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Connie
My first exposure to a passenger plane took place in the mid 1950s. I must have been about 6 or 7 years of age at the time. The old Municipal Airport, just across the river from downtown Kansas City, was the location for my initial introduction. The airplane for this original viewing was the most beautiful I have ever known, a TWA Constellation.
This Lockheed commercial airliner was nicknamed and recognized the world over as the "Connie." The Constellation had a distinctive appearance that has never been rivaled in my mind's eye.
I did a little research online about this famous airliner. It was the last major propeller powered passenger plane in service before the introduction of jet airliners.
To get four propellers large enough to power a large plane, they must be very tall. This requires the plane to sit quite high above the ground so that the propellers have room to rotate. The "Connie" gained its unique look due to this engineering requirement.
By having three vertical tails, they could be much smaller in height and still do the job. The familiar curve to the fuselage was caused by the connection of the lower tails to the need for a higher passenger compartment. The end result was the legendary beauty we lovingly call the "Connie."
TWA had its hub in Kansas City for many years. Howard Hughes, the founder of that airline, landed many times in Kansas City. Until the new Kansas City International was built in the early '70s, passenger airplanes were common sights on the city horizon.
People in Kansas City would commonly have to turn the sound on their television sets up or down during a show when a plane flew overhead. With prevailing southerly winds, most planes took off right over the river heading south towards the city.
Municipal Airport not only was the setting for the "Connie," it was a part of my life as a kid. Kansas City was known to us simply as the "City." We went there for shopping, doctors, and transportation.
I remember a time we went to pick up someone at the airport. In those days, the trip itself took close to three hours. Highway 71 was a busy two-lane that missed no towns as it curved northward towards the metropolitan area.
It was not at all uncommon for your family vehicle to get entangled in a long line of autos, trapped behind slower vehicles. The road had so many curves and hills, that passing zones were few and far between.
Each town had designed many of its local businesses to provide a variety of services to the travelers on this roadway. As kids we were familiar with the many types of stops along the way.
One of our 1950s Highway 71 favorites was the "Dari Drive-In" in Rich Hill. It is currently known as "Swopes Drive-In," and in the '60s it was "Miller's Dari Drive-In." Like the "White Grill" here in Nevada, this restaurant specialized in good burgers, suzies, and shakes.
If we did not get to stop in Rich Hill, we would try to get our parents to stop at the "Wagon Wheel" in Harrisonville. It was famous for serving a great tenderloin sandwich.
Each town had stop lights that further slowed your progress to and from the city. In today's world it is just barely an hour from Nevada to Harrisonville. Back then the trip was just getting interesting when you got that far.
It said, I think, about 28 miles on the sign from Harrisonville to Kansas City. Truckers had a nickname for this stretch of highway. They called it the "Ho Chi Minh Trail," after the notorious Viet Nam leader. It was in many ways just as treacherous.
Once you arrived in Kansas City, the trip to Municipal was far from over. If my memory is correct, we eventually followed Main Street downtown. At some point we jogged over to Broadway to take the bridge across the river to the airport.
Parking and security have definitely changed since those days. We drove right to parking areas in front of the terminal. Here is where it got really interesting. It did not matter back then whether it was a departing or arriving plane, you could actually go with your family members right out to the loading area.
Oh, and by the way, there were none of those covered walkways that roll right out to the plane for the passengers. The ground crew would maneuver a stair ramp right up to the door of the plane. Going or coming, you had to climb the stairs.
Baggage was handled in a shocking way as well. The same ground crew would open the storage doors near the bottom of the plane to remove the luggage. Passengers would walk up with their luggage check stubs to reclaim their bags.
I never got to fly on a Constellation. I was told by others that it was a truly great ride. The plane also flew in the "golden age" of civilian air travel. On cross-country flights, it was common practice to receive a full course dinner. Fresh coffee, tea, mixed drinks, and soda were served throughout the trip.
Lest I forget, there was one other passenger feature. For many years, passengers were allowed to smoke in the rear half of the plane. The seats even had ash trays built into the arms of the chairs.
My memories of Municipal Airport and the "Connie" would not be complete without one final story. On one trip there, we were treated by seeing and shaking hands with the television actor, Andy Devine. He played the part of "Jingles" on the "Wild Bill Hickok Show."
They still have a fully operational "Connie" at the old airport. Perhaps I still have a chance for my dream flight.