Why did this Ansett Boeing 727 carry 321 people on a single flight?

The Boeing 727 was the world’s most popular jet aircraft for quite some time with 1,832 manufactured. They usually had around 150 seats, which makes fact that one carried 321 people all the more remarkable.

Ansett Airlines of Australia were not planning to set any kind of record, as commercial airlines tend not to do stunts like this. However, a situation occurred that made this a neccessity.

Cyclone Tracy

A tropical cyclone named Cyclone Tracy hit the northern Australian city of Darwin over Christmas in 1974. From 24 to 26 December it battered the town, essentially flattening it and killing 71 people along the way.

With the kind of devastation caused, much of the population had to be evacuated from the mostly destroyed city. Darwin is not located anywhere near any other major cities, so the only way to get people out efficiently was by air.

Ansett Carry 321 People On A 727

One of the flights out was operated by VH-RMV, a Boeing 727-277 of Ansett Airlines. For this flight they packed on 311 passengers, three company staff and seven crew members for a total of 321 people.

The three company staff were the wife and two sons of the Captain, who all sat in the cockpit, one of them on the floor by the door. Obviously in such a unique situation, the usual rules were thrown out to assist in the disaster relief.

Overall Thoughts

Fitting 321 people on a Boeing 727 must have been an exercise in human Tetris when you think about it. No doubt it was four people to three seats and there were bound to be infants and children as well.

Considering how they needed to evacuate as many people as possible, I guess the saying “where there’s a will, there’s a way” is probably the most appropriate. Anyway, it was a successful flight, and even the city of Darwin was rebuilt to be the thriving centre it is today.

Did you know about Cyclone Tracy and Ansett’s part in the evacuation? Thank you for reading and if you have any comments or questions, please leave them below.

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