Posted inBusiness, Maine, sj-web

Lufthansa sticks to plans to move Constellation to Germany

Part of Lufthansa’s efforts to restore the Lockheed Constellation Starliners AUBURN — Lufthansa officials have seen the grassroots, online petition — signed by more than 5,400 people in less than 10 days — asking that the company reconsider its plan to dismantle its historic Super Star Constellation after a decade-long restoration project here. Their petition signers’ plea […]

Posted inBusiness, Lewiston-Auburn, sj-web

Auburn-Lewiston airport to start planning for massive hangar’s life after Lufthansa

Part of Lufthansa’s efforts to restore the Lockheed Constellation Starliners AUBURN — When Lufthansa Technik announced plans Thursday to dismantle its “Super Star” Constellation and send it back to Germany after a 10-year restoration project, the timing came as a surprise locally. Bettyann Sheats, chairwoman of the Auburn-Lewiston Municipal Airport board of directors, said they knew […]

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Posted inBusiness, Lewiston-Auburn, sj-web

Lufthansa to move ‘Super Star’ from Auburn to Germany

Part of Lufthansa’s efforts to restore the Lockheed Constellation Starliners AUBURN — After 10 years, the “Super Star” Constellation is taking off — or at least moving on. Lufthansa Technik announced Thursday that it will be removing the wings from the historic aircraft, packing it up and taking it to Germany later this year to finish […]

Posted inLewiston-Auburn, sj-web

Video: Fire-suppression foam released at Auburn-Lewiston Municipal Airport

Part of Lufthansa’s efforts to restore the Lockheed Constellation Starliners AUBURN — Firefighters responding to the Lufthansa hangar at the Auburn-Lewiston Municipal Airport on Monday morning walked into a wall of foam over their heads after a malfunction in the fire suppression system filled the building with foam and briefly trapped four people inside. “Apparently, they […]

Posted inLewiston-Auburn

Super Star coming together in Auburn

When Lufthansa Technik officials heard about the impending sale of three of the remaining four Lockheed Super Star Constellation aircraft in the world in 2007, a historic vision came together: Cobble together parts of all three aging Constellations in order to get one back into the air for the first time in decades. Lufthansa Technik […]

Posted inLewiston-Auburn

Auburn mulls taking over Lufthansa hangar

AUBURN — Operations at the Auburn-Lewiston Municipal Airport could save about $49,000 per year by taking over the lease for the hangar housing Lufthansa Technion’s Constellation project, councilors were told Monday. City Councilors were briefed on a plan to purchase the hangar from Nobility, LLC, which would pay off the contract, which has 14 years […]

Posted inbPlus

Restoring the Super Constellations

One of the last missions of the Lockheed L-1649A Starliner, which now sits stripped bare in a hangar at the Auburn-Lewiston Airport, was to transport cattle. Its final flight, in the early 1980s, was its arrival in Auburn from Florida. Only 44 Starliners were built, between 1956 and 1958, and were the cream of the […]

Posted inOur View, sj-web

On into the starry past of air travel

In their heyday, Lockheed Martin Super Constellation “Starliners” operated by Lufthansa could shuttle 30 people on the world’s longest airplane ride: 23 hours and 19 minutes, from London to San Francisco. Privileged passengers lounged in luxury aboard these “Super Stars,” and could cloister behind curtained beds while enjoying the latest in-flight entertainment: recorded music, played […]