The Martin 2-0-2 was an airliner introduced in 1947. The twin piston-engined
fixed-wing aircraft
A fixed-wing aircraft is a heavier-than-air flying machine, such as an airplane, which is capable of flight using wings that generate lift caused by the aircraft's forward airspeed and the shape of the wings. Fixed-wing aircraft are distinc ...
was designed and built by the
Glenn L. Martin Company
The Glenn L. Martin Company—also known as The Martin Company from 1957-1961—was an American aircraft and aerospace manufacturing company founded by aviation pioneer Glenn L. Martin, and operated between 1917-1961. The Martin Company produc ...
.
Design and development
Glenn L. Martin
Glenn Luther Martin (January 17, 1886 – December 5, 1955) was an early American aviation pioneer. He designed and built his own aircraft and was an active pilot, as well as an aviation record-holder. He founded an aircraft company in 1912 whi ...
, president of the company, intended that the Model 2-0-2 would be a replacement for the
Douglas DC-3
The Douglas DC-3 is a propeller-driven airliner
manufactured by Douglas Aircraft Company, which had a lasting effect on the airline industry in the 1930s to 1940s and World War II.
It was developed as a larger, improved 14-bed sleeper version ...
. It was also known as the "Martin Executive".
The first flight of the model was in November 1946. Full civilian certification was gained in August 1947, several months before competing aircraft types. The total production of 2-0-2s and 2-0-2As was 47 aircraft.
The aircraft was not pressurized, but was considered a long-range airliner. The fatal crash in 1948 of
Northwest Airlines Flight 421
Northwest Airlines Flight 421 was a domestic scheduled passenger flight from Chicago, Illinois to Minneapolis, Minnesota that crashed on 29 August 1948. The Martin 2-0-2 aircraft, operated by Northwest Airlines, suffered structural failure in its ...
revealed a serious structural problem in the wings. Structural
metal fatigue was the problem in a major wing spar. Alloy
7075-T6 was used, which is susceptible to stress-corrosion cracking and low toughness. The airliner was grounded and modifications were made. The wing components were redesigned and the engines replaced. The changed type was designated the Martin 2-0-2A.
Operational history
On November 13, 1945
Pennsylvania Central Airlines purchased a fleet of 35 Martin 2-0-2s from the Glenn Martin Company for $7,000,000. Two weeks later,
Colonial Airlines announced that they would purchase 20 airplanes for $4,000,000, scheduled for delivery in 1947. Early in the next year, Martin announced that Pennsylvania Central Airlines had ordered 15 more 2-0-2s, bringing the total aircraft on order in early January 1947 to 137 aircraft, with a sales value of $27,000,000.
Despite the announcement of these large orders, the contract terms allowed the airlines to cancel them without any penalty.
The 2-0-2 was unpressurised, unlike the competing
Convair 240. Therefore, as delays in production built up, all airlines except Northwest, TWA, LAN, and LAV cancelled their orders and only 31 2-0-2s and 12 2-0-2As were actually delivered to the airlines.
The first scheduled flight was on Northwest between Minneapolis and Chicago on 13 October 1947.
The 2-0-2 was the first airplane subjected to the CAA's then new 'Accelerated Service Test', introduced May 15, 1947. In this test, an airliner was to undergo a rigorous 150-hour test, attempting to squeeze one year's service into a week to 10 days of flying. The 2-0-2 made such a test visiting about 50 cities in 7 days. At each city, comprehensive inspections were made of the aircraft systems to assess how wear or malfunction would occur.
TWA and Northwest, initial customers of the 2-0-2, eventually sold theirs to California Central and Pioneer Airlines. Later,
Allegheny Airlines
Allegheny Airlines was a regional airline that operated out of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, from 1952 to 1979 with routes primarily located in the eastern U.S. It was the forerunner of USAir that was subsequently renamed US Airways, which itself me ...
acquired many of the 2-0-2s as part of the company's expansion plans, beginning June 1, 1955. Eventually, they acquired a total of 18 aircraft.
Only one of this type of aircraft is known to survive, at the
Aviation Hall of Fame and Museum of New Jersey.
This airliner was eventually developed into the
Martin 4-0-4, which was more successful.
Variants
The Martin Company designated the following quantities for the airlines (though not all were built), listed by Martin Model number:
;2-0-2:twin engine prototype: 3, in 1946
;2-0-2FL:twin engine commercial transport, Chile: 4, in 1947
;2-0-2NW:twin engine commercial transport,
Northwest Airlines: 25, in 1947
;2-0-2LAV:twin engine commercial transport, Venezuela: 2, in 1947
;2-0-2A:twin engine commercial transport,
Trans World Airlines
Trans World Airlines (TWA) was a major American airline which operated from 1930 until 2001. It was formed as Transcontinental & Western Air to operate a route from New York City to Los Angeles via St. Louis, Kansas City, and other stops, with F ...
: 21, in 1947
;2-0-2E:twin engine commercial transport,
Eastern Airlines: 25, in 1947
Operators
♠ original operators
;
*
LAN Chile ♠ (four new delivered, 1947–1948
)
;
* Aeroproveedora
;
*
Japan Air Lines (five leased from
Transocean in 1951–1952)
;
*
Servicios Aéreos Baja
;
* RAPSA Panama
;
*
Admiral Airlines
Admiral is one of the highest ranks in some navies. In the Commonwealth nations and the United States, a "full" admiral is equivalent to a "full" general in the army or the air force, and is above vice admiral and below admiral of the fleet, ...
*
Allegheny Airlines
Allegheny Airlines was a regional airline that operated out of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, from 1952 to 1979 with routes primarily located in the eastern U.S. It was the forerunner of USAir that was subsequently renamed US Airways, which itself me ...
(18, 1955–1966)
*
California Central Airlines
California Central Airlines (CCA) was a post-war American scheduled intrastate airline based at Burbank, California.
History
Founded by Charles C. Sherman and Edna K. Sherman in 1946 as Airline Transport Carriers as an irregular carrier, flew ...
*
Martin Air Transport Martin may refer to:
Places
* Martin City (disambiguation)
* Martin County (disambiguation)
* Martin Township (disambiguation)
Antarctica
* Martin Peninsula, Marie Byrd Land
* Port Martin, Adelie Land
* Point Martin, South Orkney Islands
Austral ...
*
Modern Air Transport
*
Northwest Orient Airlines ♠ (25 new delivered, 1947
)
*
Pacific Air Lines (seven, 1958–1964)
*
Pioneer Air Lines (nine, 1952–1960)
* Southeast Airlines (Florida)
*
Southwest Airways
Pacific Air Lines was a regional airline (then called a "local service" air carrier as defined by the federal Civil Aeronautics Board) on the West Coast of the United States that began scheduled passenger flights in the mid 1940s under the name ...
*
Trans World Airlines
Trans World Airlines (TWA) was a major American airline which operated from 1930 until 2001. It was formed as Transcontinental & Western Air to operate a route from New York City to Los Angeles via St. Louis, Kansas City, and other stops, with F ...
♠ (12 new delivered, 1950
)
*
Transocean Airlines (15, 1951–1952)
;
*
Linea Aeropostal Venezolana ♠ (two new delivered, 1947
)
Accidents and incidents
The Martin 2-0-2 had 13 hull-loss accidents and incidents, of which nine were fatal accidents.
* 29 August 1948 –
Northwest Airlines Flight 421
Northwest Airlines Flight 421 was a domestic scheduled passenger flight from Chicago, Illinois to Minneapolis, Minnesota that crashed on 29 August 1948. The Martin 2-0-2 aircraft, operated by Northwest Airlines, suffered structural failure in its ...
crashed after losing a wing near Winona, Minnesota, United States, with 37 fatalities.
* 7 March 1950 –
Northwest Orient Airlines Flight 307
__NOTOC__
Northwest Orient Airlines Flight 307 was a scheduled international flight with several domestic legs in the United States with the routing Washington, DC–Detroit–Madison–Rochester–Minneapolis-St. Paul–Winnipeg. On 7 March 1950, ...
crashed after hitting a flag pole near Minneapolis-St. Paul, Minnesota, United States, with 15 fatalities including two on the ground.
* 13 October 1950 – A Northwest Orient 2-0-2 crashed on a training flight at Almelund, Minnesota, with 6 fatalities.
* 7 November 1950 – Northwest Orient Flight 115 crashed into a mountain near Butte, Montana, United States, with 21 fatalities.
* 16 January 1951 – Northwest Orient Flight 115 crashed near Reardon, Washington, United States, after sudden unexplained loss of control during cruise. 10 fatalities.
* 5 November 1951 – Transocean Air Flight 5763 crashed on approach to Tucumcari, New Mexico, United States, with one fatality.
* 9 April 1952 – Japan Airlines ''Mokusei'' (operating as Flight 301 by Northwest Airlines) crashed into Mihara volcano, Ōshima Island, Japan, with 37 fatalities.
* 12 January 1955 – Trans World Airlines Flight 694 was destroyed in a midair collision with a
Douglas DC-3
The Douglas DC-3 is a propeller-driven airliner
manufactured by Douglas Aircraft Company, which had a lasting effect on the airline industry in the 1930s to 1940s and World War II.
It was developed as a larger, improved 14-bed sleeper version ...
near Covington, Kentucky, United States, with 13 fatalities plus two on the DC-3.
* 14 November 1955 – A Allegheny Airlines 2-0-2 had a collapsed undercarriage during a training flight, landing at Wilmington-Newcastle Airport and was damaged beyond repair.
* 30 December 1955 – A Southwest Airlines 2-0-2 was destroyed in a hangar fire at San Francisco, California, United States.
* 21 August 1959 – A Pacific Air Lines 2-0-2A was damaged beyond repair after a ground incident with a
C-46 Commando at Burbank, California, United States.
* 1 December 1959 – Allegheny Airlines Flight 371 crashed into a mountain on approach Williamsport, Pennsylvania, United States, with 25 fatalities.
Allegheny Airlines Flight 371
/ref>
* 2 November 1963 – An Allegheny Airlines 2-0-2 was damaged beyond repair at Newark, New Jersey, United States.
Specifications (Martin 2-0-2)
See also
Notes
References
*
*
*
External links
First Martin 202 crash due to metal fatigue.
- Aviation Safety Network
- Maryland Aviation Museum
*
{{Martin aircraft
1940s United States airliners
2-0-2
Low-wing aircraft
Aircraft first flown in 1946
Twin piston-engined tractor aircraft