Rolling the Lockheed L-1649A “Super Star” into a new maintenance hangar at the Auburn-Lewiston airport in Maine, USA, takes the renovation of this historic long-haul aircraft, which belongs to the Deutsche Lufthansa Berlin-Stiftung, into a new phase. The preliminary work that has been carried out in the open air will now be followed by the actual repairs, which Lufthansa Technik’s team of experts will carry out indoor in the new hangar built by the airport.

“It’s been almost a year now since the Lufthansa Berlin foundation awarded us the contract for the renovation of the Super Star. For the project team, the formal opening of this hangar is an important milestone on the way to a “Super Star” restored to airworthiness. I’m delighted that this building now is available for this ambitious project,” stated August Wilhelm Henningsen, Chairman of Lufthansa Technik AG on November 20, 2008 at the formal opening of the hangar in Auburn/Maine, USA. “To make a last Lockheed L-1649A airworthy again is a special honour for Lufthansa Technik as a company and its employees.”

Prior to the N7316C undergoing as first step a kind of D-check in the new hangar, the Lufthansa Technik team had already removed many components which are not part of the primary aircraft structure. These included the radome, landing flaps, the rudders, fairings and engines. The complete tail unit was also removed and shipped to Lufthansa Technik’s North American subsidiary, BizJet, in Tulsa/Oklahoma, for renovation. Meanwhile, an American engine specialist is already working on repairing the historic Curtiss-Wright engines.

In the hangar, the team is now beginning its comprehensive checks of the primary aircraft structure, looking for signs of corrosion and material fatigue. The various systems will be thoroughly overhauled and all the wires, cables and leads will be renewed. The cockpit will also be brought up to the very latest technological standard but will keep its historical appearance. The cabin will be restored to its former historic splendor. According to current technical knowledge, in 2011 the legendary Super Star is scheduled to take to the air again.

Together with the core team of Lufthansa Technik twelve qualified mechanics are working on the aircraft at the site in Auburn/Maine. The components, equipment and the engines will primarily be overhauled by specialists in the USA and at Lufthansa Technik AG in the USA and Germany. A team of engineers will be coordinating the restoration of the “Super Star” at the site. In addition Lufthansa Technik will send a number of its trainees on short-term to Auburn.

The Lockheed L-1649A, of which 44 were built between 1956 and 1958, is the ultimate model of the legendary Lockheed Constellation series. Today only four of these L-1649A are preserved, and currently not one of them is airworthy. At an auction in the U.S. in December 2007, the Deutsche Lufthansa Berlin-Stiftung purchased three of these four Super Stars from the American airplane enthusiast Maurice Roundy. In addition to the three aircraft, the purchased lot included 13 engines plus spare parts and technical documentation for this type of aircraft.

Lockheed L-1649A Super Star

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