Across the desert at Marana Regional Airport in Arizona, a long-forgotten piece of American history had been lying forgotten. The Lockheed Constellation VC-121A was named Columbine II by First Lady Mamie Eisenhower and was the very first to take on the legendary call sign Air Force One. This aircraft, which carried President Dwight D. Eisenhower from 1952 to 1954, was rediscovered in 2015 by Dynamic Aviation, covered in dust and surrounded by derelict planes.
Brad Holliday, maintenance manager for the restoration project, clearly recalls the first inspection. “I crawled up into the No. 1 engine nacelle and surprised a bird from her nest. Repositioning a couple of rattlesnakes and some scorpions, that’s how we got started,” he said. And with that, the painstaking restoration program for one of America’s most historic bombers was underway.
Known to their friends as the “Connie,” the Constellation was a technological marvel for its time. One of the last propeller-driven aircraft to carry a U.S. president, it was powered by four Curtiss-Wright R-3350 engines. According to Phil Douglas, executive director of the First Air Force One project, the aircraft was of great importance: “This was Ike’s primary mode of transportation for the first two years of his presidency, and he traveled over 63,000 miles on it.”.
The plane played its part in every significant moment of Eisenhower’s presidency: from being there when he visited U.S. troops in Korea as president-elect to speech prep—drafting his “Atoms for Peace” message, which he’d deliver at the United Nations—en route. Important decisions were being made by the flying office called Columbine II.
It wasn’t until the trailblazing founder of Dynamic Aviation, Karl Stoltzfus, did he saw a unique opportunity to restore Columbine II to her former glory. With untold hours of work, and no fewer than eight trips to Arizona, the airplane became airworthy through and took to the skies on its way home to Bridgewater, Virginia, this past March. Backed by both staff technicians and volunteers, the restoration team has been on its toes, striking a balance between maintaining the originality of the aircraft and modernizing its systems to comply with current safety standards.
The triple tail and fuselage in the shape of a dolphin were unique design features, which made Constellations an engineering innovation by Lockheed. The triple tail made it possible for the aircraft to be shuttled into those hangars that were built for older, more compact planes. Its fuselage shaped like a dolphin contributed to its aerodynamic properties. “Some would say it is the most beautiful airplane ever flown,” Holliday remarked.
The project will restore Columbine II to flying status and into a flying museum so the public can get aboard and experience a piece of American history. “When you step onto the airplane, you’ll touch American history. You’ll sit at the desk where Eisenhower sat, and see the fold-down bunks in the staff seating rooms,” Douglas said.
Their team continues to focus on maintaining the history of the aircraft throughout the restoration process. The original instrument panel will be replaced with modern avionics, and a second panel will be installed inside the aircraft that recreates the layout from 1948. Local students and retired Air Force technicians working on this project have made the aircraft project meaningful to them, too.
The Lockheed Constellation has captured not only the imagination of aviation enthusiasts and historians but also had a very colorful history with a very elegant design. From high-speed transport for troops during World War II to becoming the first Air Force One, the Connie evokes pride in the ingenuity and resilience of the United States.