Super Constellation Restaurant (Connie)

Here is a place that my dad took me when I was just a young boy back in the 1960’s.

Jim Flannery’s Constellation Lounge on US Route 1 in Penndel, Pennsylvania. Jim bought the Super Connie, N1005C (c/n 4557), from Capitol Airways in August 1967 and had it dismantled and trucked from Wilmington, Delaware to its new home above his restaurant. Its passenger interior was removed and converted into a cocktail lounge, complete with thick pile carpeting on the walls, a parquet wood dance floor and a functioning wet bar.  Capitol Airways colors.

This Super Connie was one of a few L1049E’s manufactured and had flown for many airlines prior to becoming a cocktail lounge. She was originally ordered by the Norwegian airline, Braathens SAFE, but never delivered. She was instead delivered to Cubana who operated her for a few years in the mid-1950’s. From 1956 to 1964 she was owned by Seaboard World Airlines who leased her to a number of airlines including BOAC, Eastern Airlines, Irish Airlines and Intercontinental US. She was leased to Capitol Airways in 1965, sold to them in 1966 but by mid-1967 had been withdrawn from service and stored at Newcastle Airport in Wilmington, Delaware.

• Final registration – N1005C
• Originally ordered by Braathens SAFE but ordered cancelled
• Delivered to Cubana Airlines November 1954 as L1049E CU-P573
• To International Aviation who sold it to Seaboard & Western Airlines March 1956 as N1005C “Geneva Airtrader”
• Leased to BOAC April 1 to April 30, 1956
• Leased to Eastern Airlines January to June 1957
• Leased to Aerlinte Eireann (Irish Airlines) May 1958 to December 22, 1960 as “St Brigid/Brighid”
• To Canadair as trade-in for CL-44’s in 1962 and immediately leased back
• Sub-leased to Intercontinental US Inc by June 1962 and reportedly damaged in the Congo December 30, 1962
• Painted in Trans State Airlines color scheme at Idlewild Airport, NY October 1963 for intrastate scheduled service
• Permission for service denied and aircraft stored at Idlewild until returned to Seaboard January 1964
• Leased to Capitol Airways June 1, 1965 and sold to them March 1, 1966
• Retired by Capitol and stored at Wilmington, DE by mid-1967
• To Jim Flannery August 20, 1967 for use as a cocktail lounge at his restaurant in Penndel, PA
• Disassembled and transported by road to Penndel
• Positioned atop “Jim Flannery’s Restaurant” by August 1968 in Capitol color scheme
• “Spirit of 76” insignia added in 1976
• Became “Amelia’s Restaurant” in November 1981 and closed in 1986
• Became “The Airplane Family Restaurant and Diner” in 1992
• Amoco Oil bought the site in 1996 and removed the aircraft from atop the restaurant on July 9, 1997 for storage
• Amoco donated aircraft to the Air Mobility Command (AMC) Museum at Dover AFB and it was moved by road to Dover AFB on October 25, 1997
• Aircraft stored disassembled at the museum until July 2003 when it was reassembled
• Restoration for display at the museum as a C-121C representation began August 2003
• Cleaning and painting in C-121C colors began April 2007 after which aircraft to be put on display
• Painting completed early July 2007 with false USAF serial “40315”.
• Interior restoration completed by 2008 and aircraft on display
• Long radar nose fabricated by museum volunteers and USAF Reserve personnel and installed summer 2012

http://www.hemmings.com/hmn/stories/2007/09/01/hmn_feature18.html