Convair

antiaircraft missile on board USS Providence , the first U.S. crewed orbital space flight with Pioneer 10 on launch pad Convair, originally Consolidated Vultee Aircraft Corporation, was an American aircraft-manufacturing company created by the 1943 merger of Consolidated Aircraft and Vultee Aircraft, which later expanded into rockets and spacecraft. It was purchased by General Dynamics in 1953 and operated as their Convair Division for most of its corporate history. Convair is best known for its military aircraft, such as the Convair B-36 Peacemaker and Convair B-58 Hustler strategic bombers, and the Convair F-102 Delta Dagger and Convair F-106 Delta Dart Century Series interceptors. It also manufactured the first Atlas rockets, including those used for the crewed orbital flights of Project Mercury. The company's subsequent Atlas-Centaur design continued this success, and derivatives of the design remain in use as of 2025. In addition to producing propeller-driven civilian airliners, such as the ten or so variants of the CV-240, the company entered the jet airliner business with its Convair 880 and Convair 990 designs. These were smaller than contemporary aircraft like the Boeing 707 and Douglas DC-8, but somewhat faster than both. The jets made their first flights on January 27, 1959 and January 24, 1961, respectively.…

antiaircraft missile on board USS Providence , the first U.S. crewed orbital space flight with Pioneer 10 on launch pad Convair, originally Consolidated Vultee Aircraft Corporation, was an American aircraft-manufacturing company created by the 1943 merger of Consolidated Aircraft and Vultee Aircraft, which later expanded into rockets and spacecraft. It was purchased by General Dynamics in 1953 and operated as their Convair Division for most of its corporate history. Convair is best known for its military aircraft, such as the Convair B-36 Peacemaker and Convair B-58 Hustler strategic bombers, and the Convair F-102 Delta Dagger and Convair F-106 Delta Dart Century Series interceptors. It also manufactured the first Atlas rockets, including those used for the crewed orbital flights of Project Mercury. The company's subsequent Atlas-Centaur design continued this success, and derivatives of the design remain in use as of 2025. In addition to producing propeller-driven civilian airliners, such as the ten or so variants of the CV-240, the company entered the jet airliner business with its Convair 880 and Convair 990 designs. These were smaller than contemporary aircraft like the Boeing 707 and Douglas DC-8, but somewhat faster than both. The jets made their first flights on January 27, 1959 and January 24, 1961, respectively. When only 65 and 37 examples of the Convair 880 and Convair 990 were produced respectively, the company exited the airliner design business. While the pair’s combination of features failed to find a profitable niche, the manufacturing capability built up for these projects allowed the company to become a major subcontractor for airliner fuselages. In 1994, most of the company's divisions were sold by General Dynamics to McDonnell Douglas and Lockheed, with the remaining components deactivated in 1996.

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