AMERICA'S LOST AIR FORCE ONE

A Life Aloft

Well-Known Member
This beautiful, historic, graceful Connie designed from the genius of Kelly Johnson and Hall Hibbard, now sits wasting away in the desert. So hard to believe that no organization will come forth to save and restore her to her once glorious being.


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@MikeD have you seen her in your travels around the area?
 
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I remember flying PHX-TUS in an RJ and getting nice shots of AVQ and MZJ. I saw this connie at AVQ, along with some other radials and several Starships, and only found out almost 2 years later that it was the former Air Force One! I wonder if you can get close to it on the ground, I'll be taking a trip out there this month or next month for photography.
 
Are you sure this plane is sitting in the desert? I just walked through a Connie named Columbine III at the Dayton Wright AFB. They claimed that was the actual Connie to carry Truman to Wake Island and to be Christened by his wife. Really neat museum there! Also houses the 707 Air Force One that carried Kennedy to and from Dallas, and some other beauties such as the Valkyrie.
 
Are you sure this plane is sitting in the desert? I just walked through a Connie named Columbine III at the Dayton Wright AFB.
The plane above is Columbine II. She was replaced by III. Mamie Eisenhower named them both after the columbine, the official state flower of Colorado, her adopted home state.
 
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Three Connies carried the Columbine name.

Columbine I is at Pima. This one, 48-0610 Columbine II is at AVQ, and as previously stated, Columbine III is at DAY.

I still remember when 48-610 looked like the below at the junkyard outside DMA.

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On a similar note, and @RDoug can probably confirm, I'm saddened that one of the last, and potenitally flyable, Convair 990 Coronado aircraft thats not a display piece or in a museum, was summarily scrapped at ELP about 5 years ago.
 
On a similar note, and @RDoug can probably confirm, I'm saddened that one of the last, and potenitally flyable, Convair 990 Coronado aircraft thats not a display piece or in a museum, was summarily scrapped at ELP about 5 years ago.

That was a heart-breaker. That beautiful ol' 990 sat on the ramp for years before being cut into pieces.
 
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