NC-121 Super Conny

[clyde61]

Here’s the link to a picture of a Navy NC-121 Super Constellation that
I took in 1980.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/9632389@N03/2560951879/

The plane was retired a couple of years later, flown to a museum in
South Carolina, where it was left uncared for, and now only the
forward 53 feet of the fuselage remains.

Anybody know what the Navy used this plane for?

[Robert Moore]

clyde61 > wrote

> Anybody know what the Navy used this plane for?

SURE! Airborne Early Warning. The Navy maintained AEW (VW) squadrons in
Argentia Newfoundland back during the "Cold War". They flew a "Barrier"
pattern to detect those nasty Russian Bear aircraft. That is the RADAR on
top of the fuselage.

The aircraft is actually either the Lockheed WV-2 (early) or EC-121
"Warning Star" (later). We affectionately called them "Willy Victors",
and hoped that we would never be assigned to fly them. Flying "multi-
motors" back in the '50s and '60s was literally the end of a Naval
Aviators career.

Bob Moore
VP-21 VP-46
PanAm (retired)

[theref]

From my perspective as an AQ (Fire Control Tech) these were the birds with
the big electrons-as opposed to the F-4s that I worked on.

Flew on these aircraft out of Pt. Mugu during the Santa Barbara offshore oil
spills. This was the reason for the offshore oil drilling ban. Only
recently modified during the "Drill Baby, Drill" furor.

Agreed not good for an NA's career. But, it was the entrée to an airline
career.

"Robert Moore" > wrote in message
5.247...
> clyde61 > wrote
>
>> Anybody know what the Navy used this plane for?
>
> SURE! Airborne Early Warning. The Navy maintained AEW (VW) squadrons in
> Argentia Newfoundland back during the "Cold War". They flew a "Barrier"
> pattern to detect those nasty Russian Bear aircraft. That is the RADAR on
> top of the fuselage.
>
> The aircraft is actually either the Lockheed WV-2 (early) or EC-121
> "Warning Star" (later). We affectionately called them "Willy Victors",
> and hoped that we would never be assigned to fly them. Flying "multi-
> motors" back in the '50s and '60s was literally the end of a Naval
> Aviators career.
>
> Bob Moore
> VP-21 VP-46
> PanAm (retired)
>