Boeing 727 Memories

[boeingav8r]

General Lee, My experience is that those that bad mouth the three- holer never flew it, couldn't fly it, or were afraid of it. Which one of these categories do you fall into?
Also, in my limited experience, those that were unhappy as S/O's, are unhappy as F/O's, and are unhappy as Captains. Too bad you couldn't get along with one of Mr. Boeing's best airplanes: it is your loss.

My dad posted that under my user name, he has sat in all 3 seats on the 727, and was a check airman, so has the experience to make that kind of statement. I tried to tell him that people would get on to me for posting something like that with the profile that I have but he insisted.

DOH!

 

[HvyjetFO]

727 memories

The 727 is a great airplane. She has a classical sexy look about her, and she's a lot bigger in person on the ramp than she appears from the terminal window. Great firey display starting the APU on a cold day as a 10 foot flame shoots out of the APU exhaust on the right wing root. (Rare but it happened). Great hand flying airplane. Landing her was always a challenge. Never the same landing twice even if you do everything the same. Great speed...terrible wind noise. Don't use Manual Glideslope on the A/P unless you want to go for a ride. Manual generator adjustments before you can bring them online, and always had to "taste" the power before you could put it online. Flaps 25 takeoffs out of LGA that would leave everyone breathless. Check and roll, baby, check and roll.

Hvy

 

[brucek]

I've never been on the flight-deck of a 727, let alone fly one. But if you can rate an aircraft by how it looks, the 72 has to be right up there with the DC-10 (just my preferences).

I'm interested in who's still flying the 72. I think FedEx still do? Anyone else still flying this bird these days?

Thanks,

Bruce.

 

[RyanB727]

Who's still flying the 727?

The question is who is NOT flying the 727.

I know a lot of people like to look at thew majors and say "The 727 is almost gone". Not true...its just moved on to its new life as a freighter.

On the Emery ramp in Dayton on any given weeknight there are at least 20 727's sitting there from Ryan International, Express.Net, Custom Air Transport, and a variety of others. Add to that the Kitty Hawks, Capital Air Cargos, and, yes, even UPS and FedEx, and you have quite a bit of 727's running around out there. They just see a lot more moonlight than sunlight these days.

1100 hours in the back and 2500 in the right seat. Got a trip from PHX to DAY about 4 hours from now. I can't BELIEVE anyone could rag on this airplane.....

 

[brucek]

Thanks for the info. Yes- a cool plane.

 

[mobs]

I know some will disagree,but the 100 was more fun than the 200,411 ias vmo was a blast. That was way back when fuel was cheap and FAs were young. Mobs

 

[Airpiraterob]

oh it wont be gone......

A TWA 727 was the first plane i ever flew in. 1985, I was 9 and with my dad. From St.Louis to Indy in 'bout a half hour' he said. Made it there that morning for the race on Memorial day weekend. I heard about how long the 727 has been in service even then. Information was confirmed with a look at the white plastic paneling of the walls and around the windows, flaked with bits of sparkly chrome embedded in intricate 60's fashionable patterns. We took off with my eyes frozen in place at the window for the whole trip. Climbed up steep, sat up on top for 5 minutes, then back down again all too brief. I always knew I wanted to do 'something' with airplanes as my future. This helped me make one of the biggest decisions in my life. Banks and credit ratings can kiss it, Yessir ima gonna be a pilot!

Danny Sullivan won that year. I sat on the exit inside of turn 4 unfortunately behind some shirtless noisy sweaty dude. That guy contaminated all my pictures from my Kodak Disc camera. At least I have a hostorical account of what a real mullet looked like.

 

[embdrvr]

Re: 727

My dad posted that under my user name, he has sat in all 3 seats on the 727, and was a check airman, so has the experience to make that kind of statement. I tried to tell him that people would get on to me for posting something like that with the profile that I have but he insisted.

Tell Dad to get his own account!
Sounds like he'd have some good contributions to make.

 

[AceCrackshot]

My father and cousin were both pig drivers long after either could have transistioned to higher paying aircraft. That says alot.

My cousins favorite line, "The terrorists didn't want 72s because the would have just flown right through the building."

The 72 was always a schoolhouse airplane. At my father's airline he would often be paired with an F/O and F/E that both had less than 100 hours of total time at the airline. Single pilot 727.

I have an hour and a half of panel time. Showed up to jumpseat to work on a freighter...F/E looks about three shades of green and is hitting the lav about every three minutes. BS with the Capt and FO for a few minutes, and Capt asks if I'd run the panel if they help me out. What a lottery ticket! My oral consisted of "What do you do if we lose an engine of takeoff." We where at a mountain airport.
I pointed at the fuel dumps..."OK, lets go."

I'd trade alot for that again.

 

[BMD]

Sounds like

Loud, Hard to Land, Old, Love it or hate it. Sounds like the P-3 (Electra). BMD

 

[TriStar_drvr]

The 727 was the first jet aircraft I flew (the TriStar is the second). I still think it's the nicest looking airliner ever built. Loved flying it, although flaps 25 takeoffs at Midway were eye openers, and all landings there made you sit up straight and fly right.

I must have a thing about old, fast, three holers...

 

[flx757]

I must have a thing about old, fast, three holers...

*_____________________________________*(Insert clever remark here)

 

[TriStar_drvr]

quote:
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Originally posted by TriStar_drvr

I must have a thing about old, fast, three holers...
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------



*_____________________________________*(Insert clever remark here)



Boy, I knew I left myself open on that one

 

[F/O]

My favorite 727 moment:

One night we were headed into ORD from the southeast. There were very strong thunderstorms northwest of the field moving southeast and we were trying to beat them in. The captain got a shortcut direct BEARZ direct O'Hare. We were doing about .89 at the time. The noise level in the cockpit was earsplitting, although I was wearing earplugs as usual. I was on the ACARS almost non-stop trying to get the latest updates on the rapidly changing weather at ORD and MKE, our alternate. I'm literally screaming the info up to the other pilots so they could hear me.

Long story short, we haul ass in there and land, beating the TSRA by about 5 minutes. We pull off onto the taxiway and right away I go off onto COM 2 to verify the gate. I explained to the pilots that many of the gates were still occupied due to the weather and we would need the penalty box. The only thing was that without realizing it I used the same volume level I had been regulary screaming at them at for about the last hour (my plugs were still in). They looked at each other and started cracking up....."OK, OK, we heard ya...."
===================================

Along the same lines, here's a 727 crew out on their layover

Engineer: "Boy it sure is windy!"

F/O: "Naw, it's not Wednesday it's Thursday."

Capt: "Yeah, I'm thirsty too let's go grab a beer....."

 

[Tri-holer]

I've always heard the perfect 727 layover is:
Engineer doesn't spend any money
First officer gets laid
Captain has a BM.

And three things you don't want to hear in a 72 cockpit:
Engineer saying "In my experience..."
FO saying "I was just thinking..."
Captain saying "Let me show you what this baby can really do"

kinda along the lines of "here, hold my beer"

 

[Huck]

Let me add: you don't ever want to hear an old captain say, "Watch this sh!t - this is how we did it in 'Nam!"