- 1 day ago
For educational purposes
Great Planes looks into the stories behind the most influential, innovative and intriguing machines that ever took flight.
With its unique upper level passenger area, the 747 literally monopolised the four jet wide body market for over 20 years.
Great Planes looks into the stories behind the most influential, innovative and intriguing machines that ever took flight.
With its unique upper level passenger area, the 747 literally monopolised the four jet wide body market for over 20 years.
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LearningTranscript
00:00THE END
00:30A plane we all recognise
00:40A plane that now, over 20 years after its birth, many of us take for granted
00:45A plane that has, without fuss, changed the meaning of the term international travel
00:50The Boeing 747
00:52Some people, like the late Juan Tripp, former president of Pan American Airlines
00:58Saw its potential right from the start
01:00When Juan Tripp came to Seattle to sign the contract
01:05It happened to coincide with the 50th anniversary of the Boeing company
01:08And he was the guest speaker at a large banquet downtown
01:11And so he gave this speech on the 747
01:15And he was a very idealistic man anyway
01:19He'd started more or less international travel by, you know, spawning Pan Am
01:24From the days when there were prop airplanes flying and so forth
01:27And he said, I think that the 747 is a great weapon for peace
01:33And it's really competing with the international, intercontinental missiles
01:38For man's destiny
01:39Which sort of surprised us all
01:41And he thought it was going to win
01:43And he explained that when you've got millions of tourists flying back and forth between countries
01:46And they were exchanging their goods and produce and products and so forth
01:50That you would learn to like each other before
01:53And do business with each other before you'd blow them up, I suppose
01:56And it turns out that he's pretty close to right
01:59Because 20 years later we're bringing out a new airplane, 747-400 version
02:04And that year Reagan and Gorbachev had decided to scrap missiles
02:08And so, and we're doing a billion, it's a trillion revenue passenger miles to be flown
02:14In 1989
02:16That's, so, one trip was really a profit
02:1916th of August, 1989
02:25Sydney, Australia
02:27A new Boeing 747-400
02:30The latest development of the 747 line
02:32Touches down at Sydney International Airport
02:35Having flown 18,001 kilometres from London
02:38In 20 hours, 9 minutes and 5 seconds
02:41Making it the longest non-stop airline flight in history
02:45A major new milestone in world travel
02:48Recorded in the year of the 747's 21st birthday
02:51But the epic 747 story starts a long way from Sydney, Australia
02:58In both space and time
03:00On July 16, 1916, in Seattle, Washington
03:03William Edward Boeing founded the Pacific Aero Products Company
03:07In mid-1917, the USA entered the war against Germany
03:13And Bill Boeing received an order for 50 of his Model C trainers
03:17Before the end of the year, Pacific Aero Products had become the Boeing Airplane Company
03:23In March 1919, Bill Boeing and his pilot Eddie Hubbard
03:31Made the first international mail flight
03:33When they flew from Seattle to Vancouver
03:35In 1928, the Boeing 80A was the last word in travel comfort
03:41Boasting the first flight nurse or air hostess
03:44Metal fabrication improvements led to a series of metal-skinned low-wing monoplanes
03:50Like the XB-9 bombers
03:52And by 1934, when Roscoe Turner flew a Boeing 247 from London to Melbourne, Australia
03:59A true revolution in passenger air transport had arrived
04:02In 1933, the 247 had cut the US transcontinental flight time
04:08From 27 to 19 and a half hours
04:11With her twin Pratt & Whitney WASP engines
04:14She was 50 to 70 miles an hour faster than any other airliner of the period
04:19But the 247's advanced design led to its downfall
04:23Because when TWA went to Douglas to find a competitor
04:27The DC series was born
04:28And the DC-2 and 3 made the 247 virtually obsolete
04:33Boeing now turned its attention to size
04:37With the four-engined XB-15
04:40It was the first really big plane to use state-of-the-art technology
04:44In streamlining and high-performance power plants
04:46Only one XB-15 was built
04:49But Boeing had established itself as a manufacturer of big aircraft
04:53When Juan Tripp of Pan American Airlines approached Boeing to build a big flying boat
05:01To fly the intercontinental passenger routes
05:03The engines and wing design of the XB-15 were adapted to fit the new hull
05:08And the Model 314 Boeing Clipper was born
05:11The Clipper was big
05:13It had a gross weight of 82,500 pounds
05:16And a payload of over 15 tons of fuel, passengers and cargo
05:20They cost $700,000 each
05:24And took 350,000 man-hours to build
05:27The Clipper was the first major step towards Juan Tripp's vision of cheap international travel
05:33With its range and capacity to carry two ships of flight crew
05:37It made regular scheduled transatlantic services possible
05:40At the same time, Boeing was moving in another direction
05:49Upward
05:50It had designed and built Project 299
05:53The prototype of the Flying Fortress B-17
05:56Using the idea of four engines and a smaller fuselage than the XB-15
06:01In order to improve performance
06:03The B-17's wings and tail assembly were given a cigar-shaped pressurised fuselage
06:11To produce the four-engined strato liner
06:13A supercharger provided oxygen for high-altitude engine performance
06:18And fed pressurised air to the cabin
06:21It wasn't the first four-engined airliner
06:24But it was the first pressurised airliner to enter service
06:27Juan Tripp from Pan American ordered four strato liners
06:31And TWA ordered five
06:33The first strato liner flew on December 31, 1938
06:38It created great excitement
06:40With its ability to fly at 26,000 feet
06:43And carry 33 passengers
06:45But a plane that seemed destined for greatness
06:53Was not to have everything its own way
06:56A bad crash of strato liner number one
06:58Led to the fitting of a dorsal fin to improve stability
07:01And the outbreak of World War II
07:04Interrupted the development of international travel
07:06However, the development of supercharger
07:15Pressurisation and later turbo supercharger
07:18Were all to make a contribution
07:20To the development of the Boeing line of big bombers
07:2212,000 B-17's were built
07:25And they played a major role in the Allied war effort
07:28Not only dropping bombs
07:30But shooting down almost as many enemy planes
07:32As all other American war planes combined
07:35Then came the biggest of the World War II bombers
07:42The B-29 Superfortress
07:45With its pressurised fuselage
07:46Its impact on military history
07:48Culminated with the dropping of the bomb
07:50That ended the war
07:51But after the war
07:53Its transport counterpart
07:55The C-97
07:56Evolved into the Stratocruiser
07:58Boeing's ultimate in big piston-engined
08:00International airliners
08:01In 1945
08:03William Allen
08:04The new president of Boeing
08:06Had realised the need for Boeing
08:08To get back into the production of civil aircraft
08:10He gambled
08:12And announced the building of 50
08:13At a million dollars each
08:15The Stratocruiser
08:17The Stratocruiser was the ultimate in luxury international travel
08:20In an era before the introduction of economy and tourist fares
08:24Its most famous feature was the spiral staircase
08:28Leading down to the lower deck lounge
08:30Where passengers could stretch their legs
08:32And enjoy a change of scenery
08:34There was also the ladies' lounge
08:42A convenient facility for keeping up in-flight appearances
08:45The Stratocruiser's major competitors at this time
08:53Were from Lockheed and Douglas
08:54They were, like this constellation
08:57Essentially pre-war designs
08:59There were also other planes
09:04Like the British Hermes
09:06Flying the international routes
09:07Post-war international air travel
09:10Had not boomed
09:11In the way that many experts had predicted
09:13And the luxury of spanning the miles between continents
09:16At any time of the day or night
09:17Was only available to a privileged minority
09:20In May 1952
09:25The British de Havilland Comet
09:27Began a service from London to Johannesburg
09:29But the design ran into trouble
09:32Before Comet could be introduced
09:33To the transatlantic run
09:35The future of jet international travel
09:39Was given a boost
09:40By the need for a new in-flight tanker
09:42The old Boeing KC-97
09:45Was fine for refuelling piston-driven planes
09:47But it was too slow
09:49To cope comfortably
09:50With the new generation
09:51Of Boeing long-range jet bombers
09:53The B-47 first flew in 1947
09:57It had six General Electric
10:00J-35 turbojets
10:01Slung in pods
10:02Under the swept-back wing
10:04The concept of a global defensive weapon
10:06Required huge flying ranges
10:08A need shared by the next generation
10:11The B-52 Stratofortress
10:13For the concept to work
10:15An efficient in-flight refuelling system
10:17Was essential
10:18And the result was another major gamble
10:20For Boeing
10:21Dash 80 was a completely new design
10:28A low-wing swept-wing monoplane
10:31With four Pratt & Whitney J-3 engines
10:33She was a double prototype
10:35KC-135 tanker she became
10:38But she also broke away from her military destiny
10:41As the Boeing 707
10:42America's first international jet airliner
10:45But soon
10:50The 707s on transatlantic routes
10:52Were joined by DC-8s from Douglas
10:54Passenger numbers began to soar
10:56By 12% a year
10:57And Douglas introduced a stretched version
11:00Of the DC-8 to cope with increased demand
11:02The 707 was not readily stretchable
11:05But at that point
11:07Fate intervened
11:08With the US Air Force competition
11:09To build a very large transport plane
11:12The C-5A
11:13Boeing
11:14Always ready to build a bigger plane
11:16Threw itself into the contest
11:18And this animation
11:19Shows its design approach
11:20It was given top priority
11:23And a design team of 500 men
11:25Set to work on the concept
11:26In June 1964
11:28A detailed proposal
11:30Went from Boeing
11:31To the US Air Force
11:32Within four months
11:33Boeing
11:34With its experience
11:35In the production of big planes
11:37Was thought to have the edge
11:38Over its competitors
11:39Lockheed and Douglas
11:40But a year later
11:42In September 1965
11:44The word came out
11:45Boeing
11:48With all its knowledge
11:49Of big plane construction
11:50Had quoted too high a price
11:52And Lockheed
11:54Had won the contract
11:55To build what became
11:56The C-5A Galaxy
11:58But what was a blow to Boeing
12:02At the time
12:03Became a major factor
12:04In the future
12:05Of international jet travel
12:06When you're competing
12:09On something as large
12:10As the C-5A
12:11If we had won that contract
12:12It would have absorbed
12:13A great deal of our energy
12:14And we probably would not
12:16Have gone forward
12:16With the 747
12:17At that time
12:18And then later
12:19However
12:20The fact that we lost it
12:22And that released
12:23A fair amount of energy
12:24And resources
12:25To do something else
12:26We were anxious
12:27To get moving
12:28And it in a sense
12:29Probably accelerated
12:30Our going into the 747
12:32Which it turned out
12:33To be a very attractive
12:34Decision
12:35The 747 concept
12:39Grew out of much
12:40Consultation with airlines
12:41Around the world
12:42And William Allen
12:43The Boeing president
12:44Was the man who
12:45Recommended that building
12:46Proceed
12:47But there were no
12:48Firm orders for the plane
12:49One trip of Pan American Airlines
12:55Who'd had a prominent place
12:57In the history of the Boeing
12:58Clipper
12:58The Stratoliner
12:59And the Stratocruiser
13:00Was once again
13:02About to tie himself
13:03To Boeing's destiny
13:04Well one trip
13:05Got intrigued
13:06In it
13:07And Bill Allen
13:08And himself
13:09They said
13:10Well what about it
13:11And our designers
13:12Said we can
13:13Design and build it
13:14And he said
13:14If you can build it
13:15I'll buy it
13:16And between the two of them
13:17They struck sort of a deal
13:19That they
13:19Sort of sealed
13:20With a handshake
13:20If we would go ahead
13:23I believe the timing
13:24Was this was in
13:26February of 66
13:27If we'd agree
13:29To build the airplane
13:30That he would buy it
13:31We said
13:32Well we'd have to have
13:32Orders from at least
13:33Three airlines
13:34For 50 aircraft
13:36And if that was the case
13:39We'd go ahead
13:39In August 1st of 1966
13:41At that time
13:42We did not have
13:43Signed contracts
13:45I believe
13:45For the 50
13:45But we were close enough
13:46And we were already
13:47Enraptured with the concept
13:49So we went ahead
13:50I believe
13:51I believe
13:51That Juan
13:52Tripp
13:54In order to ensure
13:55That we were
13:56Serious about it
13:57More or less
13:58Bet Bill Allen
13:59Ten million dollars
13:59That he wouldn't go ahead
14:01It wasn't so much
14:02A bet
14:02I think it was
14:02It was a
14:03It was a
14:04If you didn't do it
14:05You'd have to pay the money
14:06But we did go ahead
14:07So we didn't have to pay
14:08The ten million dollars
14:09On July 25th
14:241966
14:25The Boeing company
14:27Decided to convert
14:28This forest
14:28Into one of the biggest
14:30Manufacturing complexes
14:31In the world
14:31The company decided
14:33To erect here
14:34The largest factory
14:36Volume wise
14:36Ever built
14:37In order to assemble
14:38The largest commercial
14:39Jet airplane
14:40In aviation history
14:41The plane
14:43Was the giant 747
14:45Six stories high
14:47231 feet long
14:51With a wingspan
14:57Wider than a football field
14:58Two and a third times
15:00Larger than a
15:01Four jet 707
15:02And the time
15:05For the first plane
15:07Only 31 months
15:08From go ahead
15:09To roll out
15:10But for the factory
15:11Time compressed even more
15:13Nine months
15:14Until fabrication
15:15Of the first part
15:16For the first plane
15:17Had to begin
15:18Challenges of the factory
15:24Came first
15:24Challenges posed
15:26By the necessity
15:26Of building that first part
15:28On time
15:28Of keeping one step ahead
15:30Of the growing plane
15:30Timbered hilltops
15:42Had to be cleared
15:43To make way
15:44For the factory
15:44630 acres
15:46At Everett
15:47About 40 miles
15:48North of Seattle
15:49Were transformed
15:50In a huge
15:51Landscaping effort
15:52More than 250
15:54Contractors
15:54Subcontractors
15:56And material contractors
15:57Were needed
15:57For the project
15:58The contract
16:01Labour force
16:02Working on the site
16:03Reached 2800 men
16:05Representing just about
16:06Every construction craft
16:08In the area
16:08As far as a financial risk
16:14Or a business risk
16:15It was
16:16You'd have to say
16:18It was awesome
16:19I guess
16:19Because obviously
16:21What the money it took
16:22To develop
16:23Design and build
16:24Prototype airplanes
16:26And then build
16:27A production rate up
16:28Was far in excess
16:30Of the net worth
16:30Of the entire company
16:31So we were betting
16:33The company
16:34On the success
16:35Of the airplane
16:36The railroad
16:38Second steepest
16:39In the nation
16:40Lifts trains
16:41As high as
16:42Seattle Space Needle
16:43More than 500 feet
16:44From Puget Sound
16:45To factory level
16:46In less than
16:46Three miles
16:47Speedy construction
16:49Of the $2 million
16:50Railroad was essential
16:51The line would be
16:53Required initially
16:53For hauling material
16:55To the construction site
16:56And later
16:57For moving parts
16:58And equipment
16:58To factory assembly lines
17:00We threw
17:03Many men
17:03And much equipment
17:05Into that gulch
17:06In order to build
17:06That railroad
17:07It was tough
17:09To get the ballast
17:09Down and to get
17:10The tracks laid
17:11It was thought
17:12That we could never
17:13Do it
17:13But we were able
17:14To bring it out
17:15On schedule
17:15The head of facilities
17:17For me
17:18A fellow named
17:18Bain Lamb
17:19That was building
17:20This World's Digest
17:20Building
17:21He used to be
17:23A quarterback
17:23On the University
17:25Of Washington Huskies
17:25And I had been
17:27A guard at Georgia Tech
17:28And he never
17:28Liked taking orders
17:29From a guard anyway
17:30But he came to me
17:31One day and he said
17:31You know
17:33We're not going to
17:33Get that on time
17:34And I said
17:36The devil
17:36We're not
17:37You know
17:37What do you need
17:38You know
17:38He said
17:38Well I need
17:39More people
17:39And I said
17:40You've got them
17:40And then he said
17:41I need more
17:42Equipment
17:44You know
17:44Our earth moving
17:45I said
17:45You've got it
17:46And he said
17:46I need more money
17:48He said
17:48Don't bother about it
17:49You know
17:50We'll get it for you
17:51And he said
17:52I need two weeks
17:53Of clear weather
17:53And I said
17:53You've got it
17:54You know
17:54And then
17:55Well
17:55As it turned out
17:58God got even
17:58Because he'd rained
17:5967 days in a row
18:01There were always problems
18:05No sooner had clearing begun
18:07Than rains swept the site
18:09Equipment mired down
18:13We found that this glacier till
18:21That is so hard
18:23Also turned to grease
18:25We couldn't work obviously
18:26In the mud
18:27So we paved
18:29About a hundred acres
18:30Under the buildings
18:32Then we were able to work
18:34Out of the dirt
18:34And out of the mud
18:35Size and speed of the project
18:41Demanded rigid controls
18:42At every turn
18:43As director of facilities
18:45Bain Lamb explains
18:46Every single thing
18:48That goes on in the project
18:49Is scheduled and planned
18:50In this room
18:51We can tell in an instant
18:52Whether or not
18:53We are ahead or behind schedule
18:54One of the major problems
18:58Planners had to overcome
18:59Was an overlapping of jobs
19:01Between construction workers
19:02And aircraft builders
19:04The contractors
19:05We knew were going to be
19:06In an area adjacent to our people
19:08Overhead in the structures
19:10In the towers
19:10Under floor
19:11In the trenches
19:12In the ducts
19:13At the same time
19:14Boeing people would be
19:14Trying to produce
19:15The parts that would later
19:17Go into the airplane
19:18Meanwhile Joe Sutter
19:20Chief project engineer
19:22For the 747
19:22Had spent over a year
19:24With his team
19:25Finalising the plane's design
19:27To make sure
19:28Mock up construction
19:29Could begin as soon
19:30As the building was ready
19:31Or if necessary
19:33Even before that
19:34As soon as it became possible
19:40Construction crews moved inside
19:43While interior walls
19:45Were being installed
19:46Construction activity
19:47Continued outside
19:48On the roof
19:49As electricians worked inside
19:55Stringing cables
19:56Steel workers on the outside
19:57Were finishing the walls
19:59Of the mock up building
20:00The building was due
20:01To be occupied
20:02In midwinter
20:03January 1967
20:05We realised early
20:07That we were not going to be able
20:08To turn over
20:09A completed facility
20:10It would be not heated
20:11It would be wide open
20:12On one end
20:13The floors would still be
20:15Curing out
20:15The shell
20:16Is about all we had to deliver
20:17They were wearing gloves
20:25And their mackinaws
20:26And their hard hats
20:27They were very
20:29Very motivated
20:31The workforce
20:31There was no need
20:32To try to energize them
20:34They were on a
20:35Very romantic task
20:37They were building
20:37The world's largest airplane
20:38And they would
20:40We had people
20:41That would drive
20:42All the way from Tacoma
20:43Which is
20:44You know
20:4570 miles away
20:46To get to Everett
20:47To work on the aircraft
20:48They had an enthusiasm
20:51That welled up
20:52And finally someone
20:53Coined the word
20:55That they were
20:55The Incredibles
20:56And
20:57Trying to think
21:00Of who decided
21:01But they got
21:01Paul Bunyan
21:02Insignia
21:04And put it on
21:04Their hard hats
21:05They had to work
21:06In hard hats
21:06Because the building
21:07Was still under construction
21:08And on their lunch pails
21:09And they had them
21:10On their jackets
21:11And what have you
21:11And they really
21:13Did a yeoman's job
21:14Yeah
21:14It was incredible
21:27And the Incredibles
21:29Is what they were called
21:31The railway
21:42From Puget Sound
21:43To Everett
21:43Ran up its steep incline
21:45Right into the factory
21:46In order to bring
21:47The literally millions
21:48Of parts of the plane
21:49Together in the right place
21:51At the right time
21:52The factory
21:53Was virtually
21:54A city in itself
21:55It was the world's
21:57Largest building
21:57In cubic capacity
21:58Covering 43 acres
22:00Under one continuous roof
22:02It housed thousands
22:03Of workers
22:04And had its own
22:05Food and medical facilities
22:06A stage as big
22:11As 40 football fields
22:12Only waiting now
22:14For the appearance
22:14Of its principal player
22:16A player whose lines
22:17Had been polished
22:18And refined
22:19Over many months
22:20By many people
22:21All striving
22:22To make sure
22:23That everything
22:23Would be alright
22:24When the curtain
22:25Went up
22:25On opening night
22:26The whole job
22:33Started way back
22:34Down the line
22:35When engineers
22:36Were still looking
22:36At paper airplanes
22:37And models
22:38And wind tunnel
22:39Testing began
22:40Our people
22:42Devote literally
22:44Thousands of hours
22:45Of their time
22:46And both on paper
22:48And in the wind tunnel
22:49To minimise drag
22:51Because drag is money
22:52Drag costs weight
22:54Drag costs fuel
22:55In the months
22:56Of early development
22:57Joe Sutter
22:58And his team
22:59Experimented with nearly
23:0050 different
23:01Possible shapes
23:02Including this
23:03Double-decker
23:04Mid-wing configuration
23:05Millions of dollars
23:08Were spent on
23:08Wind tunnel testing
23:09And every aerodynamic
23:11Parameter was measured
23:12And recorded
23:13Boeing needed
23:22An entirely new
23:23Engine to power
23:24The 747
23:24And they got it
23:26From Pratt and Whitney
23:27Who'd been working
23:28On a similar
23:28But smaller concept
23:30For the C5A competition
23:31It was called
23:33A high bypass
23:33Ratio engine
23:34A development
23:35Of the fan jet
23:36Model JT9D
23:38It produced
23:4043,500 pounds
23:42Of thrust
23:42Up to 87,000 horsepower
23:45Pratt and Whitney
23:46Had to test the engine
23:48Without a finished plane
23:49So they leased
23:50A B-52
23:51From the Air Force
23:52And modified it
23:53To install
23:54A JT9D
23:55In place of
23:55Two of the B-52's
23:57Normal engines
23:58In the flight test
24:08Program
24:08The B-52
24:10Flew at altitudes
24:11Over 45,000 feet
24:12And under extreme
24:14Conditions
24:14The engine
24:15Was given
24:15A clean bill
24:16Of health
24:17This device
24:21Called the praying mantis
24:23Was designed
24:24To give pilots
24:24The experience
24:25Of taxiing
24:26The 747
24:27From a cockpit
24:2829 feet
24:29Above the ground
24:30The 747's
24:32Chief test pilot
24:33Jack Waddell
24:34Was heavily involved
24:36In this preliminary testing
24:37And he could
24:38With practice
24:39Park it next
24:40To a cargo dock
24:41With a plus or minus
24:42Six inch tolerance
24:43It proved
24:45To many 747
24:46Customers
24:47That the huge plane
24:48Would not be
24:49An uncontrollable
24:50Horror
24:50Around airports
24:51The prospect
25:03Of emergency
25:04Evacuation
25:05From an unusual
25:06Height
25:06Was also faced
25:08Early in the
25:08747's development
25:10And pilots
25:11Were given
25:12An opportunity
25:12To fly
25:13In a simulator
25:14That used
25:15A remotely
25:15Controlled
25:16TV camera
25:17Scanning
25:17An accurate
25:18Terrain model
25:19In the simulator
25:25The pilot
25:26Had control
25:26Of speed
25:27Altitude
25:28And attitude
25:29Matched
25:30As closely
25:30To the behaviour
25:31Of the big plane
25:32As the designers
25:33Could predict
25:34The full scale
25:40Mockup
25:40Of the 747
25:41Was built
25:42As an engineering
25:43Tool
25:44To test
25:44Every part
25:45And system
25:46That would find
25:46Its way
25:47Into the completed
25:47Aircraft
25:48Just to make sure
25:50That all 4.5 million
25:52Pieces in the jigsaw puzzle
25:53Would fit
25:54And given that the puzzle pieces
25:57Would be coming from many different subcontractors
25:59From many different locations
26:01Inside and outside the US
26:03The successful assembly
26:05Of such a giant jigsaw
26:06Posed enormous planning
26:08And logistical problems
26:09For the management team
26:10Who had to make sure
26:11It all fell
26:12Accurately into place
26:14On the 43 acre floor
26:15Of the Everett factory
26:16Back in Washington state
26:18As you know
26:21There's
26:21Literally
26:22Millions of pieces
26:24In the airplane
26:25And
26:25And parts
26:27And they were coming from
26:29Almost all of the 50 states
26:31And
26:3117 foreign countries
26:33And
26:33So that
26:35You had a tremendous
26:36Logistics problem
26:37To get all of these designs
26:38And parts
26:39And schedules
26:40To mesh
26:40To bring together
26:41A line
26:42That was finally
26:42Going to end up
26:43To being
26:43Building a
26:44747
26:45Every three days
26:46Roughly
26:47They're
26:48On a
26:48Seven a month schedule
26:50And we work as you know
26:5122 days a month
26:52So it was a tremendous
26:54You know
26:55Problem in complexity
26:56And we were just
26:58Computers weren't
26:59Really available
27:00In the same
27:01Dimension they are now
27:02And so
27:03We were doing a lot of this
27:04With older techniques
27:06And so it was
27:07It was an awesome job
27:08To keep track of the parts
27:09And make sure
27:10Everything got designed right
27:11And tested
27:12And put into the airplane
27:13The scale
27:18And innovative nature
27:19Of the project
27:20Meant that many new materials
27:22And engineering techniques
27:23Had to be designed
27:24And developed
27:25A huge machine shop
27:27Was established
27:28At Auburn
27:29South of Seattle
27:30To make precision tools
27:31And giant jigs
27:33Which couldn't be acquired
27:34Any other way
27:35New highly complex
27:39Riveting machines
27:40Were built
27:40To operate with
27:41Greater speed
27:42And accuracy
27:43Than had been required
27:44By any past
27:45Manufacturing processes
27:46Without this kind
27:48Of innovation
27:49To speed up
27:50The 747 project
27:51Manufacturing would not have been
27:53Economically possible
27:54And now
28:02The moment of truth
28:03The assembly of 747 number one
28:06Is underway
28:07The nose section
28:09Has arrived
28:09From the bowing plant
28:10At Wichita
28:11The big pieces of the jigsaw puzzle
28:14Are coming together
28:15The systems that were designed
28:20In theory
28:21Many months before
28:22Are now being tested
28:23In practice
28:24And the test
28:25Is very severe
28:26At this time
28:32The tolerances demanded
28:34The tolerances demanded
28:34Of the engineering process
28:35Are the most exacting
28:37Ever asked
28:38Of the aircraft industry
28:39The level of tension
28:46On the factory floor
28:47Mounts
28:48These people
28:49Have committed themselves
28:50Fully to the project
28:51And now
28:52747 number one
28:54Is beginning to emerge
28:55As a whole plane
28:56From the sum
28:57Of its millions of parts
28:59The tail
29:05The height
29:06Of a six story building
29:07Many times higher
29:09Than the altitude
29:09Reached by the Wright brothers
29:11On their first flight
29:12Is lowered into place
29:13From the tip of the tail
29:17To the tip of the nose
29:18It is also longer
29:19Than the distance
29:20Flown by the Wright brothers
29:21At Kitty Hawk
29:22In 1903
29:23But even with the fuselage
29:28And wings assembled
29:29The building process
29:30Is far from complete
29:32There are 135 miles
29:34Of wire
29:35In a Boeing 747
29:36And much of it
29:38Has to be fitted by hand
29:3975,000 engineering drawings
29:46Had to be used
29:47For the full project
29:48And all assembly instructions
29:50Had to be followed
29:51Right to the letter
29:52The 747 hydraulics system
29:57Is designed for safety
29:58Backup systems compensate
30:00For one another
30:00In the event of failure
30:02Putting everything together
30:04In the time available
30:05Was a colossal task
30:06I can remember it being
30:08A
30:09All encompassing
30:11A job
30:11We spent
30:12365 days a year
30:15Working on it
30:16And seven days a week
30:18I think we would have averaged
30:19Something like
30:2012, 14, 16
30:22Hours a day
30:23I mean the management
30:24Some people said
30:26I don't understand
30:26How Boeing can put
30:28An airplane out
30:29In four years
30:30Well another way
30:31Is we did it in eight
30:32But we crammed
30:33Into four
30:34It was a compelling job
30:38And everybody that worked on it
30:39Was sort of swept up
30:41Into the enthusiasm
30:42For doing it
30:4326 months ago
30:44As we stood
30:44In the forest
30:45Up here at Everett
30:46And the decision
30:47Was made to go forward
30:49With the 747 program
30:50The magnitude of the task
30:52That we were faced with
30:54Really looked formidable
30:55Monday
30:56Monday, September 30, 1968
30:58Bill Allen
30:59Sees his vision
31:00Realised
31:01We have an airplane
31:02Now
31:03A remarkable one
31:05Let us move forward
31:07To see it
31:08In service
31:09On the airlines
31:11And now
31:20Mal
31:21Let us see the airplane
31:22For Malcolm Stamper
31:26The big moment
31:27All right
31:28And over out
31:29Some people
31:47Who were there
31:47On that day
31:48Recall that
31:49At first
31:50The plane
31:50Didn't look very big
31:52Until it got closer
31:5426 stewardesses
32:06Representing
32:07The 26 airlines
32:08That have ordered
32:09158 747s
32:11Take part
32:12In the christening ceremony
32:13If you haven't got a bottle
32:17Raise your hand
32:18Organising the christening
32:20May well have been
32:21Malcolm Stamper's
32:22Most difficult
32:22Management task
32:23All right
32:24Now we're going to
32:25Kristen or as you know
32:27On the count of three
32:27Don't do it yet
32:30But on one
32:31You're going to
32:32Pick the bottle up
32:33Two
32:33Over our shoulders
32:34Three
32:35All the way down
32:37Okay
32:38Now the cadence
32:39Don't break it yet
32:40The cadence is going to be
32:42One
32:43Two
32:44Three
32:45Got it
32:46Okay
32:48Wait
32:48Wait
32:49Wait
32:51All right
32:56We're going to do it again
32:58One
33:00Two
33:03Three
33:05The 747
33:14The 747
33:14In order to
33:15Get it ready
33:16For the traveling public
33:18We really
33:18Torture the planes
33:20We build two airplanes
33:21We build two airplanes
33:21That we destroy
33:21In the process
33:23One of them
33:24We call a fatigue test airplane
33:26And we actually put it in a harness
33:28And fly it for the equivalent of 30 years
33:31Let's say
33:3260,000 hours
33:33And we make it take off
33:35And land
33:36And so forth
33:37And so on
33:38Over and over again
33:38And anything that fails
33:40Or breaks over time
33:41We fix
33:43And then put it into the production line
33:45The improvements
33:46We also take the airplane
33:48And break
33:48Another airplane
33:49And break it up
33:50In pieces
33:51We want to know what it takes
33:52To break a wing
33:53If you take
33:53The wing of a 747
33:55You can deflect it 29 feet
33:57At the tip
33:58Before it breaks
33:59And that's quite a
34:01You know
34:01That's quite a scene
34:02To watch it
34:03When it finally lets go
34:04I mean
34:04It sounds like an explosion
34:06We break the tail off
34:15We go through
34:16A complete destruction
34:17Of the airplane
34:17Finding its real strength
34:18We have all sorts
34:21Of difficult tests
34:22We'll take the 747
34:24And purposely drag its tail
34:26On the runway
34:27To make sure that
34:28It will take off
34:29In that mode
34:30If the pilot over-rotated
34:32The airplane
34:32The VMU tests
34:34Determine the maximum
34:36Performance of the aircraft
34:37In the takeoff configuration
34:39They're performed
34:40By placing the tail section
34:43Of the aircraft
34:44In contact with the runway
34:45Until the airplane lifts off
34:47The speed at which it lifts off
34:49Is called the minimum
34:50Unstick speed
34:51Or VMU
34:52So the VMU
34:54Then determines
34:56Basically the takeoff
34:57Performance of the aircraft
34:58It also determines
35:00The ability of the airplane
35:02To tolerate inadvertent abuse
35:04In the case of the 747
35:05It's impossible
35:06To abuse the airplane enough
35:08So it doesn't lift off
35:09Cleanly with
35:09Very good flying qualities
35:11We actually do it
35:12A rejected takeoff test
35:14Where we lock the brakes
35:15And freeze out
35:16The anti-skid devices
35:18What happens is
35:19The brakes are locked
35:21So the tires actually burn off
35:24And it actually burns
35:25The wheels off
35:26And it sits finally
35:27And it catches fire
35:28And you have to sit
35:30In the plane
35:31For five minutes
35:31Without touching it
35:32The fire trucks are there
35:33To see if passengers were there
35:35That have time to get off
35:36And then you're allowed
35:37To put out the fire
35:38We pay the pilots
35:39A little extra for this
35:40During these high speed
35:43Flutter tests
35:44The airplane was shown
35:45To be highly stable
35:47And we reached
35:48Maximum Mach number speeds
35:50Of .99
35:51Which is 99%
35:53Of the speed of sound
35:53And as high as
35:56685 miles per hour
35:58True airspeed
35:59The 747 has a landing gear
36:06That is forgiving
36:08And whereas that rate of sink
36:10In another airplane
36:11Might have felt like
36:12A moderately hard landing
36:13The 747
36:14It will feel soft
36:15I think it's a very forgiving
36:18Airplane on landing
36:19On all our airplanes
36:21We have a system
36:22On them
36:23Connected to the brakes
36:24That makes it possible
36:26For the pilot
36:27To apply brake pedal
36:28And not worry about
36:29Skidding the wheels
36:30And then blowing some tires
36:32This protective system
36:34Is on all our airplanes
36:35And on all our airplanes
36:36We demonstrate
36:37The operation
36:38Of the airplane
36:39During landings
36:41And during refused takeoffs
36:42With the system working
36:44And with it
36:44In various failure conditions
36:47One failure condition
36:48Is with two wheels
36:49Not connected
36:51To the anti-skid system
36:52And then we also
36:53Check it with
36:54All wheels
36:55Not protected
36:56With the anti-skid system
36:57And try to show
36:58Performance of the airplane
36:59Under these conditions
37:01I thoroughly enjoy
37:13Flying the airplane
37:14I get a big charge
37:16Out of it
37:16And enjoy it
37:17It has no bad characteristics
37:19It's an honest airplane
37:21And I'm not just saying
37:22That from a sales standpoint
37:23It's really a good airplane
37:25From a piloting
37:26And also from a
37:27Fastener standpoint
37:28When you get in the airplane
37:32It does seem very high up
37:34Your eye level's
37:34Approximately 27 feet high
37:37Above the ground
37:37However
37:38You've got very good
37:40Visibility looking down
37:41So you can see
37:41Very close to the nose
37:42Of the airplane
37:43As far as taxing
37:44It's much easier
37:45Than say a 707 to taxi
37:47After taxing around
37:48For a little bit
37:49Or even the landings
37:50Or the takeoffs
37:51It seems very normal
37:52And the other airplanes
37:53Seem like they sit
37:54Too close to the ground
37:55On December 30, 1969
38:00The flight testing period over
38:03Federal Aviation Authority
38:04Officials arrive
38:05To pronounce judgment
38:07On the safety of the aircraft
38:08For the Boeing executives
38:11A revolution in world transport
38:13Is just a signature away
38:14You know a stroke of the pan
38:19Doesn't take very long
38:20But it's sure
38:20It's sure it is a
38:22Big stroke
38:24Really
38:24I did sign
38:27The airplane flight manual
38:28There
38:28I'm going to sign
38:30Now the production
38:31Certificate
38:32And the production
38:33Limitation record
38:35This concludes
38:37The final flight
38:38Certification board
38:39With the model 747
38:41The outcome of this effort
38:43Is that we find
38:44The Boeing 747
38:46As meeting or exceeding
38:50The safety standards
38:51Developed from the experience
38:53Of the Federal Aviation Administration
38:55As a result of this effort
38:57Which included
39:00Some 1,500 hours
39:02Of test flying
39:03We are convinced
39:05This airplane meets
39:06Or exceeds
39:07The standards for safety
39:10Evolved
39:11In civil aviation history
39:13We therefore recommend
39:15The Boeing 747
39:17Receive the FAA type certificate
39:20So the 747 was now in service
39:24And the factory went into full production
39:27But development continued
39:29And within a year
39:30The first new model
39:31The 200B
39:33Was in the air
39:34The only obvious external change
39:37Was the number of windows
39:38On the top deck
39:39It retained the basic 747 look
39:42And the 747's easy approach
39:45To its task
39:46Of spanning the skies of the world
39:48The same as the human needs
39:54He was then
39:55What did the Makes
39:56The второй podcast
39:56Thepas
39:57Theikum
39:59The deputy
39:59The Gandalf
40:01The carbon
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40:02A lot of Но
40:03The third
40:04Of bureaus
40:04The기에
40:04The marketing
40:05of the
40:05The
40:05Lesked
40:06The
40:06The
40:06The
40:07The
40:07The
40:08The
40:08The
40:08The
40:09The
40:10The
40:10The
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40:12The
40:13The
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40:14The
40:14The
40:14Even before the production lines began to roll, another aspect of construction had to
40:35be serviced, interior design, and the demands of different client airlines could vary widely.
40:44This Air India version from the middle seventies represents one of the more exotic approaches
40:50to interior decoration.
41:14Before any 747 can be painted, it has to be wheeled over the freeway next to the Everett
41:19factory, to the paint shop.
41:22It's a challenging sight for any passing driver unfamiliar with the area.
41:38Asking the fuselage surface can be a highly complex job, depending upon the livery of
41:42the airline involved.
41:45And then, more than 70 gallons of paint for any white-topped version of the plane.
41:50And some are more decorative than others.
42:03In first class, too, decor can range from simply functional to highly romantic.
42:09I think at last count we may have been building nine or ten different models of the 747 because
42:19you need them for different things.
42:20For instance, the Japanese who had a regional length stage route for the planes flying between
42:28their various provinces wanted a plane that took off and landed quite frequently.
42:32So we went in and changed the landing gear and the flap system to accommodate that and called
42:36it a short range 747, 747SR.
42:40People wanted to fly freight and passengers and so we made a part of it.
42:44We put cargo doors on the side and allowed them to, you know, put large containers into
42:48the aircraft.
42:50We had people that wanted to fly nothing but freight.
42:52So we built freighters where we opened the nose of the airplane up and you can load these
42:56eight by eight foot containers that would be the size of a huge truck trailer into the
43:00aircraft and fly it.
43:02And that has become a large business.
43:05We had a plane, the Pan Am wanted to fly longer distance farther and faster.
43:13So we wanted one that would climb higher and have higher speeds.
43:17And so we built an SP, Special Performance it was called.
43:20So we took a section of it out so it was a shorter airplane.
43:27So 747SR, 747Combi, 747SP, what is the significance of the number 747?
43:47Well Boeing has always had 7s in their aircraft numbering.
43:54B-17, even the B-52, if you add 5 and 2 together you get 7 I guess so it may be a little bit of mystique.
44:03And we had built a 707, which by the way had 4 engines, and then built a 727, which had 3 engines, and a 737 that had 2 engines.
44:11So you can't make any sense out of this except the 747 was next in line for the number and so we used it.
44:18Or a 747 has 4 engines.
44:21And now we have a 747.
44:23We've got an
44:34In 1983, the 747-300 came into service.
44:52It introduced the elongated upper deck, allowing airlines to add up to 44 economy seats on that level.
45:04The 947-300 came into service.
45:34Today, the 747 has become the most recognized airplane in the world, and it has brought
45:44about a complete revolution in international travel.
45:49The 747, and we talk of it in cents per seat, mile, but it's inexpensive enough now to make
46:01it open for everyone. Everyone can fly today.
46:06Part of that revolution has taken place in the airports themselves. Terminal design requirements
46:14have exploded in order to handle the number of people on the ground. Stairways have given
46:19way to air bridges, and baggage carousels are everywhere.
46:25Over 700 747s have been built, and all but a few of them are still flying. They belong
46:32to over 70 different airlines and organizations around the world.
46:37The plane has had an immense influence on the way we all look at world travel. Since 1968,
46:43it has pulled the continents closer together, and dramatically increased the number of people
46:47who look at world travel as an everyday and readily affordable fact of life.
46:53Over 800 million of us have flown in it, and that number is climbing at an ever-increasing
46:58rate.
47:08When the 747 was being developed, there were concerns that it would overload airport passenger
47:13and baggage facilities, and overstress runways and taxiways. It took a while to solve the passenger
47:20side of things, and some travelers would contend there's still a problem. But the 747 has never
47:25been hard on airport surfaces, placing no more stress on runways than a 707. And, while
47:32there have been accidents in the air, the overall safety record of the plane is excellent.
47:39It started out as our greatest risk turned out to be our greatest reward. The 747 has been
47:46a marvelous product for Boeing and for the flying public. It's exceeded our fondest expectations.
47:52It's been very effective for us, profitable for us. It's allowed us to have the resources,
47:58if you will, to gain the resources to build new airplanes, the 767, the 757, very advanced designs.
48:05It's allowed us to put those kinds of improvements back into the 747. And, as you'll notice, it
48:12has winglets on it now. And, of course, if you could get inside the electronics, you'd find
48:16it was all digitized, very modern aircraft. So, what looked like a really big gamble turned
48:23out to be a really big gain.
48:26The 747-400 has many improvements over previous versions. More powerful engines have been provided
48:33by Rolls-Royce, Pratt & Whitney and General Electric. It has an 8000-mile range, which makes
48:40non-stop LA Hong Kong, London Tokyo and Singapore London legs possible. The tilted winglets improve
48:48fuel burn by about 3% and contribute to the improved range.
48:54Digital technology has allowed control simplification, and a flight crew of two can now handle the
49:04plane with no extra strain. New generation materials have allowed weight reduction while at the same
49:11time increasing strength.
49:21We originally started out, we estimated, there might be 600 747s, you know, built in time. And,
49:28of course, we were not very visionary because we will roll out the 747th this year, and we've
49:34sold over 800 of them. And, of course, we will sell undoubtedly well over 1,000 of them before
49:40we're through with it.
49:43So the 747 has been a familiar sight in the skies for over 20 years, and it looks like being
49:48around in one form or another for a long time yet. It's a durable aeroplane.
49:54The 747 was a great challenge for me, obviously, and as I look back on a career full of interesting
50:01and wonderful challenges, it's the number one task I've ever had to do, and it was a thrill
50:07to be a part of it. Like, you know, Bill Allen, I was pleased with the confidence he had in
50:13putting me in charge of it. I worked with a fabulous group of people in designing and
50:18building it. It's been a wonderful experience.
50:21The deal that Bill Allen and Juan Tripp made in 1965 has paid off in a big way.
50:28I think if Bill Allen and Juan Tripp, and I assume they're looking down from heaven at
50:32us now, are saying, well, I told you so. I mean, they both were guessing this. I mean,
50:36in other words, what we thought was a great risk for those fellows, they were just smarter
50:40than we were. They knew it was going to work.
50:47So, what do you want to do?
50:53We need to be seeing this side because there are always a grandeur.
50:58From one day to watch us, these people love you.
51:05Are we supposed to be 25 times more?
51:08One day to watch us, may be a little bit.
Recommended
49:45
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