Narrative: Convair 880 1960-1973
Delivery
Miss San Diego Leona McCurdy christened Delta's first Convair 880 named "Delta Queen," with a bottle of water from various rivers throughout the Delta system.
On February 10, 1960, Delta's first Convair 880 sets a new commercial speed record during its delivery flight between San Diego, California, and Miami, Florida, (3 hours, 31 minutes, 54 seconds).
Initial Service
Delta launched the world's first Convair 880 service on May 15, 1960, between Houston and New York City. Initial service was to Atlanta, Houston and New Orleans, each city served nonstop from New York-Idlewild
(now JFK airport). In December 1965, Delta Convairs first flew outside the U.S. to Caracas, Venezuela, and Montego Bay, Jamaica.
Retirement
Delta's Convair 880s were sold to The Boeing Aircraft Company from November 1973 to January 1974.
