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Today this Lockheed F-104 "Starfighter" is the guard plane to the industrial park at Lahr airport. Beside the Canadian Markings it's in fact the German 24+38 F-104G. Lahr was from 1945 on a French Air Force base and was taken over by the Canadians in 1966. The military base was closed in 1994 and converted to civilian use. (Picture courtesy Andreas Herzog) |
Since 2009 the Lockheed C-212C (L-1049F) Super Constellation, HB-RSC was undergoing a major overhaul at the Black Forrest airport at Lahr, Germany. Corrosion in there wing structure and problems with the engines kept the plane for almost 18 months grounded. Many volunteers and hard working hours where necessary to bring the Connie back in the air.
Finally last Saturday 30th April 2011at 1:30pm the long waiting moment came true; The roll-out and engine start-up of the rebirth of the “Super Constellation”. The Inauguration ceremony was attended by hundreds of enthusiasts, as well as press members and officials.
It was a great moment for all of use, considering there are only three flyable “Super Constellations” worldwide and “our” Connie is the only one in the northern hemisphere!
We are delighted to see the STAR of SWITZERLAND flying again and would like to say thank you to all involved people and to all the sponsors, namely BREITLING, SR-TECHNIC and TOTAL.
“THE QUEEN OF SKYS” is back.
Constellation
Roll-out of the famous Lockheed L-1049 “Super Constellation”, owned by the Super Constellation Flyers Association and there main sponsor BREITLING, from hangar # 2 at Black Forrest Airport, Lahr Germany, after an 18 month overhaul of the aircraft. (Picture courtesy Guido E. Bühlmann and Andreas Herzog)
One remarkable moment of the inauguration ceremony celebrated by the famous Swiss Ski jumper Simon Amman and attended by officials, press members and spectators. (Picture courtesy Guido E. Bühlmann and Andreas Herzog)
History of the HB-RSC
The aircraft (c/n 4175) was build at the Lockhheed Corp. plant, Burbank-USA in 1955, and handed over to the Military Air Transport Service (MATS) by 1st November 1956. 1962 the aircraft switched over to the 183th Air Transport Squadron of the Mississippi Air National Guard (ANG). A few years later the aircraft went to the 167th Aeromedical Transport Squadron of the West Virginia ANG.
1972 the plane was withdrawn from service and stored at the Davis-Monthan Air Force Base, Arizona. Later on in the 1970s the aircraft became a new civil registration (N73544) and was used as an agriculture spraying aircraft. But the plane was very badly looked after and was in an almost non-flyable condition!
That moment we aviation enthusiasts where waiting for! Engine start-up that brings life back again to the “Grand old Lady” The sound of these engines feels like music to our ears. (Picture courtesy Guido E. Bühlmann and Andreas Herzog)
In 1983, Mr. Daryoush “Benny” Younesi and his partner buy the aircraft for their company “Winky’s Fish Corp. They intend to transport tuna fish’s from the Philippines to Japan. At that time the company had two Super Constellation’s in service. One of the aircrafts flew several rides before the aircraft was confiscated at Manilas airport.
From January 1984 until 1991 the plane was stored at an airfield near Camarillo and was in a bad condition. 1991, Mr. Daryoush “Benny” Younesi founded the “Constellation Historical Society” and with many of his volunteers the aircraft became flyable again, in 1994.
Since then the Connie participated on U.S. Air shows across the country.
On 12th December 2003, Mr. Francisco Agullo and Mr. Urs Morgenthaler signed the contract in Los Angeles to buy the Super Connie and fly it to Switzerland.
On 26th April 2004 the “Star of Switzerland” left the United States on a ferry flight to Switzerland where the “Queen of Sky” landed on 8th May, in their new Breitling livery, at the Euroairport Basel-Mulhouse-Freiburg. Thousands of aviation enthusiasts welcomed the aircraft at the airport.
In May 2007 the aircraft became her new Swiss registration HB-RSC.
The other Planes
The Antonov AN-2
The whole event reminds me of a first class old-timer meeting, regarding all these vintage airplanes how paid there tribute to the Super Connie, such as four Antonovo AN-2, one De Havilland DHC-2 Beaver, one Piper J3C L-4, one French MH-152M Broussard, two Beech 18 Expeditor and finally one Piaggio P-149D.
The other Planes
Fire truck of Lahr Airport (Picture courtesy Andreas Herzog)
