Good Goshamighty

Sept. 19, 2006
Boeing has flown the damndest aircraft you’ve ever seen from Taipei to Seattle. Called the Large Cargo Freighter (LCF), the airplane looks like somebody stuck a 747 into a giant hot dog bun. That’s logical enough since it’s an adaptation of the 747-400. It will be used to carry the wings of the new Boeing Dreamliner—expected out in 2008—from the Orient to the USA. Could anybody over 50 possibly look at this behemoth without thinking of the Guppy airplanes of yore? I doubt it. In fact, can anyone who ever saw a Guppy ever forget that unbelievable first impression? I can’t. The Guppy was largely the brainchild of John Conroy and Lee Mansdorf. An extensive modification of another Boeing, the 377 Stratocruiser, the Guppy was built for the sole purpose of transporting booster rockets from California to Florida for one customer, NASA. The Guppy didn’t look like it could possibly fly. For the initial test flight the guvmint evacuated buildings along the planned route and forbade any deviation from that route. It took off, flew, and landed to much amazement and awe. When a reporter asked Conroy if he was relieved, he said. "Oh no. We weren’t worried about this one. It’s the big one we’re worried about."   There are a few Guppies still around—I saw one at a recent Oshkosh Airventure—and they don't look a bit more believable today than they did 40 years ago.   Now cometh the Boeing Large Cargo Freighter. It is certainly not as unwieldy looking as the Guppy, but it is huge. Boeing says it will carry more than three times the cargo of a 747-400 by volume. Whereas the Guppy was loaded through a swingaway nose, the LCF is loaded through a swingaway tail. You can find a picture of the LCF and related story here on Airport Business, so you can look for yourself. It is awesome. You can also link to Boeing's Press Release and further photos by clicking here. We’d love to publish your comments. Click the comment box at the top.