Manufacturer · United States · Founded 1912
Lockheed’s Airliners: Beautiful, Brilliant, Unprofitable
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Today, Lockheed is known for fighter jets and spacecraft. But for half a century it also built airliners, and some of them were among the most elegant and technically daring ever made. None of them made Lockheed much money, and that’s why the story ends where it does.
From the Loughead brothers to Burbank
The company was founded in 1912 by brothers Allan and Malcolm Loughead (pronounced “Lockheed”; they later changed the spelling to match). After early struggles, a new Lockheed Aircraft Company was formed in 1926 and settled in Burbank, California, in 1928. Its wooden Vega monoplane set records, including Amelia Earhart’s solo transatlantic flight in 1932, and its twin-engined Electra of the 1930s became a popular small airliner.
The Constellation
Lockheed’s masterpiece was the Constellation, the “Connie”. With its curved, dolphin-like fuselage, four big piston engines and triple tail, it entered airline service after the Second World War, with TWA among its best-known operators. Pressurised and fast, it flew some of the world’s first regular transatlantic and round-the-world services. The stretched Super Constellation followed, and Qantas flew it on the Kangaroo Route to London.
The triple tail wasn’t just style. It gave enough tail area for stability while keeping the aircraft short enough to fit into existing hangars.
The arc
Lockheed’s airliner era
- 1912The bet
The Loughead brothers
Allan and Malcolm Loughead start building aircraft in California.
- 1928The bet
Move to Burbank
The renamed Lockheed company settles in Burbank.
- 1946Proof
Constellation in airline service
The triple-tailed “Connie” flies the world’s great routes.
- 1959The bet
L-188 Electra
The first large US turboprop airliner enters service.
- 1971Strain
Rolls-Royce crisis
The TriStar’s engine supplier collapses, delaying the programme.
- 1972Proof
TriStar enters service
With Eastern Air Lines.
- 1984Break
Last TriStar
After 250 aircraft, Lockheed leaves the airliner business.
The Electra: an early turboprop
In 1959 Lockheed introduced the L-188 Electra, the first large turboprop airliner built in the United States. It was fast and popular at first, but early in its service two aircraft were lost to a structural problem called “whirl mode”, a vibration that could build up between the engine mounts and the wing. Lockheed’s fixes, known as the Electra Action Program, solved it, but the delay hurt sales just as pure jets arrived. Only 170 were built. The design lived on as the P-3 Orion maritime patrol aircraft.
The TriStar: ahead of its time
Lockheed’s final airliner, the L-1011 TriStar, first flew in November 1970. It was a widebody with three engines, much like the DC-10, but technologically more advanced, with an autoland system capable of very low-visibility landings years before it was common.
The TriStar was hit by two problems Lockheed couldn’t engineer away. In 1971 its only engine supplier, Rolls-Royce, collapsed financially while developing the RB211 engine, delaying the programme and costing Lockheed dearly. And the DC-10 was chasing exactly the same customers. Both trijets were built, splitting a market that could barely support one.
After 250 TriStars, built at Burbank and Palmdale, Lockheed ended production in 1984 and left the airliner business for good. In 1995 it merged with Martin Marietta to form Lockheed Martin.
The real numbers
Lockheed’s airliners in numbers
1912
Founded
By the Loughead brothers
170
L-188 Electras
Built 1957–1961
250
TriStars
Built 1968–1984
1984
Left airliners
After the last TriStar
Iconic aircraft
1927
Lockheed Vega
A record-setting single-engined monoplane.
1946
Lockheed Constellation
The elegant, triple-tailed piston airliner.
1959
L-188 Electra
The first large US turboprop airliner.
1972
L-1011 TriStar →
A technically advanced widebody trijet, 250 built.
Sources & Further Reading
Common Questions
Frequently Asked Questions
Why did Lockheed stop making airliners?
The L-1011 TriStar lost money. It was delayed by the 1971 collapse of its engine maker, Rolls-Royce, and competed with the almost identical DC-10 for a limited market. After 250 aircraft, production ended in 1984.
Is Lockheed the same as Lockheed Martin?
Lockheed merged with Martin Marietta in 1995 to form Lockheed Martin, today one of the world’s largest defence companies. It no longer builds airliners.
Why did the Constellation have three tails?
The triple tail kept the aircraft short enough to fit in existing hangars while still giving enough tail area for stability and control.
Where were TriStars built?
At Lockheed’s facilities in Burbank and Palmdale, California.
Is any TriStar still flying?
Very few. One famous example, “Stargazer”, has been used to air-launch Pegasus rockets into orbit.