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Boeing 727 Holiday jets.

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Boeing 727 Holiday jets.

Old 31st May 2021, 10:21
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Originally Posted by treadigraph
I don't ever recall seeing the TWA 727s at Heathrow - though I may have done! - but I know they operated down into the Med - presumably from Berlin? Recall one was famously hijacked.
They (TWA) did 727 feeder services from LHR - same as Pan Am did, but not just to/from Germany IIRC.

Pan Am certainly flew holiday flights from TXL - saw 2 on the ramp together at Palma. Never saw TWA 727 in the Med except ATH and BCN.
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Old 31st May 2021, 11:09
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The TWA 727s had a long history of being based in Southern Europe, one ran Tel Aviv-Athens-Rome as a 747 feeder for many years. Alex Frater, in his classic book about old air travel "Beyond the Blue Horizon" rode in it from Rome to Athens in 1984, and described it in detail. Both flight deck and cabin crew were from the US, the latter revolving with 747 Transatlantic duties. TWA later moved in to Berlin as a competitor on the internal German routes, just a year or two before the wall came down so a wasted investment.

Pan Am at Berlin likewise had US flight deck, they were on 3-month assignment at a time from Miami base. It was a 4-powers agreement that the crews had to be nationals of one of the Allies, but cabin crew were locally recruited. They had to have additional training to repeat all necessary commands from the flight deck in English to the pax in German. A distinctive feature of the Pan Am internal German service ("IGS") was the very short turnrounds, down to 25 minutes, and the heavy usage, 10 sectors a day or even more.

The GDR controllers on the corridor routes were apparently very adept at picking up accents of pilots who might not be US/British/French, especially on charters and biz-jets. THey could even distinguish Canadian from American.
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Old 31st May 2021, 12:26
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I doubt it will ever happen but I've wondered if it would have been feasible/practicable/doable to reconfigure the 727 cockpit to a two-crew layout. Airbus managed it with the A300, thereby dispensing with the Flight Engineer.
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Old 31st May 2021, 19:14
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Originally Posted by Mooncrest
I doubt it will ever happen but I've wondered if it would have been feasible/practicable/doable to reconfigure the 727 cockpit to a two-crew layout. Airbus managed it with the A300, thereby dispensing with the Flight Engineer.
Don't I know it! I was "dispensed with".
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Old 31st May 2021, 20:48
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Originally Posted by dixi188
Don't I know it! I was "dispensed with".
Too bad but one of many similar victims, I fear. Which airline ?
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Old 1st Jun 2021, 08:36
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Originally Posted by Mooncrest
Too bad but one of many similar victims, I fear. Which airline ?
2012 with EAT. (DHL).
I had 20 years in the middle seat which was more than I expected when I started on the Electra with Channex.
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Old 1st Jun 2021, 11:14
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I had 20 years in the middle seat which was more than I expected when I started on the Electra with Channex.
Did most of the Flight Engineers convert to pilot, or was it a case of do something different on the ground ? I realise you're not the oracle of information, but a generalised answer would be interesting.
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Old 1st Jun 2021, 11:56
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At Channex a couple of F/Es went Pilot but at their own cost. At EAT there were at least two pilots who were ex F/E. I think UPS paid for their F/Es to become pilots.
I think FEDEX did something similar when they converted their DC-10s to MD-10s.
I returned to maintenance engineering as I had kept my licence current.
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Old 1st Jun 2021, 13:54
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Thanks! It seems to have been a matter of cost somehow, with the large carriers happy to swallow the cost to keep their valued staff at full potential.
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Old 1st Jun 2021, 15:36
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Originally Posted by SpringHeeledJack
Thanks! It seems to have been a matter of cost somehow, with the large carriers happy to swallow the cost to keep their valued staff at full potential.
I think it may have been more to do with powerful unions.
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Old 3rd Jun 2021, 19:57
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Originally Posted by rog747
That is very kind -
Yes me too as both Madeira and Cape Town hold very special affections for me also, and I do love to stay at both the Grand old pink Ladies -
Reid's Palace FNC and The Mount Nelson CPT.
Two old bastions of Colonial luxury and excess LOL.
(Along with the VIC Falls Hotel as well - I cannot wait to go there, and back to CPT in 2023, then we are sailing home to SOU on the Cunard Liner QM2 calling at Madeira!)

WOW, way off topic now - sorry folks - lockdown boredom lol (Made all the better though by enjoying these Threads)

Back on Topic -
Sterling Airways did fly 727 charters every winter to Mombasa East Africa - Not sure of the stops from Scandinavia tho'
rog747, next time you find yourself at 18E/30S, please pm me. I'd love to buy you a glass or two of the lekker local vino and take you for a spin out of Stellenbosch Flying Club! Now back those wonderfully elegant 727's
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Old 9th Jun 2021, 19:37
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With regards to Dan Air charter operations from NCL, my first flight was NCL-MAH in September 1991. All I know apart from the above,( I was six years old at the time) is that we boarded via the ventral air stairs. Can anyone confirm whether this would have been a 727 or a 1-11? I believe both were based at Newcastle in 1991.

Last edited by The Flying Stool; 10th Jun 2021 at 19:23.
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Old 9th Jun 2021, 20:44
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Both did indeed run from there. 727 seating is 3+3; One-Eleven is 2+3. Can you remember any 2-across seating ?
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Old 9th Jun 2021, 21:13
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Originally Posted by The Flying Stool
With regards to Dan Air charter operations from NCL, my first flight was NCL-MAH in September 1991. All I know apart from the about,( I was six years old at the time) is that we boarded via the ventral air stairs. Can anyone confirm whether this would have been a 727 or a 1-11? I believe both were based at Newcastle in 1991.

I’m pretty certain it would have been a 727-200 in 1991.

DA Bac 1-11 holiday flights from NCL to the med may have ended by then - they’d mainly been for Intasun (went bust early 91) and Airtours who would have used the based 737-400’s and 727-200 in 91.

I think I still Air North mags from the time if you have some dates could find regs of aircraft.
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Old 9th Jun 2021, 22:32
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Sounds like a 727 in that case. Thank you for your help!
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Old 10th Jun 2021, 17:40
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Originally Posted by Mooncrest
I doubt it will ever happen but I've wondered if it would have been feasible/practicable/doable to reconfigure the 727 cockpit to a two-crew layout. Airbus managed it with the A300, thereby dispensing with the Flight Engineer.
I guess with enough money and patience it would probably be possible, after all many of the systems on the B727 are very similar to the B737-200, just three of everything instead of two.
UPS, who spent an absolute fortune upgrading their -100s by re-engining them with RR Tays, fitting a glass cockpit and a HUD kept the flight engineer (the cockpit resembled a B737CL but with a flight engineers panel) so I would assume getting rid of the FE was either too expensive or involved too much paperwork.
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Old 10th Jun 2021, 20:16
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Originally Posted by Webby737
I guess with enough money and patience it would probably be possible, after all many of the systems on the B727 are very similar to the B737-200, just three of everything instead of two.
UPS, who spent an absolute fortune upgrading their -100s by re-engining them with RR Tays, fitting a glass cockpit and a HUD kept the flight engineer (the cockpit resembled a B737CL but with a flight engineers panel) so I would assume getting rid of the FE was either too expensive or involved too much paperwork.
Thankyou Webby.
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Old 11th Jun 2021, 14:03
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Originally Posted by TCU
rog747, next time you find yourself at 18E/30S, please pm me. I'd love to buy you a glass or two of the lekker local vino and take you for a spin out of Stellenbosch Flying Club! Now back those wonderfully elegant 727's
Now that is some offer!

We were due to be in CPT last year end of March - April 2020 staying the last week at the Mount Nelson and jumping on the Cunard QM2 to sail home to SOU but sadly the world fell apart and all was cancelled.
The QM2 has been sitting out here in Weymouth Bay or over at Torbay now for over a year.
We have rebooked the same trip with Cunard for April 2023 - So fingers crossed then it would be a pleasure to see you then, thank you!

My sister wants to do a Safari before CPT, and I want to see VIC Falls and stay at the famous old hotel.
So Plan A is fly LON to NBO and 3-4 nights in the Masai Mara then fly to VF for 2 nights, then on to CPT.
I know there are parks in the Kruger but I do love Kenya.
Unless you have any Kruger tips?

The BA58/59 Ahhhhhh 747 heaven.
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Old 11th Jun 2021, 18:20
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Originally Posted by rog747
Now that is some offer!

We were due to be in CPT last year end of March - April 2020 staying the last week at the Mount Nelson and jumping on the Cunard QM2 to sail home to SOU but sadly the world fell apart and all was cancelled.
The QM2 has been sitting out here in Weymouth Bay or over at Torbay now for over a year.
We have rebooked the same trip with Cunard for April 2023 - So fingers crossed then it would be a pleasure to see you then, thank you!

My sister wants to do a Safari before CPT, and I want to see VIC Falls and stay at the famous old hotel.
So Plan A is fly LON to NBO and 3-4 nights in the Masai Mara then fly to VF for 2 nights, then on to CPT.
I know there are parks in the Kruger but I do love Kenya.
Unless you have any Kruger tips?

The BA58/59 Ahhhhhh 747 heaven.
rog, we are in danger of creating our own travel vlog here, so just a quick diversion:

In the Mara stay at Ol Seki. Save the wonderful landscape and wildlife, if you do your transfers from Wilson with Air Kenya, you are likely to get a ride on both the DHC-7 and DHC-6!

Kruger - go to North Kruger, fly into Hoedspruit with Air Link and stay at Rockfig....simply wonderful. As an aside, not only was Hoedspruit AFB the main forward air base for one of those secret SA border wars, but it was also an emergency Space Shuttle landing strip.

.....now back to Seven Two's
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Old 11th Jun 2021, 20:27
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With regards to Dan Air charter operations from NCL, my first flight was NCL-MAH in September 1991. All I know apart from the above,( I was six years old at the time) is that we boarded via the ventral air stairs. Can anyone confirm whether this would have been a 727 or a 1-11? I believe both were based at Newcastle in 1991.
The Summer 1991 ATUK book shows the only Dan-Air flight between Newcastle and Mahon was a Thursday operation for Airtours Holidays on a 727-200. DA2158 outbound, aircraft flew a W pattern to Glasgow and returned late Thursday evening as DA2159. Unless there were late season changes (always possible) then you’d have been on a 727-200.

NCL base was a 727 and a 734 in 1991. No sign of any 1-11 charter flying in the plan.
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