The last BOAC Boeing 707 in existence?

[suninmyeyes]

This photo taken in February 2018 shows the Fujairah boneyard quite well with the Boeing 707 in the distance.

[suninmyeyes]

PS What's the third aircraft up from the bottom right facing "west" (if you regard North as the top of the page. ) It looks a bit like a BAC 111 but the tail is wrong. The Tristar further up looks like an old Saudia one.

[DaveReidUK]

Originally Posted by suninmyeyes

PS What's the third aircraft up from the bottom right facing "west" (if you regard North as the top of the page. ) It looks a bit like a BAC 111 but the tail is wrong.

If we're both looking at the same aircraft, I think the third engine might be a clue.

[VictorGolf]

Does anything ever "escape" from this boneyard or is it the end of the road for these airframes?

[Duchess_Driver]

Most will (probably) leave as coke cans, some may leave in parts and a few may actually fly out.

You’ll note the Tristars, 707s, 727s IL76s etc aren’t exactly cutting edge technology so usual commercial demand for them will be between zero and not much. Some may return to ‘niche’ markets or for nefarious purposes but most wouldn’t move again.

[Cubs2jets]

Originally Posted by suninmyeyes

PS What's the third aircraft up from the bottom right facing "west" (if you regard North as the top of the page. ) It looks a bit like a BAC 111 but the tail is wrong. The Tristar further up looks like an old Saudia one.

Looks like a 727-100 to me.

C2j

[rickyricks]

Originally Posted by Duchess_Driver

Most will (probably) leave as coke cans, some may leave in parts and a few may actually fly out.

You’ll note the Tristars, 707s, 727s IL76s etc aren’t exactly cutting edge technology so usual commercial demand for them will be between zero and not much. Some may return to ‘niche’ markets or for nefarious purposes but most wouldn’t move again.

Unfortunately, as you probably already know, aircraft aluminium scrap is completely incompatible with the alloys used for beverage cans. In fact, just about the only part of an aircraft that is not recyclable is the aluminium structure: two alloy types are involved - 7xxx alloys (Al-Zn-Mg-Cu) and 2xxx alloys (Al-Cu-Mg) and if you melt the whole lot down you end up with an alloy not suited for any commercial use. This is partly why it's more convenient to leave these old aircraft in the middle of the dessert - the recycling industry simply wouldn't know what to do with them.

[DaveReidUK]

Originally Posted by rickyricks

This is partly why it's more convenient to leave these old aircraft in the middle of the dessert - the recycling industry simply wouldn't know what to do with them.

Though presumably reputable aircraft breakers do, otherwise they wouldn't be able to operate.

[bafanguy]

Originally Posted by DaveReidUK

Though presumably reputable aircraft breakers do, otherwise they wouldn't be able to operate.

There must be some monetary value to the metal or people wouldn't go to so much trouble:

"California’s Mojave Air and Space Port keeps fleets of old Boeing, Airbus, and Lockheed aircrafts. The carcasses are picked apart for usable parts, and when there’s nothing of value left, the remains are melted for scrap metal."

"Once a jet has been stripped bare of usable parts, its metal frame is redeemed for scrap value. A 747 can fetch up to $55,000 for its scrap alone."

https://www.flexport.com/blog/decomm...salvage-value/

[Spooky 2]

I have seen mini smelters right on the teardown sight so it must have some significant value.

[rickyricks]

Originally Posted by Spooky 2

I have seen mini smelters right on the teardown sight so it must have some significant value.

Most aerospace aluminium specifications call for around 10% of the charge for a melting furnace to be scrap, and most of this will be runaround scrap in the plant making the ingots/plate/extrusions. 2xxx alloys will have a Zn maximum of <0,2wt% so if you melt an aeroplane down you can't really use the resultant alloy for 2xxx ingot production. Most likely the scrap will be used for casting alloys where the specifications are significantly more relaxed.

[Terry McCassey]

Originally Posted by Spooky 2

I'm intrigued by the four instruments on the leading edge of the upper FE panel? Suspect they are either N1 or N2 gauges, maybe EPR that would be in the vsision scan of the FE when facing forward? Were these a BOAC mod, or was the airplane delivered this way as I have never seen that config before.

I too was intrigued as I too cannot remember seeing them on any B707 I worked. Looking closely at the instruments they all say TEMP on the face of the dial. I can see too they are grouped in pairs, the top and bottom one the same, the centre two the same, probably 1 and 4 tank temp and 2 and 3 tank temp, fascinating nonetheless. Keep safe, Terry

[Meikleour]

Terry McCassey: I replied earlier to this query. They were fuel temperature gauges. The Conway engined aircraft had manual fuel heaters and every time a change of fuel tank feed was done the heaters had to be "toggled" to the required temperaure as the tanks could have quite different fuel temperatures on a long flight.

I think this function must have been automatic on the JT3D engines as I have no recollection of needing to do this with them.

[mustafagander]

As I recall the JT3D engines, we used to apply fuel heat at a regular time (30 minutes?) for 1 minute when the #1M tank temp was below a given temp. Tank #1M was the only one with a temp sensor. We also used to apply 1 minute of fuel heat if the fuel icing light illuminated for any engine.
I apologise if I've got it all mixed up, I last flew B707 as FEO in 1977.

[Spooky 2]

Originally Posted by mustafagander

As I recall the JT3D engines, we used to apply fuel heat at a regular time (30 minutes?) for 1 minute when the #1M tank temp was below a given temp. Tank #1M was the only one with a temp sensor. We also used to apply 1 minute of fuel heat if the fuel icing light illuminated for any engine.
I apologise if I've got it all mixed up, I last flew B707 as FEO in 1977.

I believe you are correct regarding the manual application of fuel heat. The trick was to not get distracted and leave it on for say ten minutes. The comon solution was to take the amber fuel icing cap off and hold it in your hand so as to remember what was going on.

[mustafagander]

Yep Spooky, most of my colleagues used to do the same with the icing light cap.
If you had a Cpt who wanted to fiddle around with the thrust coz you weren't exactly at M.81, fuel heat was quite useful to make him cease fiddling. Turn it on, turn it off and thrust went all over the place.