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Condor Luftreederei "Metropolitian" Promotional Gift


The German airline Condor Luftreederei used a model of the Convair "Metropolitian" as promotional gift handed to the passengers in flight. This model is derived from the Wiking Convair CV-340 silver series model.


Excerpt from the the welcome letter, see picture 2 (my translation):

Condor Luftreederei Ltd. Hamburg-Airport

Dear passenger ,
...

In the period of time between take-off and landing, where you
indulge the familiar but again and again new experience of flight we
hand you a little present.
You find here a true to scale model of the "Metropolitian", you are just flying in as our guest.
...

By the way: You can acquire more aircraft models from our cabin crew at a price of DM 2.50.

Condor Luftreederei GmbH, Hamburg was founded as private company in July 1957 from the Oetker-Gruppe [ Oetker-group ] and started operation in July 1958 with two new Convair CV-440 Metropolitians (D-ABAB and D-ADIL).

The company was taken over by Lufthansa in 1961 which merged it with their  subsidiary Deutscher Flugdienst to constitute "Condor Flugdienst GmbH". [ 1 ]

This promotional model is obviously based on the default Wiking Convair CV-340 and does not represent a CV-440 Metropolitian. The Convair CV-440 differs from the CV-340 in having a lengthened nose for housing a radar antenna and single recangular exaust stacks instead of the twin round stacks as on the CV-340 (Wiking stacks here). Engine cowling is more streamlined, too, at the 440.

New aquisition February 2015. CV-340 Version with white top of fuselage.



____________________

[ 1 ] Seifert, Karl-Dieter: Der Deutsche Luftverkehr. 1955-2000
From the series : Die deutsche Luftfahrt
Bonn: Bernard&Graefe, 2001. ISBN 3-7637-6121-7



Picture 1: Wiking promptional model of the Convair CV-340. Box has proprietary boxart for Condor.
Courtesy of Martin http://h0-klassiker.blogspot.de ©

 

Picture 2 left: Welcome letter addressed to the passengers
Courtesy of Martin http://h0-klassiker.blogspot.de ©

Picture 3 right: Rear of welcome letter shows technical specifications
Courtesy of Martin http://h0-klassiker.blogspot.de ©


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Home How it All Began Plastic Kits
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Started: 05.11.2013 Revised last: Author: cjk  © cjk