Convair

Convair, originally called Consolidated Vultee Aircraft Corporation, was an American company that made airplanes, rockets, and spacecraft. It started in 1943 when two companies, Consolidated Aircraft and Vultee Aircraft, merged together. Later, Convair was bought by General Dynamics in 1953 and became known as their Convair Division.

Convair is famous for its military airplanes, like the Convair B-36 Peacemaker and Convair B-58 Hustler bombers, as well as the Convair F-102 Delta Dagger and Convair F-106 Delta Dart interceptors. The company also built the first Atlas rockets, which helped astronauts orbit the Earth during Project Mercury. Their later Atlas-Centaur rockets kept this success going, and versions of these rockets are still used today.

Besides military planes, Convair made civilian airplanes with propellers, such as different versions of the CV-240. The company also tried making jet airliners with the Convair 880 and Convair 990. These jets were smaller than popular planes like the Boeing 707 and Douglas DC-8 but could fly a bit faster. However, not many of these jets were made, so Convair stopped designing airliners. By 1994, most of Convair's parts were sold to McDonnell Douglas and Lockheed, and the company closed down in 1996.

History

Origins

Consolidated Aircraft built important planes in the early years of World War II, like the B-24 Liberator bomber and the PBY Catalina seaplane for the U.S. armed forces and their allies. Consolidated made about 18,500 B-24s, making it the most-produced bomber in history. The Catalina seaplane was also made in large numbers, with over 4,000 built.

In 1943, Consolidated Aircraft merged with Vultee Aircraft Company to form what we now call Convair. This merger created a big aircraft manufacturer, becoming one of the top companies in the United States for wartime production. Convair mostly worked in San Diego County in Southern California, with some help from nearby areas.

Jet Age, Cold War, and Space Age

In March 1953, Convair was bought by the General Dynamics Corporation and became known as the Convair Division. After the start of the Jet Age, Convair helped develop special airplane designs called delta wings, working with the French Dassault company.

Some of Convair’s most famous planes were the ten-engine Convair B-36 bomber, the Convair B-58 supersonic bomber, and the F-102 Delta Dagger and F-106 Delta Dart interceptors. In the 1960s, Convair also tried making jet airliners like the Convair 880 and Convair 990 Coronado, but these were not very successful. Instead, Convair made parts for other airplane companies like McDonnell Douglas, Boeing, and Lockheed.

Convair also worked on missiles and rockets. They made the Terrier missile for the U.S. Navy and the Atlas rocket, which helped launch early U.S. space missions like Project Mercury. The Atlas rocket was used to launch many satellites and space probes, including Pioneer 10 and Pioneer 11, the first to leave our Solar System.

Dissolution

In the 1990s, General Dynamics sold parts of Convair to other companies. By 1996, General Dynamics had closed Convair’s facilities in San Diego County and Kearny Mesa, ending its time there. The old airplane factories were torn down, and new homes and offices now stand in their place. The factory in Fort Worth, Texas was sold to Lockheed Corporation.

Timeline

Here is a simple timeline showing important moments in the history of Convair:

• In 1923, Consolidated Aircraft Corporation was formed by Major Reuben H. Fleet.
• In 1934, AVCO bought a smaller company and created the Aviation Manufacturing Corporation (AMC).
• By 1936, AMC changed into the Vultee Aircraft Division, which was part of AVCO but worked independently.
• In 1939, the Vultee Aircraft Division became its own company called Vultee Aircraft, Inc.
• In 1941, Consolidated Aircraft Corporation was sold to AVCO.
• 1943 was a big year: Consolidated Aircraft and Vultee Aircraft merged to form Consolidated-Vultee, still under AVCO’s control.
• In 1947, Convair was bought by the Atlas Corporation.
• From 1953 to 1954, Convair was acquired by General Dynamics.
• In 1985, General Dynamics created a new group called the "Space Systems Division" from Convair’s space programs.
• In 1992, the Missile Systems Division was sold to Hughes Aircraft Company.
• By 1993, the Fort Worth facility was sold to Lockheed Corporation, which is now Lockheed Martin.
• In 1994, the Space Systems Division was sold to Martin Marietta, now also part of Lockheed Martin.
• Also in 1994, Convair’s Aircraft Structures unit was sold to McDonnell Douglas, which is now Boeing.

Products

Aircraft

Missiles and rockets

• RTV-A-2 Hiroc (1946) – high-altitude rocket
• SAM-N-2 Lark (late 1940s) – surface-to-air naval missile
• MX-774 (1948) – precursor to Atlas
• XSM-74 (1950s) – decoy cruise missile
• RIM-2 Terrier (1951) – surface-to-air naval missile
• RIM-24 Tartar (1962) – surface-to-air naval missile
• XGAM-71 Buck Duck (1955) – decoy missile
• Sky Scorcher (1956) – proposed air-to-air missile
• Pye Wacket (1957) – air-to-air defensive missile project, cancelled during development
• FIM-43 Redeye (1960) – man-portable surface-to-air missile
• Atlas (rocket family) (1959) The Atlas civilian space booster
  • Atlas E/F
  • Atlas G
  • Atlas H
  • Atlas LV-3B
  • Atlas SLV-3
  • Atlas-Able
  • Atlas-Agena
  • SM-65 Atlas – The Atlas ICBM Air Force missile (1957)
  • Convair X-11 and SM-65A Atlas (1957) – Atlas A prototype
  • Convair X-12 and SM-65B Atlas (1958 – Atlas B prototype
  • SM-65C Atlas
  • SM-65D Atlas
  • SM-65E Atlas
  • SM-65F Atlas
  • Atlas-Centaur (1962) and its successor-designations, all of which combined an Atlas booster with a Centaur upper stage – a civilian rocket to launch spacecraft to outer space.
• Centaur (1962)
• BGM-109 Tomahawk long-range, all-weather, subsonic cruise missile.
• AGM-129 Advanced Cruise Missile (1983) – stealthy, nuclear, air-launched cruise missile