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6 photos from Wikimedia Commons · credits & licences
- 1. Lockheed C-60A Lodestar USAF: USAF· Public domain
- 2. Lockheed Lodestar flying jumpers at Goderich: BrettA343· CC BY-SA 4.0
- 3. Aero Nordin Lockheed L-18-56 Lodestar SE-BTI Veljekset Karhumäki Oy n pihalla huollettavana 1953 (SIM+VK+2-149+(Inventaarionumero)): Osmo O. Niskanen· CC BY 4.0
- 4. Hamilton Lodestar (L-18) AN1386606: Andre Wadman· GFDL 1.2
- 5. Lockheed 18-56 Lodestar AN0209875: JetPix· GFDL 1.2
- 6. N555H Lockheed 18 Lodestar (7515749620): Aeroprints.com· CC BY-SA 3.0
what is it?
The Lockheed Model 18 Lodestar is an American passenger transport aircraft of the World War II era, developed as part of the Model 10 Electra family, specifically from the Lockheed Model 14 Super Electra.
How to recognise it: 2 piston engines with propellers · 20 m wingspan
base stats
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 87 years ago, in 1939.
- Top speed is 3.3× a car on the Dutch motorway (130 km/h).
- Wingspan of 20 m: about 4 cars parked nose to tail.
- Can fly 1.0× higher than Mount Everest (8,849 m).
piston: A car-like piston engine turning a propeller: simple and cheap, the classic small plane.
spec sheet
- first flight
- 1939-09-21
- introduced
- 1940
- number built
- 625
- role
- passenger transport
- origin
- 🇺🇸 United States
- makers
- Lockheed Corporation
- engines
- 2× Wright R-1820-87
- crew
- 3
- passengers
- 18
- length
- 15.2 m
- wingspan
- 20 m
- height
- 3.6 m
- max take-off weight
- 9,526 kg
- top speed
- 428 km/h
- cruise speed
- 322 km/h
- range
- —
- ceiling
- 9,174 m
Specs are for the version in the Wikipedia article's specification section. Blank means the sources don't say.
Sources: Wikidata Q1633021, Wikipedia: Lockheed Model 18 Lodestar (CC BY-SA 4.0).Updated 2026-10-24.