Editing Boeing 727 (section)

==Development==
[[File:Black and white image of Boeing 727 production.jpg|thumb|Production of the 727]]
[[File:Boeing 727 donation 22 (19744962922).jpg|thumb|Three-crew cockpit]]

The Boeing 727 design was a compromise among [[United Airlines]], [[American Airlines]], and [[Eastern Air Lines]]; each of the three had developed requirements for a jet airliner to serve smaller cities with shorter runways and fewer passengers.<ref name=modern>{{cite episode |title= Commercial Jets |series= [[Modern Marvels]] |airdate= January 16, 2001 |season= A149 |minutes= approx. 15}}</ref> United Airlines requested a four-engine aircraft for its flights to high-altitude airports, especially its hub at [[Stapleton International Airport]] in [[Denver, Colorado]].<ref name=modern/> American Airlines, which was operating the four-engined [[Boeing 707]] and [[Boeing 720]], requested a twin-engined aircraft for efficiency. Eastern Airlines wanted a third engine for its overwater flights to the Caribbean, since at that time twin-engine commercial flights were limited by regulations to routes with 60-minute maximum flying time to an airport (see [[ETOPS]]). Eventually, the three airlines agreed on a [[trijet]] design for the new aircraft.<ref name=modern/>
[[File:Boeing 727 cockpit Aviation museum (29097199906).jpg|thumb|Boeing 727 cockpit]]
[[File:B727 Flight Engineer's Station (7296917410).jpg|thumb|Flight engineer's station on a Boeing 727-200F]]
In 1959, [[Sholto Douglas, 1st Baron Douglas of Kirtleside|Lord Douglas]], chairman of [[British European Airways]] (BEA), suggested that Boeing and [[de Havilland|de Havilland Aircraft Company]] (later [[Hawker Siddeley]]) work together on their trijet designs, the 727 and [[Hawker Siddeley Trident|D.H.121 Trident]], respectively.<ref name="Connors, p.355">{{harvnb|Connors|2010|p=355}}</ref> The two designs had a similar layout, the 727 being slightly larger. At that time Boeing intended to use three [[Allison Engine Company|Allison]] AR963 turbofan engines, license-built versions of the [[Rolls-Royce Spey|Rolls-Royce RB163 Spey]] used by the Trident.<ref>{{cite magazine |url=http://www.flightglobal.com/pdfarchive/view/1960/1960%20-%202990.html |title=Analysing the 727 |date=December 16, 1960 |magazine=Flight |volume=78 |issue=2071 |via=Flightglobal Archive |access-date=April 1, 2015}}</ref><ref>{{cite magazine |author=Alastair Pugh |url=http://www.flightglobal.com/pdfarchive/view/1960/1960%20-%203096.html |title=Boeing's Trimotor |date=December 30, 1960 |magazine=Flight |volume=78 |issue=2073 |via=Flightglobal Archive |access-date=April 1, 2015}}</ref> Boeing and de Havilland each sent engineers to the other company's locations to evaluate each other's designs, but Boeing eventually decided against the joint venture.<ref name="Connors, p.357">{{harvnb|Connors|2010|p=357}}</ref> De Havilland had wanted Boeing to license-build the D.H.121, while Boeing felt that the aircraft needed to be designed for the American market, with six-abreast seating and the ability to use runways as short as {{convert|4500|ft|m}}.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.flightglobal.com/pdfarchive/view/1960/1960%20-%202303.html |title= Talking to Mr Beall: Boeing's Senior Vice-President in London |date=October 4, 1960|work=Flight|publisher=Reed Business Information |access-date=March 4, 2011}}</ref>

In 1960, [[Pratt & Whitney]] was looking for a customer for its new [[Pratt & Whitney JT8D|JT8D]] turbofan design study, based on its [[Pratt & Whitney J52|J52 (JT8A)]] turbojet,<ref name="Connors, p.348">{{harvnb|Connors|2010|pp=348–349}}</ref> while United and Eastern were interested in a Pratt & Whitney alternative to the RB163 Spey.<ref name="Connors, p.350">{{harvnb|Connors|2010|p=350}}</ref> Once Pratt & Whitney agreed to go ahead with development of the JT8D, [[Eddie Rickenbacker]], chairman of the board of Eastern, told Boeing that the airline preferred the JT8D for its 727s. Boeing had not offered the JT8D, as it was about {{cvt|1000|lb|kg}} heavier than the RB163, though slightly more powerful; the RB163 was also further along in development than the JT8D. Boeing reluctantly agreed to offer the JT8D as an option on the 727, and it later became the sole powerplant.<ref name="Connors, p.352">{{harvnb|Connors|2010|p=352}}</ref>

With [[high-lift device]]s<ref name=eden72>Eden, Paul. (Ed). ''Civil Aircraft Today.'' 2008: Amber Books, pp. 72–3.</ref> on its wing, the 727 could use shorter runways than most earlier jets (e.g. the {{cvt|4800|ft|m|}} runway at [[Key West International Airport]]).

A later 727 model, the 727-200, was stretched by 20 feet (6.10 metres) to carry 58 more passengers<ref name=eden74>Eden 2008, pp. 74–5.</ref> and replaced earlier jet airliners on short- and medium-haul routes such as the Boeing 707 and [[Douglas DC-8]], as well as aging propeller airliners such as the [[Douglas DC-4|DC-4]], [[Douglas DC-6|DC-6]], [[Douglas DC-7|DC-7]], and the [[Lockheed Constellation]]s.

For over a decade, more 727s were built per year than any other jet airliner; in 1984, production ended with 1,832 built<ref name=727_family/> and 1,831 delivered, the highest total for any jet airliner until the [[Boeing 737|737]] surpassed it in the early 1990s.<ref>Norris and Wagner. ''Modern Boeing Jetliners'', pp. 12–3. Motorbooks International, 1999.</ref>