Boeing 707
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Image:Caf.b707.640pix.jpg The Boeing 707 is a four engined commercial passenger jet aircraft developed by Boeing in the early 1950s. Although it was not the first commercial jet airliner in service (that distinction belongs to the De Havilland Comet), it was the first to be commercially successful, and is credited by many as ushering in the Jet Age, as well as being the first of Boeing's 7X7 range of airliners. Boeing delivered 1010 Boeing 707s.
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History
The 707 was based on a prototype Boeing aircraft known as the 367-80. The "Dash 80", as it was called within Boeing, cost $16 million to develop and took less than two years from project launch in 1952 to rollout on May 14, 1954. The prototype was the basis for both the KC-135 Stratotanker, an air tanker used by the United States Air Force, and the 707. This was powered by the Pratt & Whitney JT3C engine which was the civilian version of the J57 used on the many military aircraft of the day incluing the F-100, F-101, F-102, and the B-52. A late and costly decision was to widen the fuselage by 6 inches (150 mm) compared to the original 367-80 and KC-135 so as to be a bit wider than the Douglas DC-8.
Pan Am was the first airline to operate the 707; the aircraft's first commercial flight was from New York to Paris on October 26, 1958. American Airlines operated the first transcontinental 707 flight on January 25, 1959. Many other airlines followed, and the 707 quickly became the most popular jetliner of its time, edging out its main competitor, the Douglas DC-8.
In order to become a new major player in the commercial airliner business, Boeing was quick to bend to many customer's desires. While the 707-120 was the initial standard model with Pratt & Whitney JT3C engines, Qantas ordered a shorter body version called the 707-138 and Braniff ordered the higher thrust version with Pratt & Whitney JT4A engines, the 707-220. The ultimate version was the 707-320 which featured an extended span and larger wing. The 707-420 featured Rolls-Royce Conway turbofan engines. Most of the later 707's featured the more fuel efficient and quieter JT3D turbofan engines and flaps on the leading edge of the wings to improve takeoff and landing performance. These were denoted with a "B" suffix such as 707-120B and 707-320B.
As the 1960s drew to a close, the exponential growth in air travel led to the 707 being a victim of its own success. It had become obvious that the 707 was now too small to handle the increased passenger densities on the routes for which it was designed. Stretching the fuselage was not a viable option because the installation of larger, more powerful engines would in turn need larger undercarriage, which was not feasible given the design's limited ground clearance. Boeing's answer to the problem was the first twin aisle airliner - the 747. The 707's first-generation engine technology was also rapidly becoming obsolete in the areas of noise and fuel economy.
The 707, like all swept wing aircraft, displayed an undesirable "Dutch roll" flying characteristic which manifested itself as an alternating yawing and rolling motion. Boeing already had considerable experience with this on the B-47 and B-52, and had first developed the yaw damper system on the B-47 that lent itself to later swept wing configurations including the 707. However many new 707 pilots had no experience with this phenomenon as they were transitioning from straight wing propeller driver airplanes such as the DC-7 and Lockheed Constellation. On one customer training flight, where the yaw damper was turned off to familiarize the new pilots on flying techniques, a trainee pilot exacerbated the Dutch roll motion causing a violent roll motion which tore two of the four engines off the wing and the airplane crash landed on a river bed north of Seattle killing half of the crew.
Production of the passenger 707 ended in 1978. In total, 1,010 707s were built for civil use. The military versions remained in production until 1991.
Traces of the 707 are still in many of Boeing's current products, most notably the 737, which uses a modified version of the 707's fuselage. The Boeing 727 and Boeing 757 used essentially the same fuselage stretched or shrunk to fit the needs of the particular model or sub-type. The 737 and 727 also used the same external nose and cockpit configuration as the 707.
Subtypes
The original 707, the 707-120 was designed for transcontinental routes and often required a refuelling stop when used on the North Atlantic route. It was originally fitted with four Pratt and Whitney JT3C turbojets, civilian versions of the military J57 model. The later Model 707-120B version used JT3D turbofans, which were quieter, more powerful, and more fuel efficient.
The 707-220 (also designated 707-227) was a 707-120 airframe fitted with more powerful JT4A turbojets, civilian versions of the military J75 model, for hot and high operations on Braniff International's South American routes. Only five of these were built, due to extremely high fuel consumption. This marque was anyway rendered redundant by the arrival of the turbofan.
The later 707-320 Intercontinental and 707-420 Intercontinental models had larger wings, heavier weight and more fuel capacity to operate as true transoceanic aircraft. The original -320 version came equipped with JT4A turbojets, while the 707-320B Intercontinental version came with JT3D turbofans (TF-33 is the military designation for this engine). The 707-320C Convertible, also turbofan-engined, had a large cargo door allowing it to serve as a dual-purpose transport aircraft; a pure 707-320C Freighter was also built. The 707-420 version, produced originally for BOAC, was powered by Rolls-Royce Conway engines. The 707-320 freighter was used by USAF and was given the designation C-18.
The 707-700 was a one off test aircraft used to study the feasibility of using CFM International's CFM56 powerplants on a 707 airframe and possibly retrofitting them to existing aircraft. After a testing in 1979 N707QT, the last commercial 707 airframe, was refitted to 707-320C configuration and delivered to the Moroccan Air Force as a tanker aircraft. (This purchase was considered a "civilian" order and not a military one.) Boeing abandoned the program, since they felt it would be a threat to the Boeing 757 programme. The information gathered in the test led to the eventual retrofitting programme of CFM56 engines to the USAF C-135/KC-135R models, and some military versions of the 707 also used the CFM56. Ironically the Douglas DC-8 "Super 70" series by Cammacorp did develop commercially, extending the life of DC-8 airframes in a stricter noise regulatory environment so there are today more DC-8s in commercial service than 707s.
The Boeing 720, originally designated 707-020 but later changed for marketing reasons, was a modification of the 707-120 designed for medium-range operation from shorter runways. It was lighter and faster than the Boeing 707, and had a simplified wing design. This model had relatively few sales, but was still profitable due to the minimal R&D costs associated with modifying an existing type. At one point in the promotion stage to airlines it was known as the 717, although this model designation remained unused until it was applied to the MD-95 following Boeing's merger with McDonnell Douglas. It was used before the Boeing 727 replaced it in the market.
Operators
Image:Usaf.kc135.750pix.jpg Although 707s are no longer employed by major US airlines, many can still be found in service with smaller non-US airlines, charter services and air cargo operations.
The first two aircraft built to serve as Air Force One were custom-built Boeing 707s, with designation VC-137; these were also used by high-ranking federal officials on official trips. Many other countries use the 707 as a VIP transport, including Argentina, Brazil, Chile, the Republic of Congo, Egypt, Indonesia, Israel, Italy, Jordan, Libya, Morocco, Pakistan (PAF), Romania, Saudi Arabia, Sudan, and Venezuela. The Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) operated a number of 707s that were specially modified for VIP use before replacing them with modified BBJs. Other military operators of the Boeing 707 have included Angola, Canada, Colombia, Germany, India, Iran, Paraguay, Peru, Portugal Spain, Taiwan, Togo, United Arab Emirates and Yugoslavia.
The U.S. and other NATO-aligned countries, as well as South Africa and Israel, have used the 707 platform for aerial refueling (KC-135) and AWACS (E-3 Sentry), although many of these aircraft are now being phased out. The Royal Australian Air force (RAAF) operates 707s as refuellers for Australia's F/A-18 Hornets; these are soon to be replaced by Airbus A330 MRTTs. The 707 is also the platform for the United States Air Force (USAF)'s Joint STARS project, and the United States Navy's E-6 Mercury. USAF acquired around 250 used 707s to provide parts for the KC-135E Stratotanker program.[1] This is the major reason so few 707s are in service as compared to Douglas DC-8s.
Trivia
American actor John Travolta owns, and is qualified to fly, an ex-Qantas 707-138, registration N707JT.
At Seafair on August 6th, 1955, Boeing test pilot Tex Johnston twice performed a "barrel roll" in the Dash-80 at 500 feet, gaining altitude to 1500 feet during the roll. This story appears on a video called 'Frontiers of Flight - The Jet Airliner', produced by the National Air and Space Museum in association with the Smithsonian Institution in 1992. The roll can be viewed on video at AviationExplorer.com. To date Johnston is the only pilot to have performed this in a four engine jet transport (of course, other big four engine jet aircraft have done barrel rolls. The Avro Vulcan XA890 was rolled by Roly Falk on the first day of the '55 Farnborough Airshow, but it was a subsonic bomber).
The Chinese government sponsored development of the Shanghai Y-10 during the 1970s, which was a near carbon-copy of the 707.
Specifications
General characteristics
| 707-120B | 707-320B | |
|---|---|---|
| Passengers (2 class) | 110 | 147 |
| Passengers (1 class) | 179 | 202 |
| Max. takeoff weight | 257,000 lb (116,570 kg) | 333,600 lb (151,320 kg) |
| Empty weight | 122,533 lb (55,580 kg) | 146,400 lb (66,406 kg) |
| Operating range (Max Payload) | 3,680 nautical miles (6,820 km) | 3,735 nautical miles (6,920 km) |
| Crusing speed | 540 kt (1000 km/h) | 525 kt (972 km/h) |
| Length | 144 ft 6 in (44.07 m) | 152 ft 11 in (46.61 m) |
| Wingspan | 130 ft 10 in (39.90 m) | 145 ft 9 in (44.42 m) |
| Tail height | 42 ft 5 in (12.93 m) | |
| Powerplants | Four 75.6 kN (17,000 lbf) Pratt & Whitney JT3D-1 turbofans. | Four 80 kN (18,000 lbf) JT3D-3s or four 84.4 kN (19,000 lbf) JT3D-7s. |
External links
- Boeing 707 family
- Aviation-History.com on the 707, images
- Aviation-Central 707 model
- Airliners.net:Boeing 707
- A proposed double-decker design for the B707
Related content
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