Aviation – Aircraft – Flying

Maybe it is the bias from first time experience.

But for me the Boeing 707 is the ultimate combination of power and strength and elegance in a passenger aircraft.

Somehow a great combination of a long streamlined body with four engines under the wings.

Of course, bias. I made my first flight in a 707 from Munich to Hamburg. A few years later from Zurich to Tahiti. Followed by numerous mid and long distance flights before the type disappeared gradually, being replaced by quieter wide bodies.

It is a 707 in which I had the first and only in-flight emergency with an engine fire. But with four engines, it did not feel dangerous. Though other passengers felt different.

I flew 707’s and the 720 variant from many carriers. Lufthansa, Singapore Airlines, Air India, Air France, Lan Chile, TWA, BOAC, Avianca, Varig.

Over the years I sampled many aircraft types. From Boeing 717, 727, 737, 747, 757, 767, 777, 787 to Douglas DC-6, DC-9, DC-10 and later MD- 11, plus the Airbus family.

Many are nicer to fly with. Smoother, quieter, more environmentally friendly.

But the 707 has a special spot in my heart. Like a first love.