Consairway

Consairway was a wartime air-transport division of Consolidated Vultee Aircraft Corporation, commonly known as Convair. It operated from 1942 through December 1945 under contract to the United States Army Air Forces' Air Transport Command (ATC), carrying high-priority military passengers, cargo, ferry pilots, entertainers and personnel across the Pacific. Unlike conventional commercial airlines, Consairway did not own its aircraft or hold a normal airline certificate; the government supplied the aircraft and the military determined much of the operating requirement. Its significance lay in the way it made long-distance Pacific transport more frequent, faster and more dependable during the Second World War. The operation grew out of Consolidated's need to return aircraft-delivery crews from the Pacific. In November 1941, Consolidated test pilot Richard A. McMakin flew an LB-30, a transport adaptation of the B-24 Liberator, from San Diego to Honolulu to retrieve personnel who had delivered flying boats to the Dutch East Indies. After the attack on Pearl Harbor, the shortage of long-range military transports made such return flights urgent. The Army Air Forces therefore directed Consolidated to establish a dedicated service. Consairway began operations on 23 April 1942 with two LB-30s and expanded rapidly. What began as a pilot-recovery service soon became a broader carrier of people and freight, including aircraft parts, bombs, torpedoes, invasion currency and USO performers. Consairway's aircraft were heavily modified B-24 derivatives. Bomb bays were sealed and fitted with strong plywood floors, armament was progressively removed and camouflage and unnecessary equipment were stripped to improve payload and range. The fleet included LB-30s, B-24As and C-87 transports. The operation used celestial navigation, dead reckoning and relay crews to cross vast stretches of ocean between islands whose runways, communications, maintenance facilities and accommodation were often primitive. Because the aircraft were landplanes rather than flying boats, crews had fewer options in an emergency. Consairway nevertheless pioneered routine day-and-night landplane flying across the Pacific and achieved much greater utilization than many other wartime transport operations. Its route structure moved westward as Allied forces advanced: Australia was followed by Nadzab in New Guinea, Biak in the Dutch East Indies, Guam and, near the war's end, Manila. By 1944 the airline could operate twice-daily end-to-end frequencies on parts of its network, and it later ran service to Manila as often as four times daily. The company maintained facilities at Amberley in Australia and worked closely with United Air Lines, whose Honolulu base also supported Consairway aircraft. The operation was initially kept secret, although Convair later publicized it in corporate advertising while continuing to conceal the exact western terminus. After Japan's defeat, Consairway shifted to an eight-flight-per-day Honolulu shuttle. Convair explored possible postwar commercial arrangements, but an aircraft manufacturer operating a commercial airline raised legal and structural problems, and Consairway had no independent operating certificate or aircraft fleet. Convair announced its closure in October 1945; frequencies were reduced in December and the final flight operated on 15 December 1945. The operation had flown approximately 100 million ton-miles and 300 million passenger-miles. Its personnel and methods influenced Pacific Overseas Airlines, founded by former employees, while Convair also used the experience to strengthen its understanding of airline operations and commercial aircraft requirements.

Consairway emerged from Consolidated Aircraft's wartime aircraft-delivery activities. In November 1941, test pilot Richard A. McMakin demonstrated that an LB-30 transport could cross from California to Hawaii and return personnel who had delivered aircraft into the Pacific. The attack on Pearl Harbor intensified the need for such a service. The Army Air Forces had very few four-engine transports, while Pan American Airways was heavily committed elsewhere, so the military turned to Consolidated's flight department. The first Consairway flight took place on 23 April 1942. The initial fleet consisted of two LB-30s, but the service expanded to six aircraft within weeks. Although pilot recovery was the original purpose, the demand for outbound transport quickly became more important. Consairway carried military personnel, aircraft components, weapons-related cargo, special passengers and entertainment groups. Its aircraft were converted B-24-family machines, with bomb bays sealed and fitted with plywood cargo decks. Guns, armor, camouflage and other equipment were removed over time to increase payload and useful range. The Pacific operation was difficult. Consairway aircraft crossed long ocean sectors using celestial navigation and dead reckoning, often between airfields with limited communications, fuel, food, accommodation and maintenance. Unlike flying boats, the landplanes had no practical ability to land safely on open water. Crews worked in relays, allowing aircraft to remain in near-continuous service while facilities improved. The airline began scheduled flying in September 1943 and later achieved exceptionally high aircraft utilization. Its headquarters moved from San Diego to Fairfield-Suisun Army Air Base in December 1943, and Pacific departures eventually shifted there from Hamilton Army Airfield. The network followed the Allied advance. Australia was initially the main western destination, followed by Nadzab in New Guinea in August 1944, Biak in the Dutch East Indies and then Guam. Near the end of the war, Consairway added Manila, sometimes operating several flights daily. Its activities were classified for much of the war, although Convair later used the operation in public corporate advertising. The exact western terminus continued to be described indirectly in public accounts. McMakin led the service until his death in an XB-32 test-flight crash on 10 May 1943. Richard S. Mitchell subsequently led Consairway and later received a President's Certificate of Merit for the operation. A Consairway navigator, Lloyd Herring, was killed during a Japanese bombing attack on Biak in March 1945. On 3 November 1945, a Consairway aircraft ditched in the North Pacific, illustrating the hazards of the landplane route, although the available reference material does not provide a full account of the accident's consequences. After the war, Consairway operated an intensive Honolulu shuttle. Convair considered whether the organization could continue commercially and discussed possible interest from established transport companies, but the service lacked its own aircraft and airline certificate. The legal position of an aircraft manufacturer owning a commercial airline was also problematic. Convair announced the end of Consairway in October 1945, reduced the Honolulu schedule from eight to four daily flights on 1 December and closed the operation after 15 December. The operation's direct legacy included Pacific Overseas Airlines, founded by former Consairway personnel shortly after the closure. Consairway also gave Convair practical insight into airline scheduling, maintenance, payload management and long-range passenger operations. In 1943, McMakin received the Air Medal posthumously for his Australia proving flight. In 1992, civilian employees who had served overseas with Consairway during the war received recognition and benefits as military veterans under a Veterans Benefits Administration decision.

• 1992

  Veteran recognition for overseas civilian employees

  [1]Consairwayen.wikipedia.org

  Former overseas civilian Consairway employees received military-veteran status and related benefits.

• 1945

  Final flights

  [1]Consairwayen.wikipedia.org

  After operating a postwar Honolulu shuttle, Consairway completed its last operation on 15 December.

• 1944

  Network reaches farther west

  [1]Consairwayen.wikipedia.org

  The route network extended through Nadzab, Biak and onward as Allied forces moved toward Japan.

• 1943

  Scheduled operations begin

  [1]Consairwayen.wikipedia.org

  Consairway introduced scheduled services and moved its headquarters to Fairfield-Suisun Army Air Base later that year.

• 1942

  Consairway launches

  [1]Consairwayen.wikipedia.org

  The Convair flight department began its first dedicated service on 23 April under the Air Transport Command.

• 1941

  LB-30 proving flight to Hawaii

  [1]Consairwayen.wikipedia.org

  Richard A. McMakin flew an LB-30 from San Diego to Honolulu to retrieve personnel who had delivered aircraft to the Pacific.

A specialized, high-frequency wartime Pacific transport operator focused on speed, reliability and priority military movement under difficult operating conditions.

• Passenger airline services · 1942

  Pacific contract passenger service

  Consairway transported military and other high-priority passengers across the Pacific under Air Transport Command arrangements. Its passengers included ferry pilots, military personnel, diplomats and USO performers. The service used relay crews and increasingly regular schedules to reduce journey times and support the operational tempo of Allied forces.

• Air cargo · 1942

  Priority cargo transport

  The airline carried urgent military cargo in converted B-24-family transports. Loads included aircraft parts, bombs, torpedoes, invasion currency and other supplies. The aircraft were modified with sealed bomb bays, plywood cargo floors and extensive weight reductions to increase useful payload.

• Passenger airline services · 1945

  Honolulu shuttle

  Immediately after the war, Consairway operated a high-frequency shuttle to Honolulu, reaching eight daily flights before the schedule was reduced during the final weeks of operation. It was the company's last service before closure in December 1945.

• 1945

  Postwar wind-down and closureStrategy

  Background

  The end of the war removed the military emergency that had supported Consairway, while its lack of an independent airline certificate and aircraft fleet complicated commercial continuation.

  Action taken

  Convair announced closure in October, reduced the Honolulu schedule in December and ended flying on 15 December 1945.

  Aftermath

  Former employees established Pacific Overseas Airlines, while Convair retained operational knowledge gained from the wartime service.

  Source

• 1944

  Progressive westward extension of Pacific routesStrategy

  Background

  Allied advances created new airfields and shifted the military's logistical center of gravity toward Japan.

  Action taken

  Consairway moved its western destinations from Australia through New Guinea and the Dutch East Indies to Guam, and later added Manila.

  Aftermath

  The carrier achieved more frequent end-to-end Pacific operations and shorter round-trip times than prewar services.

  Source

• 1943

  Conversion from ad hoc pilot recovery to scheduled transportStrategy

  Background

  The initial mission was to return ferry pilots from overseas delivery routes, but military demand for passenger and cargo movement quickly became more valuable.

  Action taken

  Consairway expanded its role and introduced scheduled services in September 1943, enabling more systematic maintenance and higher aircraft utilization.

  Aftermath

  The operation became one of the most heavily utilized Pacific contract carriers during the war.

  Source

1. 1Consairwayen.wikipedia.org