On March 16th Consolidated Aircraft unveiled its new Convair 240. The aircraft was powered by two Pratt & Whitnes 2,400 HP engines. It achieved a crusing speed of 300 MPH while carrying 40 passengers. The first 240 went into commercial servce for American Airlines on June 1, 1948. Convair improved the plane with the 340 and 440 modles. Convail produced a total of 705 of the aircraft in all its versions.