Which version of the Super Constellation sold the most?

The Super Constellation line underwent progressive improvement over the years. The L-1049E brought new detail refinements along with a higher maximum takeoff weight of 61,400 kg, but of the 56 aircraft originally ordered, only 25 were actually delivered as such: at the request of customers, the remaining airframes were instead built as L-1049G models. That is the reason why 38 of the 99 Super G aircraft eventually sold were really conversions of orders that had originally been placed for the E version.

The first L-1049G took to the air on December 7, 1954, and entered commercial operation with Northwest Airlines the following January, in 1955. The newly founded Lufthansa inaugurated its first transatlantic flights on June 8, 1955, flying an L-1049G on the route out of Düsseldorf, with a refuelling stopover in Shannon, Ireland. The German airline went on to use the type on several of its other long-haul services as well.

The figure of 99 refers specifically to sales of the civilian version of the aircraft. The armed forces, for their part, purchased far larger quantities of dedicated military variants: between 1948 and 1955 alone, the US Air Force acquired 150 C-121C transport aircraft, plus a further 150 EC-121 airborne early-warning platforms, both of which were based on the L-1049F as the baseline design for the C-121 family.

Among the world's airlines, the Super G was widely regarded as the quintessential Super Constellation, and it was the version that remained in service the longest on intercontinental routes before finally being replaced by the new generation of jet airliners.

A Lufthansa Super G registered D-ALAK was involved in the newly founded airline's very first fatal accident, which occurred on January 11, 1959, when the aircraft crashed during its approach to Rio de Janeiro.