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Virtual Birds Factory presents
LOST AND FOUND: historic propliner
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File: t29faa02.zip
Content: Convair ET-29C (with radar button nose)
Operator: Federal Aviation Agency
Livery: In colors of FAA 1965
Reg.Id: N246, ex USAF AT-29C, c/n 52-1125
C/n: 364
Version: FS2002
Date of issue: January 2004
Credits:
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This is a repaint of the original FS2002 Convair CV-240 American Air Lines built and painted by Greg Pepper and Tom Gibson using Tom Gibson's great paintkit available at www.calclassic.com (E-Mail: tgibson@sunstroke.sdsu.edu).
Flight dynamics by FSAviator (true FS2002 flight model with dynamics derived from actual flight manual information), correct within 3% of the real flying characteristics - see Reference file (F10). This FDE is not designed for AI use - it will not work. Download AI propliners at http://www.calclassic.com/.
Repainted by Hans Hermann, D-GHHH simulationware, Germany
E-Mail: virtual.birds@gmx.de
NOTE: Many other classic airliners can be downloaded free from Tom Gibson's Website California Classics at: http://www.calclassic.com/
Installation in FS2002:
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Copy the extracted folder (using WinZip or similar program making sure the paths option is turned on) to the \FS2002\aircraft directory.
Panel & Sounds:
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Special Panel and sounds are not included. The Convair comes with default panel and sound of Beech Baron 58. You should download the actual version of custom panel and sound from:
California Classics, http://www.calclassic.com/
There you will find a suitable Convair CV-240 panel. This panel is the same as the CV-340 panel but adapted for the 240's right hand door. The CV-240 panel requires the CV-340 panel to be installed first!
You also will find there the Radial Engine "Prop Sound" for the Convair 240. These sounds are a mix of sounds from Reinhard Herrmann, with startup and shutdown sounds recorded by Tom Gibson.
For further informations have a look at
Classic Airliner Page
http://www.calclassic.com/
Features:
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You should have a look into the original readme-file: cv2402k2.txt.
If you like the modified engine start effects for propliners created by Tom Gibson, you should download the original FS2002 American Air Lines CV-240 from
California Classics Propliners
http://www.calclassic.com/.
They are included in the zip-file 240aal.zip. This will change the little "wisp" of smoke produced by a piston engine start into a real propliner start - smokey!
Note:
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Naturally, nobody can guarantee that these data will function properly and that no problems will occur along with installation and usage. We ourselves have no problems at all running this aircraft on our system.
Copyright:
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Regard the original readme-file cv2402k2.txt.
These data in no matter what shape are for private use only and therefore must not be sold either as single items or as parts of an FS-collection. All elements put togehter are Freeware!
Repaints are allowed by the authors without further permission, but we prefer that they only be uploaded to totally free sites - i.e. no charges or subscription fees for increased access. However, if you repaint the plane you must credit all of the original authors in your text file and include the original text file cv2402k2.txt!
DO NOT SELL, CD-BUNDLE OR REDISTRIBUTE THIS FILE SEEKING MONETARY PROFITS, THIS FILE IS FREEWARE.
In 1958 Congress passed the Federal Aviation Act to overcome differences between the CAA and the military over aviation matters. This legislation created a new independent agency, the Federal Aviation Agency (FAA). The FAA was separated from the Department of Commerce, and assigned the final jurisdiction over civil and military aviation as they participated in the national airspace system.
The new FAA faced many problems with the expanding airspace system, but quickly established itself as a technically-proficient, competent authority on aviation matters. In 1959, the U.S. Army and Navy transferred their flight inspection programs to the FAA. The U.S. Air Force, under the prodding of a 1962 Presidential executive order, developed a new sense of cooperation with the FAA and, with "Operation Friendship," transferred much of its own flight inspection capability to the FAA. This transfer included its fleet of Douglas AC-54s, Douglas AC-47s, and Convair AT-29s for the FAA to perform routine Air Force flight inspection.
The Convair ET-29C with the registration N246 was one of 85 aircrafts T-29C built in 1952. 10 of these Convairs were converted for MATS Air Force Communications Service AFCS as AT-29C for military flight inspection. According to the rules of the unique designation system for military aircraft all AT-29C were redesignated to ET-29C in 1962. N246 was transferred from U.S. Air Force to FAA in 1962 and reallocated to the U.S. Air Force in 1969. Unfortunately more whereabouts are unknown.
In the middle if the sixties N246 was operated by FAA Bureau in Frankfurt/Main, Germany, for flight inspection of airports used by the U.S. Air Force in Europe. In July 1965 Hans Hermann took a picture of N246 at Open Day on Berlin-Tempelhof Central Airport (EDDI).
Convair ET-29 operated by the FAA
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Militar Civil MSN Military S/N From TO Registration Remarks
Type Sequence
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ET-29C CV-240 331 ex 52-1092 1963 1977 N250, N95, N45787 to 52-1092,
to Time
Aviation
Services, b/u?
ET-29C CV-240 335 ex 52-1096 1963 1977 N28, N254, N94, N45786 to 52-1096
ET-29C CV-240 336 ex 52-1097 1963 1972 N249 to 52-1097
ET-29C CV-240 337 ex 52-1098 1962 1970 N245 to 52-1098
ET-29C CV-240 344 ex 52-1105 1963 1977 N28, N248, N93, N45783 to 52-1105,
to Time
Aviation
Services,
to Cal Sierra
Airlines, ufo
ET-29C CV-240 345 ex 52-1106 1963 1969 N251 to 52-1106?
ET-29C CV-240 364 ex 52-1125 1962 1969 N246 to 52-1125
ET-29C CV-240 367 ex 52-1128 1963 1969 N252 to 52-1128
ET-29C CV-240 378 ex 52-1139 1962 1973 N247 to 52-1125
ET-29C CV-240 381 ex 52-1142 1962 1965 N244 to 52-1142
Source:
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FAA Aircraft History Project
http://www.aerovintage.com/faa.htm
AT-29C or ET-29C?
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The current designation system for U.S. military aircraft was introduced by the Department of Defense in 1962. It was based on the system used by the U.S. Air Force between 1948 and 1962, and replaced the older systems used by the U.S Navy (and Marine Corps) and the U.S. Army. Existing aircraft which used designations not compliant with the new system (all Navy and Marine Corps, many Army, and a few Air Force aircraft) were redesignated effectively on 18 September 1962.
US Military Aviation Designation Systems
http://www.designation-systems.net/usmilav/index.html
The Convair CV-240, 340 and 440 was one of the closest designs to come near to being a Douglas DC-3 replacement as despite a glut of cheap DC-3s in the postwar years this family of airliners achieved considerable sales success.
Design of the original CV-110 was initiated in response to an American Airlines request for a DC-3 replacement. American found the CV-110 (which first flew on July 8 1946) to be too small and asked that the CV-110 be scaled up in size, and this resulted in the CV-240 ConvairLiner. The CV-240 was arguably the most advanced short haul airliner of its day, and first flew on March 16 1947 and entered service on June 1 1948.
The success of the CV-240 led to the 1.37m (4ft 6in) stretched CV-340, which first flew on October 5 1951, and the improved CV-440 Metropolitan which incorporated extra cabin sound-proofing, new rectangular exhaust outlets, tighter engine cowlings, and some other aerodynamic improvements and first flew on October 6 1955. Most of the CV-440s were also delivered with weather radar in an elongated nose, which had been an option on the CV-340.
The CV-240, CV-340 and CV-440 sold in large numbers, mainly to airlines in North America, and formed the backbone of many airlines' short to medium haul fleets. Today the small number that remain in service are mainly used as freighters.
Many of the surviving aircraft have been converted with turboprops, and these conversions are discussed in a separate entry.
Aircraft Technical Data
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Manufacturer
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Consolidated Vultee Aircraft Corporation (Convair),
(later: Convair Division of General Dynamics)
Country of origin
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United States of America
Purpose
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Short haul commercial transport (ET-29C: Flight Inspection Aircraft)
Powerplants
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CV-240 - Two 1490kW (2000hp) Pratt & Whitney R-2800-CA18 Double Wasp piston radial engines driving three blade constant speed propellers.
CV-340 - Two 1790kW (2400hp) R-2800-CB16 Double Wasps.
CV-440 - Two 1865kW (2500hp) R-2800-CB16 or -CB17 Double Wasps.
Performance
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CV-240 - Cruising speed 435km/h (235kt). Range with max fuel 2900km (1565nm).
CV-340 - Cruising speed 457km/h (247kt). Typical range with max payload 935km (505nm).
CV-440 - Max cruising speed 483km/h (261kt), economical cruising speed 465km/h (250kt). Service ceiling 24,900ft. Range with max payload 756km (408nm), range with max fuel 3106km (1677nm).
Weights
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CV-240 - Empty 12,520kg (27,600lb), max takeoff 18,956kg (41,790lb).
CV-340 - Empty 13,375kg (29,486lb), max takeoff 21,320kg (47,000lb).
CV-440 - Empty 15,110kg (33,314lb), max takeoff 22,544kg (49,700lb).
Capacity
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CV-240 - Flightcrew of two or three.
Passenger seating for up to 40, or a 4240kg (9350lb) payload.
CV-340 - Flightcrew of two or three.
Passenger seating for up to 52, or a 6075kg (13,391lb) payload.
CV-440 - Flightcrew of two or three.
Passenger seating for up to 52, or a 5820kg (12,836lb) payload.
Production
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1076 built in total, of which 566 CV-240s (incl 364 T-29s and 26 C-131s), 311 CV-340s (incl 65 C-131s) and 199 CV-440s (incl 21 C-131s). Additionally 10 turboprop CV-540s were built by Canadair.
The History Of Flight Inspection in the United States
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Flight inspection has long been a vital part of providing a safe airspace system. The concept is almost as old as the airway system itself. Flight inspection in the U.S. began in function, if not yet in form, with the development of an airway system in the late 1910s and early 1920s. The first U.S. flight inspectors flew surplus open-cockpit biplanes, watching over a steadily growing airway system predicated on airway light beacons to provide navigational guidance. The advent of radio navigation brought an increased importance to the flight inspector, as his was the only platform that could evaluate the radio transmitters from where they were used: in the air. With the development of the Instrument Landing System (ILS) and the Very High Frequency Omni-Directional Range (VOR), flight inspection became the essential element in guaranteeing the safety of the system. Flight inspection developed through various government agencies charged with air safety: the Aeronautics Branch, Bureau of Air Commerce, the Civil Aeronautics Agency, and lastely, the current Federal Aviation Administration FAA.
Today, FAA flight inspection routinely inspects thousands of navaids and instrument procedures, including ILS, MLS, VOR, DME, TACAN, GPS, NDB, various radars, and airport lighting. Continued advancements in avionics with Flight Management Systems (FMS) combined with GPS positioning and other, new high-tech possibilities for aerospace navigational and landing aids suggest an increasing role for flight inspection in the future. Despite the relentless march of technology, there remains the same need for an airborne evaluation of aviation navigation aids and procedures as was established by the original air mail pilots over seventy-five years ago.
In the mid-1990s, the FAA flight inspection fleet was supplemented by the purchase of a number of new Lear 60s and Challenger 601s, bringing the total FAA flight inspection fleet today to seven Beech 65-C-90/F90, one Beech 200, eighteen Beech BE-300Fs, six British Aerospace BAe-125-800s, six Bombardier Lear 60s, and three Bombardier Challenger 601s, each equipped with an updated AFIS system utilizing GPS-positioning. Also 2 Convair CV-580 and one Boeing 727-25C, presently the biggest bird of the FAA, belongs to the actuall fleet. Additionally, a number of Beechcraft Barons are being employed for regional engineering test programs for new navaid installations with portable flight inspection packages installed as required.
FAA timetable
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1926-1933 Aeronautics Branch
-of the Department of Commerce
1933-1938 Bureau of Air Commerce
-also under the Department of Commerce
1938-1940 Civil Aeronautics Authority
1940-1958 Civil Aeronautics Administration
-under the Department of Commerce
1959-1967 Federal Aviation Agency
1967 through today Federal Aviation Administration (current FAA)
-under the Department of Transportation
For further information have a look at:
FAA history and Resources
http://www.faa.gov/apa/history/history.htm
The History of Flight Inspection in the United States of America
by Scott Thompson Sacramento Flight Inspection Office
http://avnwww.jccbi.gov/icasc/fh(united_states).html
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Always happy landings!
D-GHHH simulationware, January 2004
Hans U. Hermann, e-mail: virtual.birds@gmx.de *****************************************************************************
