Eastern Airlines Lockheed L-188 Electra, Golden Falcon - The Lockheed L-188 Electra is an American turboprop airliner built by Lockheed. It was the first turboprop airliner produced in the United States. It first flew in 1957 and when first delivered had only slightly inferior performance to that of a turbojet airliner but at a lower operating cost. American Airlines was the launch customer, followed by Eastern Airlines and Braniff Airways. Many airlines in the US flew Electras, but the only European airline to order the type was KLM. In the South Pacific, TEAL and Air New Zealand flew the Electra. In Australia TAA and Ansett operated Electras on routes between Melbourne, Sydney and Brisbane, and to Port Moresby from 1959 until 1971. Qantas also operated four Electras, VH-ECA,B,C & D at about the same time across the Tasman. The Electras flew in commercial service until the mid-1970s. Some units were sold to Brazilian airline Varig, operated with a perfect safety record until 1992 on the Rio de Janeiro-SÌ_å£o Paulo (that route is called Ponte AÌ_å©rea - air bridge, in Portuguese) shuttle service before being sold to Zaire. Others were retired into air cargo use. A total of 144 L-188s were built, 57 of which have been destroyed in accidents, according to the Aviation Safety Network. The most recent Electra accident was in July 2003.

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