Seaboard World Airlines
First customer to buy the commercial version of the CL44
Seaboard bought a total of 7 CL-44īs, but operated a total
of 8. These were delivered under the type specification CL-44D4-1
The first was delivered on13 July 1961 (c/n 14 N124SW). Seaboard stopped operating the
last CL-44 in May 1969.
Seaboard & Western was organized on 16th September 1946 as a
North Atlantic all-cargo airline. Its first flight to Europe was made on 10th May 1947
with a C-54 to Luxembourg. The founders were all experienced ATC (Air Transport Command)
personnel from W.W.II and had great experience in running all-freight operations. SW
started flying DC4 from New York to Frankfurt where they supported Operation
Vittles (The Berlin Air Lift). Later SW leased some Lockheed L1049H which was the
first planed entirely designed to be a commercial freighter. At that time SW was the
largest all freight carrier in the world. In 1959 Seaboard ordered five CL-44 swingtail
turboprop jet aircraft and the first was introduced to service in august 1961. This fleet
grew to seven CL-44 in 1962 when Seaboard introduced Blockspace carriage. On
26th April 1961 Seaboard & Western changed its name to Seaboard World Airlines.On 30th
September 1963 one CL-44 was leased to BOAC for two years. In June 1964 Seaboard
introduced the first DC-8F. In 1965 the company committed seven CL-44 and one DC-8 to the
Vietnam effort. A second DC-8 was leased and and during the fall of 1965 Seaboard
negotiated a three year swap of four CL-44 with the Flying Tiger Line in exchange for two
DC-8s. (These CL-44s were c/n 26 N126SW, c/n 31 N228SW that later crashed upon approach in
Da Nang Vietnam, c/n 32 N229SW and the last one was c/n 14 N124SW but this one was
delivered to the Tigers in 1969. In 1970 Seaboards fleet consisted of nine owned
DC-8-63CF, two leased DC-8-63CF, and 3 leased DC-8-55JT. That year Seaboard sold its six
remaining CL-44. Seaboard was later acquired by The Flying Tiger
Line.
For more information on Seaboard World Airlines please visit SPAR: http://www.geocities.com/CapeCanaveral/9381/index.htm