As Air & Space Smithsonian pointed out, the early sales of the 737 had been somewhat lackluster. Boeing re-engined it with not much enthusiasm. They thought that maybe they'd sell another 300.
They've sold over 12,000.
Yes, I know, over 16,000 DC-3s were made. But the vast majority were made under military contracts, 5,000 of those were license-built in the Soviet Union and the Japanese built about 500.
Why-o-why did they give the 737 two engines and the 727 three?
ReplyDeleteThe original idea for the 737 was a low cost of operation short hop small capacity jet, Charles. That's why it had only two engines, two engines means half the complexity of a 707, or 2/3rds the complexity of a 727. The engines were slung under the wings because the original concept was a two engine version of the 707. It was all about being cheaper to operate, in the end, which, combined with the ease of re-engining it with a modern high-bypass turbofan, is why the 737 is probably the most successful jet airliner of the past three decades.
ReplyDeleteThat said, I've flown Southwest AIrlines many times and the planes definitely are showing the age of their design compared to the Airbus competition. Boeing says they're coming out with a newer more refined variant. I'll have to see it to believe it though, because the 737 has always been about being cheap and crude, not about being refined.
The latest ones that SWA is flying are pretty nice. Spiffy interior and WiFi.
ReplyDeleteI do miss the older SWA...they used to fly those planes like they stole them! In the 80's and the early 90's SWA pilots were the ones to count on if you needed anything. Need an altitude report, you'd get...need to make a crazy restriction, no problemo...I miss the "Company Plane".
ReplyDeleteOf course, we miss the triple-holers too...350-390kts all day, Couldn't climb worth spit, but...
I flew as a kid in the late '50's, which meant Connies between the hubs and DC-3s into the boonies (on Agony Air). Of course, the Connies seemed big...I was astonished to see a Connie in the Pima A&S museum and realize that it was smaller than a 737...
ReplyDeleteNothing wrong with crude and cheap...we won the tank battle of WWII by having a whole lot more cheap, inferior gas-fueled tanks (with Chevy and Caddy engines any farm boy could fix) than the German had Tigers. The Russians still produce cheap crude jet fighters that can operate in harsh conditions and keep up with us reasonably well.