The Boeing 727 was one of the most popular aircraft ever built, with 1,832 taking flight between 1963 and 1984. Launch carrier Eastern Air Lines in the United States optimistically had “Whisperjet” written on the tail, but anyone who has ever heard one will know they were loud!
Operating on short to medium length routes was the 727s raison d’être and it fulfilled this mission with great success. In addition to being fast, the aircraft operated all over the world from major airports to shorter strips, being very versatile.
Boeing 727 Video
Following on from last week’s video about the Hindenberg, there is a ten minute video below which gives an overview of the 727 story, from its design to inception and eventual retirement. Numerous interesting points are covered, not least a brief overview of what happened when D.B. Cooper hijacked one flight.
Something that always strikes me as interesting is how Boeing visited de Havilland in Britan who were developing what became the Trident. Apparently information was shared which was useful for Boeing’s development of the 727.
One thing you may not know is the cabin of today’s Boeing 737 fleet is the same dimension as that of the 727. As a passenger the experience is somewhat similar to yesteryear.
While touted by some airlines for being quiet, the truth is all that silence was inside due to the rear placement of the engines. Outside the Boeing 727 was noisy as all aircraft were of that era.
Australian Boeing 727 Videos
Both Ansett-ANA and Trans-Australia Airlines (TAA) introduced the Boeing 727 into service in 1964. Below is a short two minute video from the time, with a very enthusiastic narrator announcing the new TAA plane to Australians.
There is another little video that is under five minutes long, about the retirement of the Boeing 727 from Ansett. It shows a little bit about the story of the aircraft in Australia plus some historical bits and pieces.
I managed two flights on the Boeing 727 with Ansett back in the 1990s. I remember specifically how quiet it was sitting forward of the wings – all you could hear is the rushing of the wind over the fuselage, which was pretty cool.
Overall Thoughts
Images of airports back in the 1970s in particular show the Boeing 727 everywhere. Virtually everyone operated them, they were popular, fast and did their job well.
While technology and time has moved on, the contribution of the aircraft to domestic travel cannot be underestimated. For many airlines it was their first jet aircraft, which saved huge amounts of time travelling between cities.
Have you flown on the 727? What do you remember? Thanks for reading and if you have any comments or questions, please leave them below.
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The first 727 I rode with the “new” Wide Ride interior is my favorite memory. It was an Eastern -200 Advanced. This was the original, Boeing “factory” installation with the smallish overhead compartments. The new interior really made an impression, giving the familiar 727 a look in keeping with the 747s, DC-10s and L-1011s coming into service. Other 727 rides came onboard American, Braniff, Continental, Delta, Northwest, PSA, Piedmont, TWA, USAir (maybe), and United (pretty sure). Piedmont operated 727s from Dayton, OH to LAX and Dayton to SFO. Rode those many times – against winter headwinds, it could take a… Read more »
I remember reading that there was a “widebody” type interior for the later Boeing 727s and I’ve probably seen photos of it somewhere That would have been great to experience in its original incarnation. You’ve certainly flown a lot of airlines’ 727s, but that’s probably not too surprising as virtually every airline in the United States operated them. They really were the work horse of the late 1960s well into the early 1990s. That Eastern branding is iconic really… it always surprises me that the outside fresh blue and white was not reflected inside. I’ve seen photos of 727s with… Read more »
Hawaiian used to fly 727s inter island. Many flights were festival seating. We were returning to Kahului, Maui from Hilo, Hawaii. We were last on the plane which meant next to the engines. The roar on takeoff was deafening. And the thrust reverser on landing was just as bad.
On the takeoff roll in Hilo I looked up the aisle to see how much the aircraft was flexing from side to side. Inter island flights put lots of cycles on those aircraft very quickly with most making multiple hops each day.
I think you are mistaken as Hawaiian never operated the Boeing 727. Perhaps you are thinking of the Douglas DC-9, which they did operate at the time. You are right, inter-island flights do put a lot of cycles on aircraft – I remember when Aloha had the fuselage event with the Boeing 737-200 – apparently that aircraft had almost the most cycles of any aircraft in the world. Thanks for the comment!
Flew back from LA to Calgary on May 18, 1980 on an Air Canada 727. I was seated in the front(6F). Wasn’t bothered by
the noise. Was more interested on viewing Mt. Saint Helen’s spewing smoke and ash at dusk. Still have the pictures.
Yes, that would have been some sight when Mt. Saint Helen’s was erupting that year! Great memory, thanks for the comment!
I miss that bird. The most sexiest passenger airliner ever built IMHO. It looks like it is flying even when on the ground. My father worked for Northeast Air Lines and Delta Air Lines following the merger, for 40 years. I have flown on the B727 too many times to count. Northeast even flew the Yellowbird nonstop between MIA and LAX. The range was too far for this aircraft but the amazing team at NEA figured it out; the aircraft was parked on a ramp for refueling which enabled to load more fuel for this flight. After takeoff they flew… Read more »
I agree, it is a good looking aircraft isn’t it? One of the videos actually has someone saying that as well. I would never have thought it would do MIA-LAX, that’s pretty amazing! I’ve heard of Northeast and seen their bright yellow colour scheme. Pretty cool all round, great to know that information, so I appreciate you sharing it. Definitely some good memories there! Thanks for the comment!
Northeast operated the very first 727-200 and also operated the first scheduled nonstop flights from New York (JFK) to West End, Grand Bahama Island in the late 60’s where my father was the Airport Manager. I flew Eastern, National, Pan Am, TWA, People Express, Braniff,and Northwest 727 (100) and (200)’s. the 200 model had the best seat mile costs and overall economics at the time. Great Airplane!
Fantastic to hear all of that. Sounds like your father had a great job there – that would have been something, especially back then. You have a lot of 727 experience too! Thanks for the comment!
I was part of the crew with NEA that flew the 727-200 for the 1st time….R/T MIA-JFK with Chief Pilot Clark Willard in the left seat!
That’s awesome that you got to be a part of that trip! Did you just get assigned it, or did you actively ask for it, or were you very senior/hand picked? Just curious! Sounds like some experience!
The 727 was so impressive on how it could land and take off on very short runways. It used the triple slotted flaps similar to the 747, and leading edge flaps and slats. I first flew one from SLC to LAX on Delta. Probably an ex Western plane. Then Continental, TWA, Northwest, AA. The old Austin airport had a 7,000ft runway and you came in very low over I-35 then had to be planted on the runway quick. 727s and its pilots did so amazingly well. Miss those planes!
You really flew on a whole bunch of them, which is just great. Sure beats my two flights on one airline! I think less automation meant the pilots had to be a little more skilled, especially getting into short airfields. I’d love to fly in one again someday, that’s for sure. Thanks for the comment!
I haven’t flown on one, to my knowledge. My first plane flight was from Indiana to Florida when I was 2 years old. 🙂 My intrigue with this aircraft began when I saw the movie U.S. Marshalls earlier this year. From what I can tell, the plane used to transport prisoners in that movie was a 727. Here’s a photo: https://twitter.com/SweetChica2011/status/1201884233519763458?s=20
That’s definitely a Boeing 727 in the picture, so you got that right! It’s a fun aircraft to fly in, I remember being unable to hear the engine noise when I sat near the front… a miracle with those old engines! Thanks for the comment!
I think I flew in one while I was in India in 2008. It definitely was a rear engined plane.
Quite possible. If you know which airline you flew, it would be relatively easy to track down what aircraft you might have been on, considering few have rear mounted engines any longer. Thanks for the comment!
Not sure India had any 727s operating. Indian Airlines, used to fly A320s since the 90s. Must look in to this though
No, there were definitely no Boeing 727s operated by airlines from India at any rate. Must have been something else!
When I first started my career, I flew the 727 in economy, or “coach,” as it was called then since only senior partners flew in the front of the plane. While the 727 was a reasonably comfortable plane, you did not want to get stuck in the last few rows of the economy section since you were so close to the engines that were aligned with the windows. The noise could be deafening!
Haha – I had a similar experience when flying the very first time in my life on a Fokker F28. We were sat right next to (or at least, one window away from) the rear mounted engines and the sound was deafening, that’s for sure! Thanks for the comment!
Many fond memories. of the 727- wonderful aircraft…. flew them on AA, UA, DL, NW(O), PI, TW, PE, JM, SY, TZ over the years. Now all we have are bland and generic twins
Nice, you really did fly it a lot! Agree, it is a wonderful aircraft. Thanks for the comment!
arent there still a few flyng in Africa?
There usually are! Thanks for the comment!
I have fond memories of the 727. I flew them on TWA, Eastern, and Pan Am. Probably the most memorable flight for me was about 30 years ago, when I flew one with Pan Am from Frankfurt to Berlin. The Berlin Wall was still up, and it was quite a thrill to fly over opposition territory.
That would have been really cool, flying it into Berlin before the wall came down. I agree, it would have been really interesting to fly over opposition territory. Love it! Thanks for the comment!