On the Up & Up

When Floyd B. Odium's Atlas Corp. bought control of Consolidated Vultee Aircraft in 1947, it looked as if Speculator Odium had made a mistake. That year Convair lost $32.4 million on its C-24O twin-engine airliner, proceeded to drop about $11 million more on it in 1948. But even before the Korean war began, Convair's B-36 bomber had become the Air Force's intercontinental bomber and Convair began to make money. From war orders, Convair made $3,700,000 in 1949, more than $10 million in 1950.

In 1951, its net dipped to $7,700,000. But last week Odium told stockholders that Convair was gaining altitude again. In 1952 Convair had earned $10.4 million, its best net profit since World War II and about 35% more than in 1951. It was turning out Convair-340 airliners and finishing off orders for B-36s, which are being replaced by Boeing B-52s. Soon Convair will begin making F-102 delta-wing supersonic interceptors.

Convair is already in developmental production of the Navy's new delta-wing F2Y Sea-Dart. A supersonic jet fighter with skis for landing on water, it skitters ashore looking like an ungainly swordfish (see cut). Convair expects the new design to combine land-based performance with water-based versatility, create a "revolution" in naval operations. Current backlog: more than $1 billion.

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