Convair CV-240 family

what is it?

The Convair CV-240 is an American airliner that Convair manufactured from 1947 to 1954, initially as a possible replacement for the ubiquitous Douglas DC-3. Featuring a more modern design with cabin pressurization, the low-wing, primarily piston-driven 240 series made some inroads as a commercial airliner, spawning nearly a dozen civil variants, and five for the military, including turboprop versions for both. Though reduced in numbers by attrition, various forms of the "Convairliners" continue to fly in the 21st century.

🔎How to recognise it: 2 piston engines with propellers · low wing · retractable tricycle gear · 28 m wingspan

base stats

• speed 507 km/htop speed
• size 18.4 tmax take-off weight
• built 571made in total

Bars compare against all aircraft: 3,500 km/h, 20,000 km, 850 seats; size and number built on a log scale up to 640 t (An-225) and 45,000 built (Cessna 172).

fun facts

• 🎂First flew 79 years ago, in 1947.
• 🏎️Top speed is 3.9× a car on the Dutch motorway (130 km/h).
• 🚗Wingspan of 28 m: about 6 cars parked nose to tail.
• 🐘Fully loaded it can weigh as much as 3 African elephants (~6 t each).

piston: A car-like piston engine turning a propeller: simple and cheap, the classic small plane.

spec sheet

first flight

1947-03-16

introduced

1948

status

still flying

number built

571

role

airliner

origin

🇺🇸 United States

makers

Convair

engines

2× Pratt & Whitney R-2800-CA3 Double Wasp / CA15 / CA18 / CB3 or CB16

crew

2

length

22.8 m

wingspan

28 m

height

8.2 m

max take-off weight

18.4 t

top speed

507 km/h

cruise speed

451 km/h

range

—

ceiling

4,877 m

wings

low wing

landing gear

retractable tricycle gear

ICAO code

CVLT

Specs are for the version in the Wikipedia article's specification section. Blank means the sources don't say.

family