727 Prototype Airplane Historical Photos and Data

727 Prototype Airplane Historic Photos and Data

Design

Construction

727 Prototype Rollout

Rollout

Crew

Flight Test

An Historic Airplane

Design

Centerline Drawing for E1 - 727 Prototype Airplane. Part of "Top" Drawing Set released 14 Feb 1961

727 drawing

Construction - Number 1 Airplane (E1)

Moving the joined 46-48 Sections

727 Cab - Prototype airplane

Cockpit (or Cab, Section 41) during manufacture

727 Center Section (Center Wing Tank or CWT)

Moving the wing with left and right wings joined to the Center Wing Section

727 stab

727 Horizontal Stabilizer

727 Pylon

Pylon or strut for Left Hand - Number One - Engine in 48 (tail) Section

727 wing

Wing construction - Leading edge Up - Upper skin installed - Lower skin not yet installed.

727 Wing root

Right hand wing root - Leading edge to left - Bottle Pin and front spar splice plate in center of photo

Roll-Out

Roll-out of E1 (N7001U) from Boeing Renton Plant - 27 Nov 1962

727 rollout

Boeing yellow and chocolate brown color scheme

Taxi tests at Renton Airport before the first flight, demonstrating braking, thrust reverse, and spoiler operation.

727 thrust rversers

The 727 Trijet's Tail with Engines, Thrust Reversers, Aft Airstair, and Tailskid visible

727 on flight line

The night of February 8, 1963. Last minute checks and the first flight awaits tomorrow.

Crew

The Flight Test Crew for the First Flight were: Capt. Lew Wallick; Co-Pilot Dix Loesch; Flight Engineer M.K. Shulenberger

727 crew

De-planing after first landing at Paine Field in Everett, Washington

Describing the First Flight to the Press and Boeing officials at Paine Field

First Flight

High Speed to the south at Renton Airport - trying the elevators, raising the nose wheel

727 first takeoff

February 9, 1963 The first take-off, to the north from Renton Airport

Liftoff !

First Landing - Paine Field, Everett Washington -- also the location of the last landing 28 years later - January 1991.

First Day Cover courtesy of David Capodilupo

Flight Test
727 Boeing Field

On the Boeing Flight Line at Boeing Field, Seattle. E1 (N7001U) is the second airplane in the picture.
The airplane in the foreground is E2, the second airplane manufactured. With registration N72700,
it is often mistaken as the first airplane. It made its first flight 12 March 1963. E2 remained a Boeing
flight test airplane; E1 was delivered to United Air Lines in 1964.

An historic picture - the 707 Prototype (Dash 80) in the foreground, then E1, and,
in the rear E2, in the Boeing Flight Center hangar at Boeing Field, 1963.