Boeing 727: Triumph in the Skies (Schiffer)

[bercr]

https://www.amazon.com/Boeing-727-Triumph-Dan-Dornseif/dp/0764360515/

 

[alberchico]

I really enjoyed his previous book on the Boeing 737 which was published just before the Max debacle. I do hope that in a few years it is updated to include a chapter or two on that crisis and make it the definitive history of the aircraft.

 

[boxkite]

Meanwhile, any comments on the 727 book?

$70 is a steep price ...

 

[elmayerle]

I'll be very interested in reading if it covers Rolls-Royce's major blunder in relation to the 727 (per the AIAA Design History of the 727). R-R had the engine originally on Boeing's proposal to the airlines, but Eddie Rickenbacker, apparently somewhat burned by their support of Darts on Eastern's Viscounts, would only sign up of Rolls-Royce committed to a US overhaul facility and they refused. Faced with this problem, Boeing turned to P&W who modified the J52 (JT8B) into the JT8D which has enjoyed a tremendous market.

 

[gatoraptor]

I'll be very interested in reading if it covers Rolls-Royce's major blunder in relation to the 727 (per the AIAA Design History of the 727). R-R had the engine originally on Boeing's proposal to the airlines, but Eddie Rickenbacker, apparently somewhat burned by their support of Darts on Eastern's Viscounts, would only sign up of Rolls-Royce committed to a US overhaul facility and they refused. Faced with this problem, Boeing turned to P&W who modified the J52 (JT8B) into the JT8D which has enjoyed a tremendous market.

But Eastern never had Viscounts, United did (after they had acquired Capital).

 

[elmayerle]

I'll be very interested in reading if it covers Rolls-Royce's major blunder in relation to the 727 (per the AIAA Design History of the 727). R-R had the engine originally on Boeing's proposal to the airlines, but Eddie Rickenbacker, apparently somewhat burned by their support of Darts on Eastern's Viscounts, would only sign up of Rolls-Royce committed to a US overhaul facility and they refused. Faced with this problem, Boeing turned to P&W who modified the J52 (JT8B) into the JT8D which has enjoyed a tremendous market.

But Eastern never had Viscounts, United did (after they had acquired Capital).

My error then. I know Rickenbacker was upset about dealing with Rolls-Royce on a previous aircraft, that just seemed the most likely.

 

[Caravellarella]

Dear Boys & Girls, I received my copy for Christmas 2020 (pandemic lockdown Christmas). The Boeing 727 is "My plane"; we're the same age.

The book is a lovely production, wonderfully illustrated but this first edition has some typos and caption errors; perhaps this publisher is intent on maintaining its reputation for lax proof-reading/editing. The sequence of 727 events/chronology is a bit too haphazard for my tastes. There is a good chapter on unbuilt 727 projects, but it could do with more of the widely published drawings and diagrams to illustrate the proposed developments.



Terry (Caravellarella)

 

[gatoraptor]

Now that he's done 727 and 737 books, I wonder if similar books on any other Boeings are in the works?

 

[alertken]

lm #4 gr#5 EA/RR. Eddie R may well have had a downer on RR - all the engine firms had a no-go area: Northwest was so solid for Pratt that DC-10/40 was bespoke, bought also only by JAL. But I doubt that he was responsible for Pratt displacing design baseline Medway, early 1960. RR did that all on their ownsome in 1959.

In those distant days upfront purchase unit price was key. No-one then had the skill to compose (Seller) or enforce (Buyer) a price per operating hour, so engines were sold on the Gillette price model. Give the headline product (razor/engine) away at any price, then exploit the aftermarket monopoly (blades/spares). RR broke into NAmerica when TCA extracted a not-to-exceed Merlin parts consumption number matching Pratt R2000, C-4M v DC-4. TCA then secured RR/Montreal Dart shop for Viscount.

Medway-for-727 was to have involved Allison. During 1959 RR lost Medway-for-TSR-2 and for DH.121/BEAC. They chose to take a fixed price for Spey-for-(to be) Trident. Pratt then muscled onto 727 by offering a fixed unit price for (paper) JT8D, which RR would/could not do for Medway-to-be-Certificated concurrently with Spey. We here have this as a massive What If.