Aero Spacelines Super Guppy
As the “space race” began in the 1960s and rockets became larger and larger, NASA ran into a problem: vital components of the Gemini and Apollo rockets were manufactured in California, a continent away from the launch center at Cape Canaveral, Florida. Shipping by rail and road was impossible, and by sea was long and expensive.
Two men, John Conroy and Lee Mansdorf, hit on the idea of shipping by air—at the time also considered impossible as there were no aircraft capable of transporting outsized loads in the West. Conroy and Mansdorf founded Aero Spacelines, Inc., a company whose sole purpose would be the conversion and operation of aircraft to handle NASA’s rockets. These aircraft became the Aero Spacelines Super Guppies, conversion of former USAF C-97 Stratofreighters with much larger bulbous fuselages. Eventually, some ten aircraft would be converted and operated by Aero Spacelines (acquired by Tracor in 1968) for NASA.
When the Apollo program ended, NASA continued to utilize Aero Spacelines’ Guppies for the Shuttle and other programs, but a good portion of the company’s work went to Airbus to deliver fuselage components to that company’s main assembly hangar at Toulouse, France. By the 1990s, however, the Guppies were becoming obsolete, and were replaced by converted Airbus A300s—the Airbus Beluga. One remains in operation today, operated by NASA; the others have been retired to museums.
This is the second Super Guppy ever built, and combines two historic aircraft: the wings, engine and forward fuselage were from 52-2693, the USAF's experimental turboprop YC-97J, while the remainder was taken from N1038V, a former Pan American Boeing 377 Stratocruiser. The latter was retired in 1960, and the YC-97J in 1964; both were then combined into this aircraft, which initially retained the N1038V registration of the Pan Am Stratocruiser. After modification into Super Guppy standard in 1965, Aero Spacelines flew it until 1979, when NASA took over direct control. In 1991, it was retired as it had hit the end of its service life, and went on display at Pima in 1995.
This is one of the aircraft the Pima museum hasn't quite gotten to restoring yet; it retains the Spraylat placed on the aircraft during its time in storage at the nearby "Boneyard" at Davis-Monthan AFB.
Aero Spacelines Super Guppy
As the “space race” began in the 1960s and rockets became larger and larger, NASA ran into a problem: vital components of the Gemini and Apollo rockets were manufactured in California, a continent away from the launch center at Cape Canaveral, Florida. Shipping by rail and road was impossible, and by sea was long and expensive.
Two men, John Conroy and Lee Mansdorf, hit on the idea of shipping by air—at the time also considered impossible as there were no aircraft capable of transporting outsized loads in the West. Conroy and Mansdorf founded Aero Spacelines, Inc., a company whose sole purpose would be the conversion and operation of aircraft to handle NASA’s rockets. These aircraft became the Aero Spacelines Super Guppies, conversion of former USAF C-97 Stratofreighters with much larger bulbous fuselages. Eventually, some ten aircraft would be converted and operated by Aero Spacelines (acquired by Tracor in 1968) for NASA.
When the Apollo program ended, NASA continued to utilize Aero Spacelines’ Guppies for the Shuttle and other programs, but a good portion of the company’s work went to Airbus to deliver fuselage components to that company’s main assembly hangar at Toulouse, France. By the 1990s, however, the Guppies were becoming obsolete, and were replaced by converted Airbus A300s—the Airbus Beluga. One remains in operation today, operated by NASA; the others have been retired to museums.
This is the second Super Guppy ever built, and combines two historic aircraft: the wings, engine and forward fuselage were from 52-2693, the USAF's experimental turboprop YC-97J, while the remainder was taken from N1038V, a former Pan American Boeing 377 Stratocruiser. The latter was retired in 1960, and the YC-97J in 1964; both were then combined into this aircraft, which initially retained the N1038V registration of the Pan Am Stratocruiser. After modification into Super Guppy standard in 1965, Aero Spacelines flew it until 1979, when NASA took over direct control. In 1991, it was retired as it had hit the end of its service life, and went on display at Pima in 1995.
This is one of the aircraft the Pima museum hasn't quite gotten to restoring yet; it retains the Spraylat placed on the aircraft during its time in storage at the nearby "Boneyard" at Davis-Monthan AFB.