In its day, the 727 was an absolute stud! Great airplane. I loved flying on it back in the 80s. My last trip on a 727 was on TWA from DCA to MEM in 1995.
As a kid loved sitting behind the wing and watching the wing seemingly disassemble itself as the flaps were extended. Only plane that came close to that amount of mechanical awesomeness was the 737-200s and their clamshell reversers.
I was always fascinated by that too, but it was only cool for the first few flights. Then it was just deafening. It was hard to find a flight in the 80s that wasn't a 727, and then it was impossible to find a seat far enough forward that it didn't sound as loud as a Kiss concert. Yeah, the 707 was louder, but they were mostly out of service by then. Whisperliner??? What a joke that was! Maybe in 1st class. Still, it was a beautiful bird! Was there anything more iconic? My favorite was the Braniff bumblebee livery, brown with yellow highlights. What a sight to behold!
The first time I ever flew on a plane as a child was a 737-200 the last year PSA airlines existed. I was eight and my parents were taking me to Disneyland. I had a window seat right at the wing. When we landed at John Wayne and the clamshell reverser kicked in I thought something had broken off of the engine and gone wrong. My mother reassured me it was normal.
My last flight aboard a 727 was memorable. It was a TWA flight from MCI to ORD. The plane was clearly slated for retirement, as the APU couldn't generate enough power to start the engines. It was a known problem because the engines were started from ground power when the aircraft was parked at the gate, and since the tug couldn't push back against the thrust of three idling turbofans, the pilot activated the thrust reversers and performed a powerback. It was quite disconcerting as a passenger to hear the engines rev up when still parked at the gate, only for the plane to start rolling aft. I've heard from pilots to whom I've recounted this story, that powerbacking 727s was discouraged, if not outright forbidden at most airlines because hitting the brakes too hard could put the tailcone on the ground.
The wing on the 727 had Kruger and Fowler flaps that were configured to drastically change the curvature and the chord length of the airfoil. It gave the airplane great low speed characteristics. The 727 also had rear airstairs that allowed it to serve airports that had no facilities. The 727 also had an APU (located in the wheel well) that allowed it to be self-starting.
I am a new subscriber! I LOVED flying aboard the 727, but I only got to fly on the 727-200, never the -100. I flew the 727s of Delta, Northwest, American, United, Piedmont and TWA. All of the flights were silky smooth, even in bad weather. One thing about Delta, they did not have any 727s until they acquired some in the 1972 merger with Northeast ("Yellowbird"). After that, Delta fell in love with them!
Silky smooth? You just never hit bad weather. On the return from my very first flight as a kid we hit turbulence that sent the flight attendant into the ceiling. We shot up and out of it quickly. I remember the 727 as loud and as bumpy as the weather outside. It was a beautiful bird, but more utilitarian than luxurious.
Excellent video. I flew on a United 727 from Denver to Atlanta in 1997. I remember looking above the door entering and noting that it had been manufactured in 1979. I was young so I was nervous the packed plane wouldn’t get off of the ground at a mile high elevation. Then I was doubly nervous when we came into Atlanta and landed IFR. Today, I know how overbuilt and impeccably engineered the 727 was. I am glad I got to fly on one, even if only just once.
My first jet flight was in New Zealand, on a National Airways 737 in 1973. My only flight on a 727 was on a Trans Australia Air lines 727 in 1981, from Darwin Northern Territory, to Adelaide South Australia. Then across to Sydney. It was the "redeye special". A cheap way of getting back to Sydney. Take off was around 2am in the morning. There were not many passangers. I think it was as much an airmail / parcel flight as a passanger flight. I remember looking down over the vast Aussie outback and seeing little dots of lights here and there. Very isolated little towns and communities.
I remember seeing all the slats and flaps deploy on the 727 and thinking all they need now is an anchor to drop. The video failed to mention an important reason for this great airliner's demise, namely the need for a flight engineer. Humans more expensive than electronics. A great aircraft.
Humans are more expensive than electronics, but by far the most expensive part of a flight was the fuel. I was a dispatcher in the 90s. Every decision we made was about fuel. Beautiful plane, but a bit of a gas hog.
Yeah flew a few times in the 727 including a Mexicana one where I boarded from the rear stair. I lived less than 5 ½ miles from San Juan international airport and it was fun, and eerie listening to Boeing 727s revving up for departure at night and using reverse thrusters on cloudy or rainy days.
This was a nice history visit into my favorite airliner. I got lucky to fly on the 727 as an upgrade, due to the DC-9 broke down and they flew the 727 in to pick up the passengers heading to Minneapolis. Inside the airplane didn't seem much different from a 737, except for the view outside and knowing the engines were behind you. I have always liked the look of the airplane when on approach with the flaps full out, it just looks incredible to me. I know technology changed, but it would have been interesting to see it upgraded with newer engines to see what it would have been like. I did some rough math and I think the new engines going onto the B-52 would fit in the same space as the tail engine, depending on the size of the fan.
My dad would always take me out of school to fly on business trips when I was a kid (like 6-10ish) and as a Vietnam pilot, every trip was always about the plane and its features, etc. We were on an evening departure out of DFW in a 727, I think we were in first class (or maybe just at the front) and while taxiing out, my dad mentioned we hadn’t moved for a while… I already noticed there was lightning all around the plane and my dad told me it was probably a ground stop. A few minutes later a flight attendant came out of the cockpit and asked me if I wanted to check it out… with all engines running and everything! I’d been lucky enough to go into the cockpit many times back then, but always at the gate. It was totally surreal, the sunlight was almost entirely blocked out by the storm, it was a sea of taxi lights and other planes for acres and acres, the cockpit had a million lights in it. I remember asking them asking if I had been in a cockpit before and I said something like “those are the throttles!” And “that’s the flap lever and that’s the altimeter!” - I think my dad was standing in the doorway laughing. We were indeed in a hold so I was able to talk to them for a LONG time (like 10 min, which was amazing for a plane totally fired up and full of passengers.) I’ll never forget that. ❤ Such a shame after 9/11, moments like that could produce a career pilot at age 10 in a matter of minutes.
Writing this in 2025... there's a 727 that still flies regularly over my house, on the landing path to Oakland County Int'l Airport (PTK). It's IFL's cargo plane -- what fun! I love the sound of the 3-holers.
My dad flew the Delta 727 in the early 70's for a few years before moving to the 757/767. He enjoyed flying it, but saw the writing on the wall and decided to move to another aircraft.
I worked on these 27’s for many years in overhaul. They were dinosaurs by the 90’s. We did many modifications (aft air stairs) and they had a lot of corrosion issues.
Seriously? It was loud as hell, and as a passenger I never felt anything special about it. It was beautiful, very, but nothing special from this passenger's perspective.
It's my favorite Boeing jet. Fond memories flying the shuttle to Boston on Eastern Airlines and Delta. And flying it to Denver Colorado from LGA on United Airlines on Saturdays when La Guardias range exemption was waived.
The venerable 727 was such a majestic and innovative plane. Its wing design was a feat of engineering, and the JT8D engines, though loud, were very reliable. It proved to be much more practical than the 720. The 727 was my favorite for sure and fun to fly on, too!
Flew the 727 a lot in the 1980's & early 90's with Continental Airlines. One thing you didn't mention is the ETOPS capabilities of the 727...in the 60's the FAA made it mandatory that any over ocean flight exceeding 2 hours had to have a minimum of three engines. Continental Micronessia flew the 727 on the, "island hopper" out across the Pacific from Guam west to the Philippines...it stopped in Truk, Palau, Rota...& I am probably firgetting some island. I had to take this hopper once, it was interesting seeing all the local islanders using it to commute between islands. Some had runways nearly ending in the ocean at either end. United i believe has taken over these, and i bet the pilots love the uniqueness of flying into such tiny specs in the ocean. Must have been similar to when Pan Am flew the clipper boats that had to land much more frequently.
I honestly had no clue the island hopper was originally operated by a 727, if I would’ve stumbled upon that, I would’ve included it. Thanks for the info!
yes many times and it is my favorite jetliner all times, I work servicing the galley at Easter Airline from 1982 1985, it was very noisy servicing them we called the 200 model specialy when the APU was running, the exhaust escapes over the wing, and very smelly, the intake was in the wheel well and you have to be careful choking the wheels. Some times all those fowler flaps arrived broken and deployed and the mechanic work on them for hours delaying the turn around that we called push. I got to seat on the jump seat my flight instructor George Gunn was on the panel or engineer. Thank you for the Memories
I always say that the 727 for me has always been the plane of my loves because I have had the fortune to travel in them at the time when the airlines of my country as is the case of Colombia, used them a lot on their journeys from Bogota to all destinations at the national level even also on some international routes and more than that avianca sam aces and aero República were responsible for this type of operations and more than that for the noise restriction is already a reality since they themselves make this shrill and musical noise that Characterizes them and more than anything fortunately we have them operating as freighters in the aerosucre airline. the only plane with engines in the tail. At least that was the time of aviation that we longed for the happiness of flying and that's why the cabin of this plane was analogous and there what they had are these little clocks that are now replaced by pure liquid crystal screens as they are in the most modern planes of our time. Thank you very much for sharing this video and most of all I wanted to tell you that the 727 in Colombia we nickname it for the Name of the bullas.
I was 12 years old and it was the first time l flew in a jet. I flew on Eastern Airlines 727 whisperliner from Atlanta to los angeles and it was a great experiance.
In addition to 3 engines the 727 had a cockpit crew of 3 including a flight engineer where new planes had a 2 man crew. The 727 had a great run, but it was outdated by the early 80’s in terms of operating costs.
Boeing almost expanded the 727 family with a dash 300 & possibly 400. Newer more powerful & efficient engines would've eliminated the #2 middle engine and the flight engineer along with a modest fuselage stretch.
The issue is, I’ve been looking further into this, I cannot find a straight answer. Some airline mechanics say all 3 had clamshell reversers, some are saying their airline only had buckets on 1 and 3. It seems to vary by type, or if they had been retrofitted with hush kits. From what I can find, the 727 was originally shipped from Boeing with 3 clamshell reversers. One for each engine.
I think we all know that President Trump owns his own private Boeing 757, the supposed successor to the trijet airliner depicted in the video. In reality, I think that the Boeing 757 is more closely related to the Boeing 767, hence their common type rating. Also, ETOPS regulations back in the 1960s were more strict than they are today, so without the third engine, the fixed-winged aircraft would have been pretty much relegated to domestic flights within the contiguous 48.
We all knew what happened to the 727 in its later career, lugging overweight cargo for Aerosucre, but whatever happened to the keen, apple-eating kid at 6:35? I dunno?
My first airline flight in 1968 was on a United 727. I wore a suit because you dressed up for flying back then - even as 6 yo. The slobs of today... SMH!
Thanks for watching this week! A new “Brief History” is out every Sunday at 10 AM EST. Make sure to subscribe for more!
I love this- semiavgeek
Thank you! I’m glad you enjoy it!
In its day, the 727 was an absolute stud! Great airplane. I loved flying on it back in the 80s. My last trip on a 727 was on TWA from DCA to MEM in 1995.
You flew ON a 727? How did you keep from getting blown off at altitude and speed? Hahahahahaha
As a kid loved sitting behind the wing and watching the wing seemingly disassemble itself as the flaps were extended. Only plane that came close to that amount of mechanical awesomeness was the 737-200s and their clamshell reversers.
Me too....I always loved row 21 on the -200 and 25 on the -100. It looked as though the pilot had taken the wing apart.
I was always fascinated by that too, but it was only cool for the first few flights. Then it was just deafening. It was hard to find a flight in the 80s that wasn't a 727, and then it was impossible to find a seat far enough forward that it didn't sound as loud as a Kiss concert. Yeah, the 707 was louder, but they were mostly out of service by then. Whisperliner??? What a joke that was! Maybe in 1st class.
Still, it was a beautiful bird! Was there anything more iconic? My favorite was the Braniff bumblebee livery, brown with yellow highlights. What a sight to behold!
I used to love watching the screw system unwind the flaps. God the 727 was awesome.
The first time I ever flew on a plane as a child was a 737-200 the last year PSA airlines existed. I was eight and my parents were taking me to Disneyland. I had a window seat right at the wing. When we landed at John Wayne and the clamshell reverser kicked in I thought something had broken off of the engine and gone wrong. My mother reassured me it was normal.
The first time I flew in a plane was a Western Airlines 727 in the early 80’s. LA to Seattle to Anchorage. I loved that plane.
My last flight aboard a 727 was memorable. It was a TWA flight from MCI to ORD. The plane was clearly slated for retirement, as the APU couldn't generate enough power to start the engines. It was a known problem because the engines were started from ground power when the aircraft was parked at the gate, and since the tug couldn't push back against the thrust of three idling turbofans, the pilot activated the thrust reversers and performed a powerback. It was quite disconcerting as a passenger to hear the engines rev up when still parked at the gate, only for the plane to start rolling aft. I've heard from pilots to whom I've recounted this story, that powerbacking 727s was discouraged, if not outright forbidden at most airlines because hitting the brakes too hard could put the tailcone on the ground.
Dude your doing really well you recently hit 1k and you’re getting pretty close to 2k already.
I loved flying on the 727! Such an awesome ride
The wing on the 727 had Kruger and Fowler flaps that were configured to drastically change the curvature and the chord length of the airfoil. It gave the airplane great low speed characteristics.
The 727 also had rear airstairs that allowed it to serve airports that had no facilities.
The 727 also had an APU (located in the wheel well) that allowed it to be self-starting.
I am a new subscriber! I LOVED flying aboard the 727, but I only got to fly on the 727-200, never the -100. I flew the 727s of Delta, Northwest, American, United, Piedmont and TWA. All of the flights were silky smooth, even in bad weather. One thing about Delta, they did not have any 727s until they acquired some in the 1972 merger with Northeast ("Yellowbird"). After that, Delta fell in love with them!
Silky smooth? You just never hit bad weather. On the return from my very first flight as a kid we hit turbulence that sent the flight attendant into the ceiling. We shot up and out of it quickly. I remember the 727 as loud and as bumpy as the weather outside. It was a beautiful bird, but more utilitarian than luxurious.
Excellent video. I flew on a United 727 from Denver to Atlanta in 1997. I remember looking above the door entering and noting that it had been manufactured in 1979. I was young so I was nervous the packed plane wouldn’t get off of the ground at a mile high elevation. Then I was doubly nervous when we came into Atlanta and landed IFR. Today, I know how overbuilt and impeccably engineered the 727 was. I am glad I got to fly on one, even if only just once.
One of the prettiest airliners ever built 😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍 The 727 💙💙💙💙💙💙💙💙 absolutely Gorgeous Plane 💯💯💯💯
The 727 was just awesome. My childhood memories were a lot of continental and delta 727 flights.
My first jet flight was in New Zealand, on a National Airways 737 in 1973. My only flight on a 727 was on a Trans Australia Air lines 727 in 1981, from Darwin Northern Territory, to Adelaide South Australia. Then across to Sydney. It was the "redeye special". A cheap way of getting back to Sydney. Take off was around 2am in the morning. There were not many passangers. I think it was as much an airmail / parcel flight as a passanger flight. I remember looking down over the vast Aussie outback and seeing little dots of lights here and there. Very isolated little towns and communities.
I remember seeing all the slats and flaps deploy on the 727 and thinking all they need now is an anchor to drop.
The video failed to mention an important reason for this great airliner's demise, namely the need for a flight engineer. Humans more expensive than electronics.
A great aircraft.
Honestly, thank you for bringing that up. I completely forgot about that
Humans are more expensive than electronics, but by far the most expensive part of a flight was the fuel. I was a dispatcher in the 90s. Every decision we made was about fuel. Beautiful plane, but a bit of a gas hog.
Fuel costs. The 757 that replaced it burned about 1/3 the fuel that the 727 did. Also, noise restrictions at many airports sealed the fate of the 727.
Yeah flew a few times in the 727 including a Mexicana one where I boarded from the rear stair. I lived less than 5 ½ miles from San Juan international airport and it was fun, and eerie listening to Boeing 727s revving up for departure at night and using reverse thrusters on cloudy or rainy days.
Boeing 747 next !
your history videos are so good!❤️
This was a nice history visit into my favorite airliner. I got lucky to fly on the 727 as an upgrade, due to the DC-9 broke down and they flew the 727 in to pick up the passengers heading to Minneapolis. Inside the airplane didn't seem much different from a 737, except for the view outside and knowing the engines were behind you. I have always liked the look of the airplane when on approach with the flaps full out, it just looks incredible to me. I know technology changed, but it would have been interesting to see it upgraded with newer engines to see what it would have been like. I did some rough math and I think the new engines going onto the B-52 would fit in the same space as the tail engine, depending on the size of the fan.
I remember seeing Deltas 727 taking off. They sounded sooo good.
I flew on Continental's 727-200 and United's 727-100. I remember them fondly.
My dad would always take me out of school to fly on business trips when I was a kid (like 6-10ish) and as a Vietnam pilot, every trip was always about the plane and its features, etc.
We were on an evening departure out of DFW in a 727, I think we were in first class (or maybe just at the front) and while taxiing out, my dad mentioned we hadn’t moved for a while… I already noticed there was lightning all around the plane and my dad told me it was probably a ground stop.
A few minutes later a flight attendant came out of the cockpit and asked me if I wanted to check it out… with all engines running and everything!
I’d been lucky enough to go into the cockpit many times back then, but always at the gate.
It was totally surreal, the sunlight was almost entirely blocked out by the storm, it was a sea of taxi lights and other planes for acres and acres, the cockpit had a million lights in it. I remember asking them asking if I had been in a cockpit before and I said something like “those are the throttles!” And “that’s the flap lever and that’s the altimeter!” - I think my dad was standing in the doorway laughing.
We were indeed in a hold so I was able to talk to them for a LONG time (like 10 min, which was amazing for a plane totally fired up and full of passengers.)
I’ll never forget that. ❤
Such a shame after 9/11, moments like that could produce a career pilot at age 10 in a matter of minutes.
That is awesome. I have never experienced anything like that.
Writing this in 2025... there's a 727 that still flies regularly over my house, on the landing path to Oakland County Int'l Airport (PTK). It's IFL's cargo plane -- what fun! I love the sound of the 3-holers.
Thank you for this great video about this beautiful aircraft! My pilot uncle loved the 727 but he said you better not be too slow before touchdown!
Kalitta retired their remaining 727's in April 2024.
That’s so unfortunate. I know USA jet has a few still out there.
Excellent work
My dad flew the Delta 727 in the early 70's for a few years before moving to the 757/767. He enjoyed flying it, but saw the writing on the wall and decided to move to another aircraft.
I worked on these 27’s for many years in overhaul. They were dinosaurs by the 90’s. We did many modifications (aft air stairs) and they had a lot of corrosion issues.
I subbed just to help your channel grow. good luck!
Thank you so much!
My favorite airliner of all time! Such a great aircraft and I was lucky to serve on it as a flight attendant.
I can only imagine how amazing that must have been!
Seriously? It was loud as hell, and as a passenger I never felt anything special about it. It was beautiful, very, but nothing special from this passenger's perspective.
I was a crewmember on a 727-200 that you did not show. I flew back in the early 1970s for Continental Airlines.
It's my favorite Boeing jet. Fond memories flying the shuttle to Boston on Eastern Airlines and Delta. And flying it to Denver Colorado from LGA on United Airlines on Saturdays when La Guardias range exemption was waived.
The venerable 727 was such a majestic and innovative plane. Its wing design was a feat of engineering, and the JT8D engines, though loud, were very reliable. It proved to be much more practical than the 720. The 727 was my favorite for sure and fun to fly on, too!
I wasn't fond of it as a passenger (so loud!), but it was the most beautiful aircraft after the 747.
It's a sports car with wings, especially the 200 series! ❤
Flew the 727 a lot in the 1980's & early 90's with Continental Airlines. One thing you didn't mention is the ETOPS capabilities of the 727...in the 60's the FAA made it mandatory that any over ocean flight exceeding 2 hours had to have a minimum of three engines. Continental Micronessia flew the 727 on the, "island hopper" out across the Pacific from Guam west to the Philippines...it stopped in Truk, Palau, Rota...& I am probably firgetting some island. I had to take this hopper once, it was interesting seeing all the local islanders using it to commute between islands. Some had runways nearly ending in the ocean at either end. United i believe has taken over these, and i bet the pilots love the uniqueness of flying into such tiny specs in the ocean. Must have been similar to when Pan Am flew the clipper boats that had to land much more frequently.
I honestly had no clue the island hopper was originally operated by a 727, if I would’ve stumbled upon that, I would’ve included it. Thanks for the info!
Another Sunday banger 🔥 Road to 10k!
Appreciate it as always!
yes many times and it is my favorite jetliner all times, I work servicing the galley at Easter Airline from 1982 1985, it was very noisy servicing them we called the 200 model specialy when the APU was running, the exhaust escapes over the wing, and very smelly, the intake was in the wheel well and you have to be careful choking the wheels. Some times all those fowler flaps arrived broken and deployed and the mechanic work on them for hours delaying the turn around that we called push. I got to seat on the jump seat my flight instructor George Gunn was on the panel or engineer. Thank you for the Memories
I always say that the
727 for me has always been the plane of my loves because I have had the fortune to travel in them at the time when the airlines of my country as is the case of Colombia, used them a lot on their journeys from Bogota to all destinations at the national level even also on some international routes and more than that avianca sam aces and aero República were responsible for this type of operations and more than that for the noise restriction is already a reality since they themselves make this shrill and musical noise that Characterizes them and more than anything fortunately we have them operating as freighters in the aerosucre airline. the only plane with engines in the tail. At least that was the time of aviation that we longed for the happiness of flying and that's why the cabin of this plane was analogous and there what they had are these little clocks that are now replaced by pure liquid crystal screens as they are in the most modern planes of our time. Thank you very much for sharing this video and most of all I wanted to tell you that the 727 in Colombia we nickname it for the
Name of the bullas.
I was 12 years old and it was the first time l flew in a jet. I flew on Eastern Airlines 727 whisperliner from Atlanta to los angeles and it was a great experiance.
Lucky you, I won't say the same.
In addition to 3 engines the 727 had a cockpit crew of 3 including a flight engineer where new planes had a 2 man crew. The 727 had a great run, but it was outdated by the early 80’s in terms of operating costs.
Hey Mr Walter’s it’s me Aidan I love the Boeing 727 by the way
It was a great plane!
@@TheOnlyNoIan are you subbing for any teachers that I have tomorrow
@Floorlooter3073 only ms. Golden tomorrow
@ ok I have gym tomorrow so I’ll see you then
I remember flying on the 727 and the 727-200. Delta flew a huge number of them out of Atlanta.
Boeing almost expanded the 727 family with a dash 300 & possibly 400. Newer more powerful & efficient engines would've eliminated the #2 middle engine and the flight engineer along with a modest fuselage stretch.
9:00 A rare Delta DC-10 spotted in the background.
I'm glad that I'm old enough to say that I've written on that aircraft many times my very first flight was on a Boeing 727
I read my first Shakespeare play and fell in love with his writing on a 727, and I've now worked in theater for 18 years, mostly Shakespeare plays.
@beenaplumber8379 Awesome
I rode on a 727 once where a mechanic had signed his name on a wing repair he'd made. It was visible out the window.
I was always nervous on a 727, felt it was underpowered, which would not help in an emergency.
Did the #2 engine have a clamshell type thrust reverser? How was that set up?
From what I’ve seen, only the 1 and 3 engines had the clamshell
@@TheOnlyNoIan Thought those were bucket type
The issue is, I’ve been looking further into this, I cannot find a straight answer. Some airline mechanics say all 3 had clamshell reversers, some are saying their airline only had buckets on 1 and 3. It seems to vary by type, or if they had been retrofitted with hush kits. From what I can find, the 727 was originally shipped from Boeing with 3 clamshell reversers. One for each engine.
Adding on to this, buckets were shipped on later, re-engined variants of the 727. I would imagine most 727’s flying today would have bucket reversers
Please do the md80😊
It’s coming…my first flight ever was on an MD-80. No way i could ignore it!
Will you do the 757 if you haven’t already
I did that one first!
What about the trident?
You’re right. I completely overlooked the hawker
And, the Tupolev Tu-154.
The last 727 made was made as a cargo plane for Fed Ex.
I think we all know that President Trump owns his own private Boeing 757, the supposed successor to the trijet airliner depicted in the video. In reality, I think that the Boeing 757 is more closely related to the Boeing 767, hence their common type rating.
Also, ETOPS regulations back in the 1960s were more strict than they are today, so without the third engine, the fixed-winged aircraft would have been pretty much relegated to domestic flights within the contiguous 48.
We all knew what happened to the 727 in its later career, lugging overweight cargo for Aerosucre, but whatever happened to the keen, apple-eating kid at 6:35? I dunno?
Doing 5 to 15 years...
First
Let’s goooo! Do you know the first oriole to win 20 games in a season??
@ Dave McNally
@ good guess, but it was actually Steve Barber in 1963
Boeing’s mistake was buying McDonnell Douglas.
Many are saying
McDonnell's big mistake was buying Douglas. Old Man McDonnell said so just before his death.
My first airline flight in 1968 was on a United 727. I wore a suit because you dressed up for flying back then - even as 6 yo. The slobs of today... SMH!