Convair 880

Design and development

Convair began development of a medium-range commercial jet in April 1956, to compete with announced products from Boeing and Douglas. Initially the design was called the Skylark but the name was later changed to the Golden Arrow, then Convair 600 and then finally the 880, both numbers referring to its top speed of 600 mph (970 km/h) or 880 ft/s (268 m/s). It was powered by General Electric CJ-805-3 turbojets, a civilian version of the J79 which powered the Lockheed F-104 Starfighter, McDonnell Douglas F-4 Phantom and Convair B-58 Hustler.

The first example of the initial production version, the Model 22, made its maiden flight on January 27, 1959. There was no prototype. After production started the FAA mandated additional instrumentation, which Convair added by placing a "raceway" hump on the top of the fuselage, rather than ripping apart the interiors over the wing area. The final assembly of the 880 and 990 took place at the Convair facilities in San Diego, California.

The airliner never became widely used and the production line shut down after only three years. The 880's five-abreast seating made it unattractive to airlines, while Boeing was able to out-compete it with the Boeing 720, which could be sold much more cheaply as it was a minimal modification of the existing 707. In addition, the General Electric engines had a higher specific fuel consumption than the Boeing's Pratt & Whitney JT3Cs.

General Dynamics lost around $185 million over the lifetime of the project, although some sources estimate much higher losses. It is generally agreed that the losses incurred in the Convair 880/990 were the largest losses incurred by a corporation up to that time. The aircraft were involved in 17 accidents and five hijackings.

A modified version of the basic 880 was the "-M" version which incorporated four leading edge slats per wing, Krueger leading edge flaps between the fuselage and inboard engines, power-boosted rudder, added engine thrust, increased fuel capacity, stronger landing gear, greater adjustment to seating pitch and a simpler over-head compartment arrangement.

A more major modification to the 880 became the Convair 990, produced in parallel with the 880-M between 1961 and 1963. Swissair named theirs Coronado, after an island off the San Diego coast and where the first 990 landed, despite Convair's flying boat with that name.

Operational history

The design entered service with Delta Air Lines in May 1960, slightly modified as the 880-22m, having newer version 805-3B engines. 880s were flown by Cathay Pacific, Delta, Japan, Northeast, Swissair, TWA and VIASA.

As they left commercial service, many 880s were bought by American Jet Industries for various uses. One example was converted to freighter use in 1974, and flew until 1982 with various companies. Another was used to train FAA flight examiners until it was destroyed by a minor explosion in the cargo hold in 1995. Most of the remaining examples were scrapped by 2000.

The United States Navy acquired one 880-M in 1980 modifying it as an in-flight tanker. It had been purchased new from Convair by the FAA, and used for eighteen years. Unofficially designated UC-880, it was assigned to the Naval Air Test Center at NAS Patuxent River, Maryland and employed in Tomahawk Cruise Missile testing and aircraft refueling procedures. Convair designed and manufactured the Tomahawk and Advanced Tomahawk Cruise Missile in San Diego where the 880 and 990 were produced. The sole UC-880 was damaged in a cargo hold explosive decompression test at NAS Patuxent River, Maryland in 1995. The aircraft managed to remain theoretically controllable via backup systems unique to the 880 & 990.

Civil operators

Air Viking (leased)

Airtrust Singapore (leased)

Alaska Airlines

American Jet Industries

Cathay Pacific ♠

Civil Air Transport ♠

Delta Air Lines ♠

Elvis Presley Enterprises

Fair Air

Federal Aviation Authority ♠

Four Winds Inc

Freelandia Travel Club

Hughes Tool Company ♠

Inair Panama (leased)

Indy Air

Japan Air Lines ♠

Japan Domestic Airlines

LANICA

LatinCarga

Monarch Aviation (leased)

Northeast

Orient Pacific Airways

SERCA Costa Rica

Trans World Airlines ♠

Swissair ♠

VIASA ♠

(♠ = original operators)

Military operators

 United States

United States Navy - one Convair UC-880 testbed/air refuelling tanker.

Accidents and incidents

On May 23, 1960, a Delta Air Lines Convair 880, N8804E, crashed on takeoff at Atlanta Municipal Airport (now Atlanta Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport) resulting in the loss of all four crew members. This flight was to be a training sortie for two Delta captains who were being type-rated on the 880. At rotation the aircraft pitched nose up, rolled left and then back more steeply to the right at which time it struck the ground, broke apart and was consumed by a post-crash fire.

On November 20, 1967, TWA Flight 128 crashed on approach to Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport. Seventy people were killed and twelve survived.

On March 19, 1969, a man tried to hijack a CV-880 from Dallas to Cuba but ended up in New Orleans. Charges were dismissed due to insanity.

On June 15, 1972, a bomb exploded on board Cathay Pacific Flight 700Z killing 81 passengers and crew.

On December 20, 1972, North Central Airlines Flight 575, a McDonnell Douglas DC-9-31, collided during its takeoff roll with Delta Air Lines Flight 954, Convair 880 N8807E, as the Convair 880 taxied across the runway at O'Hare International Airport in Chicago, Illinois. Only two people on the Convair 880 were injured, and 10 people died and 15 were injured on board the DC-9.

Survivors

1 – Cockpit on display at the Delta Flight Museum in Atlanta, Georgia.

3 – Forward fuselage in storage at the Aviation Hall of Fame and Museum of New Jersey in Teterboro, New Jersey.

23 – Forward fuselage in storage with Scroggins Aviation in Mojave, California. This airframe was cut up for scrap in April 2007, with the forward fuselage being saved for use in a museum.

35 – In storage with Scroggins Aviation in Mojave, California.

38 Lisa Marie – On display at Graceland in Memphis, Tennessee. This airframe was used by Elvis Presley and is named after his daughter. It is the only properly preserved airframe. It was formerly in commercial service with Delta. In January 2015 it was put up for sale and eventually bought back by Elvis Presley Enterprises. The aircraft is part of the Presley Museum collection.

58 – Converted into lodge in East London, South Africa. This airframe was converted into a business jet in the 1970s (registration N88CH). It was purchased by the Ciskei government in 1987 intended for use by president Lennox Sebe, but remained at Bhisho Airport for several years due to a lack of funds to make it airworthy. In 1992 it was bought by Billy Nel (now Eastern Cape Provincial Finance MEC), who had it transported to his private residence north of East London, South Africa. The 1970s VIP interior with couches, beds and a bar remain intact and it is used for private functions. One of the engines was donated to the Stutterheim Engine Museum.

Specifications (880 Model 22 & 22-M)

Data from Jane's All The World's Aircraft 1965-66

General characteristics

Crew: 3

Capacity: 110 passengers

Payload: 24,000 lb (10,900 kg)

Length: 129 ft 4 in (39.42 m)

Wingspan: 120 ft 0 in (36.58 m)

Height: 36 ft 3¾ in (11.00 m)

Wing area: 2,000 sq ft (185.8 m²)

Aspect ratio: 7.2

Empty weight: 94,000 lb (42,730 kg)

Max. takeoff weight: 193,000 lb (203,400 lb [880-M]) (87,730 kg)

Powerplant: 4 × General Electric CJ-805-3B turbojet, 11,650 lbf (51.95 kN) each

Performance

Cruise speed: 610 mph (max. mach: .89 [approx. 615 MPH]) (535 knots, 990 km/h) (max cruise at 22,500 ft (6,860 m)

Stall speed: 111 mph (97 knots, 179 km/h)

Range: 3,385 mi (3,750 880-M) (2,943 nmi, 4,430 km)

Service ceiling: 41,000 ft (12,500 m) (max cruise altitude)