Landing Strip Cafe

[Lawreston]

At KLEW Auburn-Lewiston, Maine: has always been a nice place. Pictured is its location in the new building arrangement completed a year or so ago. It's in the right portion of the building. The FBO(now City of Auburn) used to be off to the left in another building which also housed the main hangar. Cafe is open from 0600 to 1400. Barely seen, off to the right of Photo 1 is the huge hangar Lufthansa built to restore a Constellation.

At the left of the 2nd photo is the house where two Connies used to live, after
retirement from the airlines. When Maurice had the house built, "this" end of it was built to look like an ATC tower. Inside that portion of the building, on the 2nd level, was an eat-in kitchen, piano entertainment room; and the Tower windows look out onto RW #22. On a clear day one can see the White Mountains of New Hampshire. It's just across the runway where Lufthansa built the 65,000 sq. ft. hangar to fully rebuild one of the Connies.
Inside the house, at right of the Tower, is a swimming pool, a couple hot tub/jacuzzis, other rooms: totally neat place.
Picture #3 is 7 or 8 years old, when the Connies were beside the house.

I asked one of the Lufthansa guys, yesterday, if it was possible to see the ongoing restoration in the big hangar. "I can let you look in the door, no pictures can be taken; OSHA shut us down from giving any tours. Sorry."

HR

HR

 

[Lawreston]

These pictures are a year old. Yesterday I asked the two mechanics working atop a mobile elevator if this is a "parts plane."
"Well, I guess we'd call this a reference plane, there being no more of them to refer to for guidance in the big restoration project."

HR

 

[Skylane81E]

I was half expecting a thread about eating at the y...

 

[BillTIZ]

I was half expecting a thread about eating at the y...

 

[timwinters]

I was half expecting a thread about eating at the y...

Also...

You know, Dunc, you'd never get by with posting that onerously nasty **** over at CPS. Abbott would kick your happy ass out of there pronto!

Puritans...gotta love 'em.



:wink2:

Hint...don't ever mention a Brazilian either!

 

[Seanaldinho]

I do love me a connie.

 

[silver-eagle]

I got to tour Maurice's Connies back in '03. And last year toured the Lufthansia site. I was quite impressed with the work being done. I
anxiously awaiting the first flight. I love these planes.
If anyone wants a maintenance facility, when Lufthansia is done, that complex should be available. You will have quite a staff to go along with it.

 

[Lawreston]

I got to tour Maurice's Connies back in '03. And last year toured the Lufthansia site. I was quite impressed with the work being done. I
anxiously awaiting the first flight. I love these planes.
If anyone wants a maintenance facility, when Lufthansia is done, that complex should be available. You will have quite a staff to go along with it.

When I was looking at the front of the Lufhansa hangar and saw an open, standard door, I asked the guy just inside if I could see "the real McCoy." "See Mike, out at the front," he said. It was Mike who allowed me to look inside the bigger front door but not to go inside. I asked him about the completion date of the project, to which he responded, "anticipating next October(2014); the "new" plane will go back to Germany." As to what shall happen with the 65,000 sq. ft. hangar that was built specifically for the project he said, "It's up in the air at this time; who's to know? Maybe UPS will take it over." UPS has long had a facility at KLEW but there has been a space problem at the facility. Earlier, pure supposition that UPS might relocate to KBXM Brunswick(former Naval Air Station Brunswick) came to nothing; so the ready-made facility near their current operation could be an easy transition. ??????????

HR