Aircraft Factfile and Recognition Guide - Boeing 727

Background

The Boeing 727 is a mid-size, single-aisle (narrow-body) commercial jet airliner. It first took to the skies in 1963 and was, for a very long time, the most popular jet-liner in the world. 1,831 727s were delivered. In August 2006 a total of 127 Boeing 727-100 aircraft and 493 Boeing 727-200 aircraft remain in airline service.

The 727 design arose as a compromise between United Airlines, American Airlines, and Eastern Air Lines over the configuration of a jet airliner to service smaller cities which often had shorter runways and correspondingly smaller passenger demand. United Airlines wanted a four-engine aircraft for its flights to high-altitude airports, especially its hub at Stapleton International Airport at Denver, Colorado. American wanted a twin-engine aircraft for efficiency reasons. Eastern wanted a third engine for its over water flights to the Caribbean. Eventually, the three airlines agreed on a trijet, and thus the 727 was born. The 727 featured high lift devices on its wing, thus being one of the first jets to be able to operate from airports offering modest runway lengths. Later models of the 727 were stretched to accommodate more passengers and they ended up replacing earlier jet airliners, such as its sibling the 707, on domestic routes.

Since the 727 proved to be a reliable and versatile airliner that came to form the core of many start-up airlines' fleets, it is sometimes described as the "DC-3 of the Jet Age."

At the turn of the 21st century, the 727 was still a vital part of some major American airline fleets. But the 727 had a reputation for high noise and most airlines were already switching to twinjets, aircraft with only two engines. Twinjets tend to be much more efficient than planes with three (like the 727) or four jets. Also, the 727 was one of the last airliners in service to have a three-person crew, including a flight engineer, a crewmember whose job is performed by computerized systems on newer planes.

Faced with higher fuel costs, lower sales due to the post-9/11 economic climate, and the extra expense of maintaining older planes, most major airlines began phasing 727s out of their fleet. Delta Air Lines, the last major U.S. carrier to do so, retired its last 727 in 2003. However, the 727 is still flying for smaller start-up airlines, cargo airlines, and charter airlines, and it is also becoming increasingly popular as a private means of transportation. The official replacement for the Boeing 727 in Boeing's lineup was the Boeing 757. However, the smallest 757 variant, the 757-200, is significantly larger than the Boeing 727-200, so many airlines replaced their 727s with either the Boeing 737-800 or the Airbus A320, both of which are more similar in size to the 727-200.

The 727 proved very successful with airlines worldwide partly because of its capability to take off and land on smaller runways while still flying medium range routes. This effectively allowed airlines to attract passengers from cities with large populations but smaller airports to worldwide tourist destinations. One of the features that gave the 727 its ability to land on shorter runways was its unique wing design. Through flap extension and leading edge slat deployment, the 727 could almost double its wing surface area, allowing it to fly with great stability at very slow speeds. The 727 also had nose gear brakes fitted in the beginning to further decrease braking distance upon landing. These were however removed later as they proved to provide little gain in braking over added weight and higher maintenance costs.

The 727 was designed to be used at smaller, regional airports, so independence from ground facilities was an important requirement. This gave rise one of the 727's most distinctive features: the built-in air stair that drops from the rear underbelly of the fuselage. Another innovation was the inclusion of an APU (auxiliary power unit), which allowed electrical and air-conditioning systems to run independent of a ground-based power supply. Additionally, the 727 is equipped with a retractable tail skid which is designed to protect the aircraft in the event of an over-rotation on takeoff.

However, the 727 is also one of the loudest commercial jetliners, so most models in the United States must be fitted with hush kits to reduce engine noise. The 727's JT8D jet engines use older low-bypass turbofan technology while more modern airliners utilize the more efficient and less noisy high-bypass turbofan design instead.

Post-production winglets have also been installed on many 727s as a means of noise reduction as part of so called "Quiet Wing" Kits and for added fuel economy. Kelowna Flightcraft's maintenance division in Canada is noted for having installed Winglets on Donald Trump's private 727-100.

Despite the exterior noise, the 727 has a relatively quiet passenger cabin due to the placement of the engines at the rear of the aircraft.

In addition to domestic flights of medium range, the 727 proved extremely popular with international passenger airlines. The range of flights it could cover (and the additional safety built in with its third engine) meant that the 727 would prove efficient for short to medium range international flights in areas around the world.

The 727 also has proved popular with cargo airlines and charter airlines. FedEx began the cargo airline revolution in 1975 utilizing 727s, though they have begun phasing them out in favor of the Boeing 757. Many cargo airlines worldwide now employ the 727 as a workhorse. The USPS uses the type to fly mail from city to city every day. Charter airlines Sun Country, Champion Air, and Ryan International Airlines all were started with 727 aircraft.

Other companies use the 727 as a way to transport passengers to their resorts or cruise ships. Such was the example of Carnival Cruise Lines, which used both the 727 and 737 to fly both regular flights and flights to transport their passengers to cities that harbored their ships. Carnival used the jets on their airline division, Carnival Air Lines.

Recognizing the 727

The 727 is a very easy aircraft to identify in flight and a lot easier to identify on the ground.  Here's how you can easily identify a 727, without knowing what airlines operate the aircraft:

Wings:
Engines:
Fuselage:
Tail:

Specifications

Sources: Wikipedia Boeing 727

© 2006-2007 Steven Holzinger