Operational History
The 990 did not meet the specifications promised and American Airlines reduced its order as a result. The 990A was developed by adding fairings to the engine nacelles, pylons and the lower surface of the wing. Convair and GE aerodynamicists designed these modifications using a local area rule to delay the high-speed drag rise. Despite the modifications, the aircraft never did live up to its promise of coast to coast non stop capability from JFK to LAX. American Airlines timetables show little or no difference in scheduled time between 707 and 990A flights; AA began to dispose of its 990As in 1967.
In 1963 the 990A was reported to burn 11750 lb/hour at Mach 0.84 (483 knots) at 35000 ft at a weight of 200000 lb.
Swissair bought eight 990As from 1962 onwards, operating them on long distance routes to South America, West Africa, the Middle and Far East, as well as on European routes with heavy traffic. Their fleet was withdrawn from service in 1975. Scandinavian Airlines also operated Coronados on their long haul schedules to Tokyo and other points in the Far East.
The 990's market niche was soon to be captured entirely by the Boeing 727 and the Boeing 720 (a derivative of the 707), and by the time the line was shut down in 1963, only 37 990s had been produced, bringing General Dynamics' entire production of commercial jet airliners to 102 airframes. The failure of the Convair 880 and 990 to be accepted by the airlines led Convair to suffer what at the time were the largest corporate losses in history.
When the major airlines retired their Convair 990s, they found a second life operating for charter airlines. Spantax of Spain had a large fleet until they were gradually retired in the mid 1980s.
Read more about this topic: Convair 990 Coronado
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