Part 3 of 6 B-707 article series
Rafiq Jan
Boeing’s proven Prop liners:
Boeing mainly worked on the development of planes for the U.S army and air force uses. But those were all low-speed, altitude-restricted prop liners. Most of them were multi-purpose that could be used for cargo as well as the troops’ transportation. Some variants of them were operated by Pan-American Airlines for civilian uses.
Boeing 314 clipper, the flying boat (1939-1948):
The first largest and the long-range airplane of its time, carrying 74 passengers. Its four propeller-driven engines could fly across the Atlantic and the Pacific Ocean. Only 12 were built, 9 operated by Pan-American airline and the other 3 were in U.S army, air force, and navy use. B.O.A.C too was one of its users.
Boeing 307 Stratoliner, (1940-1975):
It was Boeings first pressurized cabin aircraft that could fly above the weather, at an altitude of 20000 feet. It was the first-ever plane designed with a position for a flight engineer in the flight deck. It was used by the Pan-American airline as passenger service and U.S army and air force as Boeing C-75 Stratoliner for cargo transportation.
A total of 10 were built and it was officially retired in 1975.
The archrivals of B707:
707 had three praiseworthy rivals at its design and production stages. Two of them, “De Havilland Comet” and Convair-880 were already in service but going through improvement processes due to serious design flaws and frequent accidents. Those issues became millstones for manufacturers and forced them to halt the productions before reaching their adolescence. A debacle that paved the way to an unrivaled success of Boeing 707.
Douglas DC-8s, (CFM56 engine), was a cut above the others but failed to challenge the onslaught of Boeing 707. Its downsides including late production, speed lower than Boeing 707, the complicated location of engines inside the wings, and various other technical features, kept it less favorite and a second choice for the airlines. It remained the second-best choice all its time. It had the second-highest numbers built after Boeing 707s.
De Havilland Comet was the first commercial plane with powered flight controls. The first launch was in 1949, just four years after WW2. The first version was Comet-1. It had a capacity of only 36 passengers.
A host of flaws, including major structural failures, forced the ill-fated jetliner to tank, thus taking the de Havilland’s name with it… It had over 26 hull loss accidents in a short span.
According to comet pioneer pilots and engineers, the later developments and improvements in design and structural strengths made a considerable difference to the plane’s performance. It made it much faster, stronger, comfortable, and safer than the predecessors.
A much-improved version of the Comet-4 series was developed and launched into service in 1958. But a simultaneous emergence of PAA B-707 for cross-Atlantic triumph was way too much for it to stand. It was too late, and small to challenge the mighty 707 competitor that was much faster, larger, and undoubtedly the longer range than all the contemporaries.
Boeing 707 found a niche to fill the gap and conquer the market after comets were grounded due to a multitude of technical issues.
General Dynamics of the U.S ventured into producing a competitor for Boeing 707 and Douglas DC-8. It came up with a product named Convair-880, a jetliner, claimed to be the fastest commercial airliner. But the project failed to continue in just four years. Hence the dominance of Boeing 707 remained unsurmountable that guaranteed the name of Boeing as the most successful and the biggest plane maker of the world.
Douglas D.C-8, a near twin of B-707, was the only American rival that survived the wrath of B707’s stunning beauty, performance, and marketability. Much of the credit of its survival goes to the benevolence of Pan-American Airlines which ordered them together with B707’s first order. It managed to enjoy its share of skies with Boeing 707 but remained as the second choice of customers due to disparate features and luxuries that marked the difference.
Vickers viscount, a British plane maker’s product with four propeller-driven turbine engines. It was the first turboprop airliner after WW2. Under the flag of “British European Airways” (BEA), it started its first scheduled passenger flight service in 1953 and became popular soon, attract customers. 444 units were built and sold, but its low seating capacity kept it less popular than the later developed large and wide-bodied airliners by the rivals.
Vickers V.C10
V.C10 was a British-made mid-sized, narrow-body jetliner. It entered into service in 1962
Soviet manufacturer’s Tupolev TU-104, nicknamed NATO’s Camel, a twin-engine jetliner operated by Aeroflot. It grabbed the market after the unfortunate grounding of Comet due to safety concerns. Its turbojet engines were mounted in the wing roots like its predecessor Comet.
TU-104 too succumbed to its faulty flight control design and ultimately retired from commercial service. Hence all the rivals of B-707 gave in to her scintillating success which was proof of its sophisticated design and follow-up on the production lines. It served the Soviet Bloc airlines for nearly 20 years.
Boeing 707 was built to last for decades to come and enthralled its customers as well as travelers. It outshined all the rivals and became the symbol of pride for world airlines in the 60z and 70z eras of aviation.
End of part 3
The author is Aircraft engineer, author, planes Enthusiast
