Sweet ‘Caroline’ Is Still Music to Aviation Fans’ Ears

For Kennedy the advantage had wings—specifically a Convair CV-240 christened Caroline and named for Kennedy’s young daughter. Caroline was converted from a 40-seat airliner to an executive transport for one purpose—to help the senator win the election. 

Theodore Roosevelt had flown but not while in office. T.R.’s distant cousin, Franklin D. Roosevelt, was the first to fly while in office, said Robert van der Linden, transportation curator at the Smithsonian’s National Air and Space Museum. Dwight D. Eisenhower famously used GA, a twin-engine Aero Commander, dubbed Ike’s Bird (which also holds the distinction of being the smallest Air Force One) to fly between Washington, D.C., and his 189-acre home in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, that had its own 2,500-foot grass strip.

But it wasn’t until JFK that GA was used to give one candidate a clear logistical advantage over another.

The story of Caroline (N240K) began in 1959, when Kennedy’s father bought the aircraft from American Airlines. It made Kennedy the first presidential candidate to leverage the power of GA to cover more ground and ultimately alter the outcome of an election.

Prior to this, whistle-stop campaigns that relied largely on ground transportation to meet the public, make stump speeches, kiss babies, shake hands, and pass out campaign buttons was the norm. But nothing can match the flexibility and utility of aviation—then and now.

As for the CV-240, it was designed to be a replacement for the aging Douglas DC-3 that was introduced in 1936 and was later modified for extensive use as the iconic C-47 in World War II.

In 1945, American Airlines began a search for a pressurized twin-engine airliner that could carry 40 passengers. The aircraft that American felt was best-suited for the job was the Convair CV-240, which actually got its name from its configuration—two radial engines capable of carrying 40 passengers, 2-40.

The CV-240 was the first pressurized piston-twin airliner to enter service. It was powered by a pair of Pratt & Whitney 18-cylinder R-2800, 2,400 hp engines. 

American Airlines placed an initial order for 100 of the new CV-240s. Other airlines soon followed suit, and Convair received orders for a total of 50 aircraft from Continental, KLM, Western, Pan Am, and Trans-Australia Airlines collectively.

There were 125 built as pressurized airliners, but the airframe was also modified for military service as both the T-29 (navigation trainer) and C-131 (cargo and transport). CV-240 deliveries to American began on Feb. 28, 1948. 

During its service as an airliner, the Convair had an excellent reputation for reliability, unlike the comparable Martin 2-0-2 and 4-0-4 of the day that had “serious aerodynamic and development problems,” said van der Linden. The CV-240 that became Caroline was originally delivered to American Airlines in August 1948 and was part of the fleet until the Kennedy purchase in 1959.

Caroline was converted from its 40-passenger configuration to an 18-passenger VIP transport with the stated purpose of supporting the presidential campaign. The cabin included luxury seating, divan, desk, television, and a small bar. It was a flying campaign office and sanctuary from the campaign trail with all the usual and customary accommodations for the care and comfort of its passengers.

Van der Linden described the aircraft cabin as “extraordinary.”

There are accounts of Kennedy and his closest advisers—brother Robert, Kenneth O’Donnell, Dave Powers, Ted Sorensen, Pierre Salinger, and others—working on campaign strategy in flight and also unwinding by playing games like campaign slogan trivia. 

As for political advantage, many historians, including van der Linden, as well as Kennedy confidantes credit the aircraft as a difference-maker in the senator’s tough battle for his party’s nomination, as well as his eventual razor-thin victory over Nixon in the presidential election.

Caroline, being the first private aircraft in history used by a presidential candidate, proved its effectiveness as a time-saving tool when time was of the essence. Its success as an innovative advantage changed how subsequent presidential campaigns were managed.

After Kennedy’s inauguration, however, the Secret Service deemed Caroline inadequate for the new president—that role would be filled by Air Force One. But Caroline’s service to the Kennedy family continued as executive transport for Robert and Ted Kennedy’s campaigns as well as family personal use. N240K reportedly logged approximately 185,000 miles during the 1960 presidential campaign alone.

In a 2022 interview with Air & Space Quarterly, the aircraft’s namesake and U.S. Ambassador to Australia Caroline Kennedy, reminisced about her memories of N240K that included trips with her cousins to Hyannis Port, Massachusetts.

“As a child in the 1960s, I knew how unusual it was to travel in a private plane,” she told the magazine. “and it played such an important role in my father’s campaign.”

Once the aircraft had outlived its usefulness as a political secret weapon and personal transport, the Kennedy family donated N240K to the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum to preserve its history. Caroline made its final flight to Andrews Air Force Base on November 17, 1967, for a ceremony befitting an artifact that arguably helped tip the scale and change the outcome of a presidential election. Since no space was immediately available for its display, the aircraft was trucked to Silver Hill, Maryland, where it was dismantled.

Despite suffering the ravages of time while stored outdoors, the Smithsonian National Museum of American History eventually restored the interior and displayed it as part of its popular “We the People” exhibit from 1975-82. Later, the interior was displayed at the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum in Boston. 

Registration N240K has since been reassigned to a different aircraft currently in service, while Caroline resides in Building 22 of the Paul E. Garber Preservation, Restoration, and Storage Facility in Suitland, Maryland, where it sits hopeful for a full restoration one day.

Engine: Pratt & Whitney R-2800-CA3 Double Wasp 18-cylinder air-cooled radial

Engine Horsepower: 2,400 hp each

Wingspan: 91 ft., 9 in. 

Wing Area: 817 sq. ft.

Length: 74 ft., 8 in.

Height: 26 ft., 11 in. 

Empty Weight: 25,445 lbs. 

Max Gross Weight:  42,500 lbs.

Seating: 18 (after VIP conversion)

Max Fuel: 9,000 lbs.

Service Ceiling: 16,000 ft.

Max Rate of Climb: 1,520 ft./min. 

Max Speed: 275 ktas

Cruise Speed: 240 ktas

Max Range: 1,040 nm

This feature first appeared in the November Issue 952 of the FLYING print edition.