Boeing 307 Stratoliner
The Boeing Model 307 Stratoliner was an airliner which was made by Boeing. It was the first airliner to have a pressurized cabin. This meant that the Boeing 307 could fly at 20,000 ft (6,000 m), which is above most weather. If the plane was at 14,700 ft (4,480 m), it would be like 8,000 ft (2,440 m) inside the cabin. The Model 307 carried five crew and 33 passengers. The cabin was nearly 12 ft (3.6 m) across. It was the first plane which took off from land to have a flight engineer.[1]
| Boeing 307 / C-75 | |
|---|---|
 | |
| A Boeing 307 at the Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center | |
| Role | Airliner |
| Manufacturer | Boeing |
| First flight | 31 December 1938 |
| Introduction | 8 July 1940 |
| Retired | 1975 |
| Status | Retired |
| Primary users | TWA Pan Am United States Army Air Forces |
| Number built | 10 |
| Unit cost | $315,000 (in 1937)[1] |
| Developed from | Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress |
Development and design
In 1935 Boeing designed an airliner with four engines. It was based on the Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress. This airliner was called the Model 307. It had the same wings, tail, rudder, landing gear and engines as the B-17C. However, the middle of the plane was a circle. Its diameter was 138 in (351 cm).[2] It was designed so that the plane could be pressurized.[3]
The first order was made in 1937 by Pan American Airways. Pan Am then ordered more. Transcontinental & Western Air (TWA) ordered five. Boeing then started making the plane.[3][4]
C-75
The C-75 flew two main routes: Washington, D.C. to Cairo and New York to Scotland.[5] They sometimes flew from Gander, Newfoundland to Prestwick, Scotland and between Natal, Brazil and Accra, Ghana. After July 1942, they could stop to refuel at Ascension Island.[6] I
History
The first Boeing 307 Stratoliner flew from Boeing Field, Seattle on December 31, 1938.[7] However, it crashed on March 18, 1939, while KLM was looking at it.
The first delivery was made to Howard Hughes. He bought one Boeing 307 to fly around the world. He wanted to do it faster than he did before. Hughes' Boeing Stratoliner had more fuel tanks. It was ready to go, but then Nazi Germany invaded Poland on September 1, 1939, so Howard Hughes did not make his flight. This 307 had its extra fuel tanks taken off. It also had more powerful engines added. It was supposed to be a "flying penthouse" for Hughes, but it was not used a lot. It was eventually sold.[8][9]
Pam Am started getting its Boeing 307s in March 1940. TWA got its first 307 in April. TWA used its 307s to fly from Los Angeles to New York City. Pan Am's flew from Miami to Latin America. Ten 307s were made. Three were given to Pan Am (named Clipper Flying Cloud, Clipper Comet, and Clipper Rainbow) and five to TWA (named Comanche, Cherokee, Zuni, Navajo, and Apache). One went to Howard Hughes. The first 307 crashed.[10]
After the United States joined World War II, Pan Am kept flying its planes to Central and South America, but the Army Air Force was in charge of them.[11] TWA's Boeing 307s were sold to the U.S. government. They were called Boeing C-75 and used by the United States Army Air Forces.[12]
The U. S. Army gave the five C-75s back to TWA in 1944. TWA sent them back to Boeing to be rebuilt. Boeing replaced the wings and put in more powerful engines. The electrics were replaced with electrics from the Boeing B-29 Superfortress. After these changes, the 307 could carry 38 passengers.[13] TWA switched to the Lockheed Constellation, but the 307s were used until April, 1951.[14]
TWA sold its Stratoliners to Aigle Azur.
Different types of Boeing 307
- 307
- had Wright Cyclone GR-1820-G102 engines and five crew
- 307B
- had Wright Cyclone GR-1820-G105A engines and seven crew
- C-75
- Boeing 307s used by the U.S. military
Users
Civilians
- Howard Hughes bought one aircraft.
- Pan Am got three aircraft.
- TWA got five aircraft.
Military
Boeing 307s which still exist
The only Boeing 307 Stratoliner which still exists is at the Smithsonian Museum's Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center. On March 28, 2002, this plane was damaged a lot when it ditched in Elliott Bay in Seattle, Washington. That was its last flight before it went to the Smithsonian.[15]
The main part of Howard Hughes' 307 also still exists, but it is now a house boat.[16]
Details (Boeing 307)
Data from Jane's AWA 1942 (apart from wing area and loading)
General characteristics
- Crew: five: two pilots, flight engineer, two cabin crew
- Capacity: 38 passengers in daytime, 25 by night
- Length: 74.3 ft (22.6 m)
- Wingspan: 107 ft (33 m)
- Height: 20.79 ft (6.34 m)
- Wing area: 1,486[4] sq ft (138.1 m2)
- Empty weight: 30,000 lb (13,608 kg)
- Gross weight: 45,000 lb (20,412 kg)
- Powerplant: 4 × Wright GR-1820-G102A radial engines, 1,100 hp (820 kW) each
Performance
- Maximum speed: 241 mph (388 km/h; 209 kn)
- Cruise speed: 215 mph (346 km/h; 187 kn)
- Range: 1,750 mi (1,521 nmi; 2,816 km)
- Service ceiling: 23,300 ft (7,100 m)
- Wing loading: 28 lb/sq ft (140 kg/m2)
- Power/mass: 0.098 hp/lb
Boeing 307 Stratoliner Media
Boeing S-307 Stratoliner production line - note the early B-17s to the rear
Prototype Model 307 NX19901 with the small tail as initially designed, and which caused its loss
Wreck of the prototype, NX19901
TWA Boeing SA-307B NC19905 on May 17, 1940, after the engines iced up and it made a forced landing
TWA Boeing SA-307B NC19907 'Zuni' 402 landing with slotted flaps lowered, prewar
Pan Am Boeing S-307 Stratoliner NC19902 Clipper Rainbow with blanking plates installed on engines to prevent engine over-cooling
Newly graduated Hostesses lined up in front of Zuni, TWA's Stratoliner NC19907, in early to mid-1940.
42-88623 Cherokee loading up following conversion to C-75 standard
Prototype of the S-307, with the small tail used initially on the first three examples built.
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Related pages
- Aircraft related to this one
References
Notes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 "Boeing 307 Stratoliner entry at." The Aviation History Online Museum. Retrieved: January 28, 2012.
- ↑ Betts, Ed. "The Boeing Stratoliners and TWA." American Aviation Historical Society Journal, Volume 38, Issue 3, 1993.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Hardy, Air International January 1994, p. 21.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Bowers 1989, p. 231.
- ↑ Berry, Peter. "Transatlantic Flight 1938-1945 (Part I 1938-1943)." AAHS Journal, Volume 40, Issue 2, 1995.
- ↑ Berry, Peter. "Transatlantic Flight 1938-1945 (Part II 1943-1945)." AAHS Journal, Volume 40, Issue 3, 1995.
- ↑ Ford 2004, p. 55.
- ↑ Hardy, Air International, January 1994, pp. 22–23.
- ↑ "Houston's Aviation History Timeline." Archived 2006-10-08 at the Wayback Machine The 1940 Air Terminal Museum. Retrieved: January 28, 2012.
- ↑ Munson 1972, p. 182.
- ↑ Taylor 1979, p.59.
- ↑ Hardy, Air International February 1994, p. 69.
- ↑ Bowers 1989, pp. 234–235.
- ↑ Hardy, Air International February 1994, p. 70.
- ↑ "4 escape injury as historic Stratoliner ditches in Elliott Bay." Seattle Post-Intelligencer (original post). Retrieved: June 4, 2012.
- ↑ "Green Design Will save the World: The Cosmic Muffin: A Boat Recycled From Howard Hughes’ Plane." Inhabitat. Retrieved: December 29, 2012.
Bibliography
- Bowers, Peter M. Boeing Aircraft since 1916. London: Putnam, Third edition, 1989. ISBN 0-85177-804-6.
- Bridgman, L. Jane's All the World's Aircraft 1942. London: Sampson Low, Marston & Co., 1942.
- Ford, Daniel. "First and Last 'Strat': Boeing's Model 307 and its Survivors". Air Enthusiast, No. 110, March/April 2004, pp. 54–60. Stamford, UK: Key Publishing. ISSN 0143-5450.
- Hardy, Mike. "The Stratoliner Story (Part 1)." Air International, Vol. 46, No 1, January 2004, pp. 21–24. Stamford, UK: Key Publishing. ISSN 0306-5634.
- Hardy, Mike. "The Stratoliner Story (Part 2)." Air International, Vol. 46, No 2, February 2004, pp. 69–72. Stamford, UK: Key Publishing. ISSN 0306-5634.
- Munson, Kenneth. Bombers in Service, Patrol and Transport Aircraft Since 1960. London: The Macmillan Co., 1972. ISBN 978-0-71370-586-7.
- Taylor, H.A. "Ten Big Boeings ... The Stratoliner Story". Air Enthusiast, Ten, July–September 1979, pp. 58–67. Bromley, UK: Fine Scroll.
Other websites
- Video Courtesy of *Bomberguy Aviation Historian
- Coast to Coast on Four Motors September 1940 Popular Mechanics
- History of the Boeing 307 by Boeing Historical Division