Does anyone out there have an update on the future of the MATS Connie.

Is it going to be sold/grounded and does anyone know the reason why. Is it finally out of hours?

Regards
John H


MATS_Constellation.jpg (204 KB, 6352 downloads) jpeg

This topic was discussed previously, see:
http://propliners.com/eve/forums?a=tpc&s=1106051822&f=6376074032&m=7581023201

Captain Lang has confirmed sale to a Reno group for eventual destination of Korea. Mr. Rayburn, the owner of the plane, has also confirmed the sale of the plane. Other than that, details are sketchy to non-existant.

Unfortuantely in the "Warbird Report" on Pages 18-19 of the Febraury 2005 issue of "Air Classics" Magazine published by Challenge Publications, it is confirmed that the MATS Connie has either already been sold and flown to South Korea, or will soon be flown there.

It is bad news to see another restored Connie leave the United States for a foreign country. Especially the MATS Connie, which was one of the most beautifully restored and a very active flyer. Also, it was the only flying short fuselage (Model 749A) Constellation flying in this country.

As a rather weak and callous attempt at justifying this sale and move, here is a quote from page 18 of the article in the February 2005 Air Classics: "Like everything else in aviation, nothing stays the same and it was time for a new home."

I would suspect that our last flying Connie in the U.S., the magnificent Airline History Museum's Super Constellation is safe from leaving our shores for foreign soil, however this loss does concern me.

We need to support where we can the non-profit organizations like the Airline History Museum, the Berlin Airlift Historical Foundation and others, to help insure that historic propliners can keep flying and that they stay in the United States where they belong.

As I have said before, I am happy I had the opportunity to see the MATS Connie in flight In 2003, and I am thankful for the years it winged its way across the country, but I will definitely miss this unique airplane at air shows in the U.S.

Jim Cochran
Bristow, VA

This update from Ralph Pettersen came in today on the Classic Propliner-forum (Yahoo):

"As rumored for some time, it looks like the MATS Connie will be heading
west to a new home in South Korea. When I talked to Frank Lang a few
weeks ago the deal still hadn't been finalized but he was expecting to
make the ferry flight in January. Exerpts from an article that appeared
in the current (February 2005) issue of Air Classics:

"...if all goes to plan, Capt. Frank Lang and the MATS Constellation
will be winging their way to the classic four-engine propliner's new
home - Seoul, South Korea. The planned route for the epic mission
involves departing their long-time home at Avra Valley, AZ and heading
to Oakland, CA. Then it is off to Hawaii with stops at Wake Island,
Guam and then Seoul. Current plans call for the MATS Connie to receive
a Korean Air Lines paint scheme and for 2005 they are talking to Frank
about returning to Seoul and flying the triple-tail propliner on a tour
around South Korea, Japan and other locations."

Ralph"

Best regards,

Michiel

MATS-Connie in Korean Airlines colours?

When painted in Korean Airlines colours, this grande dame will be like this young lady in earlier times...



Frank Sangers
www.conniesplace.nl

KA-749.jpg (42 KB, 765 downloads) Original Korean Airlines colours

Courtesy of the Connie Survivors website:

The MATS Connie departed Marana Northwest Regional Airport (AVQ) for the last time on Friday April 1, 2005 bound for a new home in Korea. With Captain Frank Lang at the controls, she lifted off runway 30 at 10:07 MST and, after one last flyby, headed northwest to Oakland, CA for the first stop on her journey to an aerospace museum on Jeju Island. Originally a southern route had been planned but this was changed when it was determined that avgas was not available at Midway Island and the US Military would not allow the aircraft to transit Wake Island. Instead, a northern route was planned with stops at Anchorage, Alaska; Cold Bay, Alaska; Hakodote, Japan; and Incheon, Korea, where the crew and passengers will clear customs. The next stop on the journey will be the Korean Airlines maintenance facility at Gimhae Airport, near Busan, where the aircraft will be stripped of her MATS colors and repainted in early Korean Airlines colors. This is expected to take about a week after which the grand lady will make her final flight to Jeju International Airport where she will be put on static display next to next to a Korean Airlines Boeing 747 and Airbus A300. Contrary to earlier reports, the aircraft will not participate in any Korean or Japanese airshows this summer and will never fly again.

I find it sad, that this most beautiful example is now destined for static display, and will be pretty much out of sight, out of mind, in South Korea, compared to exposure she may have received elsewhere.

Thanks for the latest update on the Connie.

Everyone I speak to who has even the slightest interest in aviation, thinks it is a most unusual decision for such a popular aircraft to end it's days as a static exhibit in far flung Korea. Lets hope it's looked after properly and not allowed to rot away.

I keep getting asked why wasn't it preserved in the US or Europe if it had to be sold or grounded at all.

Regards
John H

Very sad indeed that the ex. MATS Connie goes for a static future...in far away S. Korea.

Another reflection; and the Dutch Aviodrome team had to perform the difficult task of modification work to get serviceable (Hamilton) props because their were no more airworthy Curtiss props available at that time!
Times can change...

Looks like there's going to be a small lining to the cloud for the folks on the western U.S. shores. The AHM Connie has already picked up one of the California airshows that the MATS bird always had before. 37C will leave for Van Nuys, CA on Friday, May 13. We will be at Andrews AFB, on the east coast for a show the very next weekend.

Heard the rumor and thought it was a very poor April Fools joke. Apparently not. I went to the MATS Connie website and buried in all the spam was a guest book entry wondering why the MATS Connie was in Anchorage around April 4th.

Willy

It was sold to those who paid the asking price.

As there are already other C121A Connies, with more interesting history, already preserved in the US, I can see why there was a lack of interest in this one from museums.

Eventually all the other current flying Super Connies will also end up the same way. Spare 75ST Aluminium wing panels are just not available anywhere in the world.

Tracey, good to see you back.
I had a great conversation with John Browjohn of HARS at the Avalon Airshow. He was wondering where you had disappeared to.

Hi David,
Yes I am still around, but have just been so swamped with the workload in the past couple of years at Qantas, plus historical projects in and out of the company, plus the Corsair, and other personal ventures, plus new home, that there has not been a lot of time for other things.

Take Care
Tracey

Good to see you back Tracey.

Does anyone know if the Connie will be kept indoors? I very much hope so.

I agree with what David Wood says: sad tho it is that the a/c is going to somewhere as far flung as S Korea, these people presumably paid the asking price and there are already a considerable no of Connies preserved in the USA.

Oh and by the way, this is my 400th post, meaning I become the site's 2nd "Triple diamond member" after Doug-anyone heard anything from him lately/we miss you Doug.

Info is very hard to come by on the progress of the flight. The MATS Connie had been at Cold Bay for a few days and was supposed to have left for the long flight to Hakodate, Japan yesterday morning (March 7th). Don't know if this happened. Frank Lang told me last week that it was going into a hangar but also said it was being displayed adjacent to a B747 and A300 so its got to be a pretty big hangar.
Ralph

Whist aggreeing that there are many Connies on Display throughout the USA most are in the militery AWACs form and most are outside and some in a very sorry state.
The MATS connie being a C121A is somewhat more unique now and with all it's airshow flying in the last ? years makes it one of the best known Connies, and would have looked good if displayed in a hanger. However I have the feeling that money in the USA is a bit tight for such projects these days

There are 3 C121A's on display in the USA.

The 2 ex Presidential Connies, "Columbine,"
"Columbine II" and the 3rd is General McArthurs "Battaan."

Maurice Roundy still has the 3 L1649A Starliners for sale ( which includes the one on loan to the Fantasy of Flight Museum ), so I think the chances of them finding a buyer in the U.S. ( or anywhere probably ) would be fairly slim, based on the experience observed with the MATS Connie going overseas.

Tracey

There's still hope!

In The Netherlands there's another C121A that will be flying again this summer. This 'Dutch' Connie is a VC-121A, 46-0612, and its Lockheed construction number is 2604. It was delivered to the US Air Force in January 1949 and retired in October 1967. Christier Flying Service Inc. bought it in May 1970 and registered it as N9465. Beaver Air Spray Inc. bought it in April 1979, registered it as C-GXKR and sold it to Conifair in 1979. It is registered now as N749NL and owned by the Dutch Aviation Museum Aviodrome, Lelystad, The Netherlands and the Stichting Constellation Nederland. This foundation became on November 17th, 1993 owner of this Connie and flew it to Tucson/Arizona on September 12th, 1994. It stayed there for a period of 8 years of cleaning and restoration, to be prepared for the flight to Holland. In the mean time this grande dame has been repainted in former KLM colours and all angines have been started up recently, after troubles with one of them. It will be the last flying Connie 'L-749'(=VC-121A) in the world.
You can visit this beautiful Connie every day, even inside.
Visit www.aviodrome.nl or www.conniesplace.nl for more info.

Enjoy!
Frank Sangers
webmaster www.conniesplace.nl

Hopefully one of Maurice Roundy's 'Starliners' will end up one day on this side of the pond on the old continent!
Would look nice in a double livery 'Air France/Lufthansa'....