Lockheed Constellation : Air World : 9781526758866 : 1526758865 : 29 Jun 2021 : Clarence ?Kelly' Johnson's design for the Lockheed Constellation, known affectionately as the 'Connie', produced one of the world's most iconic airliners.Lockheed had been working on the L-044 Excalibur, a four-engine, pressurized airliner, since 1937. In 1939, Trans World Airlines, at the instigation of major stockholder Howard Hughes, requested a 40-passenger transcontinental aircraft with a range of 3,500 miles, well beyond the capabilities of the Excalibur design. TWA's requirements led to the L-049 Constellation, designed by Lockheed engineers including Kelly Johnson and Hall Hibbard.Between 1943 and 1958, Lockheed built 856 Constellations in numerous models at its Burbank, California, factory ? all with the same distinctive and immediately recognizable triple-tail design and dolphin-shaped fuselage.The Constellation was used as a civil airliner and as a military and civilian air transport, seeing serv