The second aircraft from the right is a 717. If that "717" is a Boeing aircraft, then I'm the illegitimate daughter of the Queen of England. That "717" is as much a Boeing aircraft as is a DC-3:
The "717" is an updated Douglas DC-9:
The DC-9 begat the MD-80 (as by then McDonnell Aircraft had merged with Douglas Aircraft), which begat the MD-90, which begat the MD-95. The MD-95 was redesignated the Boeing 717. It wasn't as offensive when McDonnell-Douglas redesignated the DC-9 as one of their models, as McDonnell had not been making airliners.
Since Boeing numbered their series sequentially, there was a real 717. That was the airframe which was used for the KC-135 Stratotanker:
The 717 has the same cabin width as Boeing's first prototype, the 367-80:
The "Dash 80" had room for five seats abreast, but most airlines wanted six and six-abreast seating was what they got. Howard Hughes, who owned TWA, thought five-abreast seating was preferable and one airliner manufacturer, Convair, made what Hughes wanted.
The Convair 880 was faster than either the DC-8 or the 707, but it was not as profitable for the airlines. The 880 and its even faster derivative, the 990, went out of production in very short order with possibly 100 or so of both types produced. Convair lost a shitload of money on its 880 and 990 models, which killed off Convair as a manufacturer of civilian aircraft. In comparison, Boeing made over 1,000 707 variants and Douglas made over 500 DC-8s.
One airplane is missing from the Boeing photo lineup: the 720:
The 720 was a shorter and lighter version of the 707 with a slightly redesigned wing for better short-field performance. Boeing probably made about as many 720s as Convair made 880/990s, but since Boeing didn't have to make a lot of changes to the 707 design to produce the 720, they likely didn't lose their shirt over it. The 720s pretty much disappeared from major airline service once the 727s began to appear.
You are a strange and wonderous person. It always bothered me that the 727 had three engines and the 737 had two, or did I get that backwards? I mean, what were they they thinking? They were introduced around the same time, couldn't the have gotten the number of engines to match the model number?
ReplyDeleteI too was bemused by the appearance of the "717".
ReplyDeleteAs a kid, I remember riding 720s often. NWA used them extensively on routes not served by the 727. Boeing used to print the model number on the pull-down window shade handle.
I have only vague baby memories of the Electra ... don't recall the DC7 era at all.