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Lockheed L-188 Electra

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NOTE: RADIO CONTROL AIRPLANES ARE ON THE BOTTOM HALF OF THE PAGE.


Lockheed L-188 Electra aircraft were the first American built turboprop airliners. They were introduced in 1958.

The Air Spray Ltd. conversion of a Electra Varig airliner was deployed in Canada in 1994. Since then they have acquired a reputation as the fastest initial attack air tankers.

Strengths of the L-188 Electra include little to no engine warm-up, a high 380 mph cruise speed and the nimbleness of a much smaller aircraft.

Water and retardant delivery is by a proprietary computerized system that is controlled by the pilo with a single rotary switch. Capacity is 3,000 gallons which can be disbursed in a single three second burst or metered out over a large area.

The advantage of the Air Spray System is more thorough and complete type of coverage than with aircraft having more than a single outlet.

A total of 170 Lockheed L-188 Electra aircraft were manufactured.

Specifications

    Primary Function:
    Crew:
    Engines:
    Power
    Length:
    Wingspan:
    Weight Empty:
    Max. Weight:
    Seats:
    Retardant:
    Cruise Speed:
    Max. Speed:
    Climb Rate:
    Ceiling:
    Range:
    Year Deployed:
transport
two or three
Allison 501D
4 x 3,750 hp ea.
104' 6"
99'  0"
61,500 lbs.
116,000 lbs.
99 to 127
3,000  gallons
380 mph
445 mph
2,000 fpm
28,400  feet
2,200 miles
1957



Radio Control Airplane
Carl Bacchuber's rc L-188 Electra.



Radio Control Airplanes:




SEE HOW IT WORKS!


We have only seen one rc L-188 Electra radio control airplane modeled. It is the magnificent rc L-188 Electra by master builder Carl Bacchuber. Wingspan is 160", with power coming from four Evolution 26 engines. It has working flaps and brakes, plus numerous scale details. Carl started work on his rc Electra in September 2010 and it was ready to fly by April 2011.

There have been a number of anti submarine versions of the rc Electra built. For someone interested in building a rc L-188 Electra as a water bomber or airliner, it seems all that would have to be done is to remove the "stinger" tail and paint the rc Electra in your favorite color scheme.

Pictured first and second below are the good looking anti submarine version of the rc L-188 Electra scratch built by Richard Vale.  It has a wingspan of 78" and a length of 84". Power comes from 4 x GWS 350-d motors. All up weight is around 7 lbs.

In the second and third pictures below is the 46.5" wingspan anti submarine version of the rc L-188 Electra built by Eddie P. of RC Groups.  It is 1:25 scale with a length of 52.75".  Eddie powers it with four Speed 300 7.2V motors.  All up weight is 41 oz.

The last two pictures on this page are of the great looking L-188 Electra FF model scratch built by Chris Starleaf. It has a 40" wingspan and is powered by four MPS-1A motors. Weight is just 11 oz. With the light weight batteries in use today, this would make a great conversion to a rc L-188 Electra radio control airplane.

Please email us with any information that you can provide on the rc L-188 Electra model airplane.



Radio Control Airplane
RC Airplane by Richard Vale.



Radio Control Airplane
Richard Vale's rc airplane on the ground.



Radio Control Airplane
Eddie P. holding his rc airplane.


Radio Control Airplane
RC Airplane climbing.


Model Airplane
Chris Starleaf's Lockheed L-188 Electra.


Model Airplane
Lockheed L-188 Electra FF model.