchell, e-mail, 27.05.2008 00:03 It was a very fun aircraft to fly on. TWA had some and I enjoyed the ride as they would take off steep and fast. I was in KC when we lost one in the corn field during a transition flight.
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| Ed Moore, e-mail, 10.03.2008 19:09 My grandfather, Edward L. Moore, is supposed to have been on the design team at Convair for this aircraft. Seeking to find documentation of that or suggestions to find? Have been to the San Diego Aerospace museum but didn't have enough time to do indepth search.
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