Boeing to take

Boeing to take on Airbus with (1000 seat) giant 797 Blended Wing plane

Boeing is preparing a 1000 passenger jet that could reshape the Air travel industry for the next 100 years.The radical Blended Wing design has been developed by Boeing in cooperation with the NASA Langley Research Centre.The mammoth plane will have a wing span of 265 feet compared to the 747's 211 feet, and is designed to fit within the newly created terminals used for the 555 seat Airbus A380, which is 262 feet wide.The new 797 is in direct response to the Airbus A380 which has racked up 159 orders, but has not yet flown any passengers.Boeing decide to kill its 747X stretched super jumbo in 2003 after little interest was shown by airline companies, but has continued to develop the ultimate Airbus crusher 797 for years at its Phantom Works
research facility in Long Beach, Calif.

The Airbus A380 has been in the works since 1999 and has accumulated $13 billion in development costs, which gives Boeing a huge advantage now that Airbus has committed to the older style tubular aircraft for decades to come.There are several big advantages to the blended wing design, the most important being the lift to drag ratio which is expected to increase by an amazing 50%, with overall weight reduced by 25%, making it an
estimated 33% more efficient than the A380, and making Airbus's $13 billion dollar investment look pretty shaky.

High body rigidity is another key factor in blended wing aircraft, It reduces turbu lence and creates less stress on the air frame which adds to efficiency, giving the 797 a tremendous 8800 nautical mile
range with its 1000 passengers flying comfortably at mach .88 or 654 mph (+-1046km/h) cruising speed another advantage over the Airbus tube-and-wing designed A380's 570 mph (912 km/h) The exact date for
introduction is unclear, yet the battle lines are clearly drawn in the high-stakes war for civilian air supremacy.

boeing in 1970s

In the beginning of the 1970s, Boeing faced a new crisis. The Apollo program, in which Boeing had participated significantly during the preceding decade, was almost entirely canceled. Once more, Boeing hoped to compensate with sales of its commercial airliners. At that time, however, there was a heavy recession in the airlines industry so that Boeing did not receive any orders for more than a year. Boeing's bet for the future, the new 747, while delayed in production by three months because of problems with its Pratt & Whitney engines. Another problem was that in 1971, the U.S. Congress decided to stop the financial support for the development of the supersonic 2707, Boeing's answer to the British-French Concorde, forcing the company to discontinue the project. The company had to reduce the number of employees from over 80,000 to almost half, only in the Seattle area.

In January 1970, the first 747, a four-engine long-range airliner, flew its first commercial flight. This famous aircraft completely changed the way of flying, with its 450-passenger seating capacity and its upper deck. Boeing has delivered nearly 1,400 747s. The 747 has undergone continuous improvements to keep it technologically up-to-date. Larger versions have also been developed by stretching the upper deck.

During the 1970s, Boeing also developed the US Standard Light Rail Vehicle which was used in San Francisco, Boston and Morgantown, WV.

Boeing Co.

Major U.S. firm that is the world's largest aerospace company and foremost maker of commercial jet transports. It was founded by William E. Boeing (1881 – 1956) in 1916 (as Aero Products Company). In the late 1920s it became part of United Aircraft and Transport Corp., but it reemerged as an independent entity in 1934 when that company was broken up to comply with antitrust legislation. Boeing pioneered the development of single-wing planes in the 1930s; its B-17 Flying Fortress (first flown 1935) and B-29 Superfortress (1942) played prominent roles in World War II. After the war the company developed the B-52 jet bomber, long a mainstay of U.S. strategic forces. It produced the first U.S. jetliner, the Boeing 707 (in service 1958), and went on to develop a highly successful series of commercial jet transports. By the start of the 21st century these formed seven families — the narrow-body 737 and 757; wide-body 747, 767, and 777; 717 (formerly McDonnell Douglas MD-95); and MD-11. In the 1960s Boeing built the Lunar Orbiters, Lunar Roving Vehicles, and the first stage of the Saturn V rockets (see Saturn) for the U.S. Apollo program. Beginning in 1993, it served as NASA's prime contractor for the International Space Station. In 1996 it purchased the aerospace and defense units of Rockwell International Corp., and a year later it bought McDonnell Douglas Corp. It acquired the satellite business of Hughes Electronics in 2000. See also Lockheed Martin Corp.

The Boeing 707 was

The Boeing 707 was the United States' first production jet airliner, and the aircraft with which the US first gained the lead in commercial jet manufacture.

It has remained in continuous production since the mid-1950s until 1977. It was not the first US transport aircraft to be jet-powered; that distinction belonged to the experimental military XC-123A powered assault glider.

A TWA Boeing 707-331B ready to taxi.

From the start the 707 had accommodation for approximately four times as many passengers as the original British de Havilland Comet I, as well as a considerably higher maximum speed. This, combined with a temporary setback to the British aircraft, helped establish the 707 in World-Wide service. The developed Comet 4 was first to open a transatlantic passenger jet service, on October 4,1958, but the 707s of Pan American followed from October 26,1958 and went on to inaugurate the first round the world jet passenger service on October 10,1959. The prototype first (Boeing Model 367-80) flew on 15 July 1954, and the initial aircraft off the production line were military KC-135A flight refueling tanker/transports.

An Air Zimbabwe 707 makes a low level pass at an air show.

Only a short time elapsed before commercial versions were built, a flood of orders from airlines all over the world being sparked off by a large contract placed by Pan American. Production centered on two major series, the 707-120 medium-range versions for up to 181 passengers, and 707-320 long-range versions for 189 to more than 200 passengers. By the spring of 1977 total sales of the 707 stood at 920, operating in every continent of the world. This original Boeing 707 was followed by a whole family of 707 passenger and cargo variants, with different lengths and weights, and turbofan power. The passenger carrying 707-320B and passenger/cargo 707-320C models were still in production in 1977. Also developed was the short-to-medium-range version known as the Boeing 720 or, with turbofans, 720B. By the end of October 1976, 920 Boeing 707s and 720s of all models had been ordered, and they had flown more than 30 million hours and carried just under 522 million passengers.

In 1970 it was still not unusual for passengers to disembark on the airport ramp.

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Boeing 707 Model 120 Jet Transport

The first production airplane of the Boeing 707 commercial jet series made its maiden flight December 20, 1957, with Pan American World Airways putting the airplane into transoceanic service October 26, 1958, and American Airlines following with transcontinental service January 25, 1959. The prototype jet airliner, built as a private venture by Boeing at a cost of more than $16,000,000, amassed more than 1000 hours in its four years of flight testing, while the first three of the production airplanes used for Civil Aeronautics Administration certification testing raised the overall total to more than 1650 hours. In addition, the new jet transports benefited by the thousands of hours of flight time logged by their military counterpart, the Boeing KC-135 jet multipurpose tanker-transports which went into service in 1957. Including the prototype, there are eight Boeing jet airliners; the others are the 707-120, the 707-120B, the 707-220, the 707-320, the 707-420, the 720 and the 720B. Weighing in at 248,000 pounds as compared with the prototype's 190,000, the 120 is principally intended for continental use. The 220 is identical in airframe and body size to the 120, but is powered by Pratt & Whitney JT4 turbojet engines, larger and of greater thrust than the JT3. The "B" airplanes use Pratt & Whitney JT3D turbofan engines. SPECIFICATIONS (120): Span 130 ft. 10 in.; Height 42 ft.; Length 144 ft. 6 in.; Engines Four Pratt & Whitney JT3C-6 turbojet, more than 10,000 lb. thrust; Gear tricycle, main undercarriage units, four-wheel trucks, dual nose wheels. PERFORMANCE: Cruise Speed 591 mph; Cruising Altitude 25,000 to 40,000 ft.

Boeing 707 Intercontinental Jet Transport

The 320 and the 420 are the Intercontinental 707s, which partially fulfill the growth potential Boeing designed into the basic 707 series. Weighing more than 295,000 pounds, they are 8 feet, 5 inches longer overall than the 120, 220, and 720, have 11 feet 7 inches more wingspan, and 500 square feet of additional wing area. Fuselage diameter, 148 inches, is the same in all models. Only difference between the 320 and 420 is the engines, the former using Pratt & Whitney JT4s and the latter Rolls-Royce "Conways." SPECIFICATIONS INTERCONTINENTAL: Span 142 ft. 5 in.; Height 42 ft.; Length 152 ft. 11 in.; Engines Four Pratt & Whitney JT4 or Rolls Royce Conway turbojets, more than 10,000 Lb, thrust; Gear tricycle, main undercarriage units, four-wheel trucks, dual nose wheels. PERFORMANCE: Cruise Speed 591 mph; Cruising Altitude 25,000 to 40,000 ft.

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Boeing 720 Jet Transport

Designed to operate profitably in the medium range area, the Boeing 720 combines low cost with excellent operational flexibility. Associated with its capability to operate over existing route segments is the ability of the 720 to utilize present runways and terminal facilities throughout the entire airline system. The 720 offers a high level of safety, ease of maintenance and inspection, long life, minimum structural weight and reliability based on experience and extensive test programs. The seats are mounted on continuous tracks recessed in the floor, allowing use of four, five and six-abreast seating. In less than ten minutes each row of seats and its accompanying overhead service unit can be repositioned or replaced. Windows are spaced at 20-inch intervals to insure an unobstructed view regardless of seat spacing. This flexibility permits a choice of seating combinations ranging from the luxurious four-abreast interior to the six-abreast, 149-passenger tourist arrangement.

SPECIFICATIONS: Span 130 ft. 10 in; Length 136ft. 2 in.; Height 41 ft. 6.5 in.; Empty Weight 103,145 Lb.; Engines Four Pratt & Whitney JT3C-7; Fuel Capacity 11,500 gal.; Wing Area 2433 sq. ft.

PERFORMANCE: Maximum Speed more than 600 mph; Maximum Range 3300 mi.; Cruising Altitude 15,000 to 40,000 ft.

In the UK

Boeing employs more than 600 people across the UK at numerous sites, from Almondbank to Gosport and the company is experiencing solid organic growth.

The company’s long-standing relationship with British industry, the armed forces and the air transport industry dates back over 70 years. Today the UK remains a critically important market, supplier base and a source of some of the world’s most inventive technology partners. Boeing’s annual spend in the aerospace industry supports up to 40,000 jobs according to the Oxford Economic Forecasting report, in the process generating intellectual property, enhancing skills and facilitating exports.

Boeing is proud of its relationships with British industry. Inventive and innovative businesses of all sizes work with Boeing over the long-term to enhance skills and play a key role in a healthy global aerospace industry.

Boeing quiet on 787 connectivity

Boeing quiet on 787 connectivity; 777 carrier readies for eXPhone

By Mary Kirby

Boeing is remaining tight-lipped about when it will make a decision about providing a standard in-flight connectivity offering for the delayed 787 twinjet.

However, the airframer is poised to make AeroMobile/Panasonic Avionics' 'eXPhone' cellular connectivity solution line-fit offerable to customers, with Boeing 777 operator V Australia slated to launch the service.

"We are studying connectivity but it has been Boeing's policy not to comment on studies that we have ongoing, so a question along the lines of the timing of completion of the study is not something that we'd comment on," director, 787 interiors Tom Galantowicz told ATI during a recent press tour of Boeing's third 787 testbed, ZA003, in Everett, Washington.

Galantowicz confirmed that ZA003, which will support cabin interiors testing, is not fitted with systems to support in-flight connectivity.

He declined to say if Boeing will equip a separate test aircraft, such as ZA006, with passenger connectivity, noting: "Really, at this point, in terms of where we're at with the study and where we might put test equipment, it's pretty premature to comment where we might be able to incorporate some of that."

Last year Boeing quietly issued a request for information for an in-flight connectivity solution for its 787 based on SwiftBroadband (SBB) - the same Inmarsat L-band satellite service that is acting as the entry point to connectivity for rival Airbus's long-haul aircraft.

In the RFI document Boeing specifically sought information about an SBB-supported satcom interface and on-board mobile telephony system (OMTS) and indicated that its preferred solution for installation of an OMTS "is to have it integrated" with the IFE system.

While Boeing continues to study its connectivity options for the 787 and other types, V Australia is readying to become the first airline to offer IFE integrated with cellular deployment when it launches eXPhone on its 777s in the second quarter.

V Australia's four 777s, which are equipped with Panasonic eX2 IFE platforms, have had full eXPhone provisions installed by Boeing from the factory (trays, wiring, cct breakers and leaky feeder cable), according to AeroMobile, a subsidiary of Norway-based telecommunications giant Telenor.

The carrier's fifth, sixth and seventh 777s will be fully type certified by Boeing from the factory. The fifth aircraft is scheduled to be delivered in the fourth quarter of this year, says AeroMobile.

Various regulatory approvals are required to operate cellular services on Australian registered aircraft.

"AeroMobile has been working closely with the Australian authorities and its stakeholders to conclude the necessary operational frameworks. This work has resulted in some level of public consultation regarding a revised regulatory class licensing regime, as led by the ACMA [Australian Communications and Media Authority]," says the firm.

Main Information

Boeing Commercial Airplanes is the division that produces Boeing's commercial jetliners. Today, the main commercial products consist of the 717, 737, 747, 757, 767, and 777 families of airplanes, and the Boeing Business Jet. New product development efforts are focused on the Boeing 7E7, a super-efficient airplane that is expected to be in service in 2008.

The founder of the Boeing company was a timberman named William Boeing who assembled his first seaplane in a Seattle boathouse in 1912. Four years later William Boeing started Pacific Aero Products, the forerunner of the Boeing Airplane Company, which came into being in 1917.

During the First World War, the Boeing Airplane company manufactured fighter aircraft but it was the bomber and commercial aircraft developed during the 1930s, such as the 247 and the B17, which were to become synomynous with the Boeing name.

During the Second World War, Boeing made only two models, the B17 Flying Fortress and the B29 Superfortress bombers; the advanced mass production techniques developed to assemble these types were to help Boeing become the world's dominant aerospace company for the next 30 years.

In 1947 Boeing used captured Nazi research data to build its first swept-wing jet bomber, the B47. This in turn laid the groundwork for the advanced Dash 80 of 1954, which formed the basis of the KC-135 tanker and, eventually, the 707 airliner that began Boeing's dominance in commercial air transports. The 707 was the foundation of an entire family of Boeing airliners and its fuselage cross-section was subsequently used for the 727, 737 and 757 families.

In 1969 Boeing introduced the 747, the so-called 'jumbo jet' and possibly the world's best known airliner. The next few years were a period of consolidation for the company. However, in the 1980s Boeing faced a serious challenge from a new competitor, the European Airbus Industrie consortium, and launched the 777 in 1994 to combat the Airbus A330/340. The 777 was the first completely new Boeing airliner for many years. Two years later, the Boeing company tookover its longtime US rival McDonnell Douglas (MDC). The latest addition to the Boeing airliner family is the 717, based on the MDC MD-95 and the only MDC-derived model still in production today.

2001 saw Boeing announce the "Sonic Cruiser", a high-subsonic aircraft production plans were subsequently abandoned in favour of the 7E7.

Boeing History before 1950s

Boeing was incorporated in Seattle, Washington by William E. Boeing, on July 15, 1916, as "Pacific Aero Products Co." following the June 15 maiden flight of one of the two "B&W" seaplanes built with the assistance of George Conrad Westervelt, a U.S. Navy engineer. Many of Boeing's early planes were seaplanes. On May 9, 1917, the company became the "Boeing Airplane Company". William E. Boeing had studied at Yale University and worked initially in the timber industry, where he became wealthy and acquired knowledge about wooden structures. This knowledge would prove invaluable in his subsequent design and assembly of airplanes.

Model of Boeing's first plane, the B&W, at Future of Flight Museum shop

In 1927 Boeing created an airline named Boeing Air Transport, which merged a year later with Pacific Air Transport and the Boeing Airplane Company. The company changed its name to United Aircraft and Transport Corporation in 1929 and acquired Pratt & Whitney, Hamilton Standard Propeller Company, and Chance Vought. United Aircraft then purchased National Air Transport in 1930.

In 1933 the revolutionary Boeing 247 was introduced, the first truly modern airliner. It was much faster, safer, and easier to fly than other passenger aircraft. For example, it was the first twin engine passenger aircraft that could fly on one engine. In an era of unreliable engines, this vastly improved flight safety. Boeing built the first sixty aircraft exclusively for its own airline operations. This badly hurt competing airlines, and was typical of the anti-competitive corporate behavior that the US government sought to prohibit at the time.

The Air Mail Act of 1934 prohibited airlines and manufacturers from being under the same corporate umbrella, so the company split into three smaller companies - Boeing Airplane Company, United Airlines, and United Aircraft Corporation, the precursor to United Technologies. As a result, William Boeing sold off his shares.

Shortly after, an agreement with Pan American World Airways (Pan Am) was reached, to develop and build a commercial flying boat able to carry passengers on transoceanic routes. The first flight of the Boeing 314 Clipper was in June 1938. It was the largest civil aircraft of its time, with a capacity of 90 passengers on day flights, and of 40 passengers on night flights. One year later, the first regular passenger service from the US to the UK was inaugurated. Subsequently other routes were opened, so that soon Pan Am flew with the Boeing 314 to destinations all over the world.

In 1938, Boeing completed work on the Model 307 Stratoliner. This was the world’s first pressurized-cabin transport aircraft, and it was capable of cruising at an altitude of 20,000 feet (6,100 m). — above most weather disturbances.

Boeing 377 Stratocruiser

During World War II, Boeing built a large number of bombers. Many of the workers were women whose husbands had gone to war. In the beginning of March 1944, production had been scaled up in such a manner that over 350 planes were built each month. To prevent an attack from the air, the manufacturing plants had been covered with greenery and farmland items. During these years of war the leading aircraft companies of the US cooperated. The Boeing-designed B-17 bomber was assembled also by Lockheed Aircraft Corp. and Douglas Aircraft Co., while the B-29 was assembled also by Bell Aircraft Co. and by Glenn L. Martin Company.

After the war, most orders of bombers were canceled and 70,000 people lost their jobs at Boeing. The company aimed to recover quickly by selling its Stratocruiser, a luxurious four-engine commercial airliner developed from the B-29. However, sales of this model were not as expected and Boeing had to seek other opportunities to overcome the situation. The company successfully sold military aircraft adapted for troop transportation and for aerial refueling.

Fatal Plane Crashes and Significant Events for the Boeing 747

The following events are those involving at least one passenger death where the aircraft flight had a direct or indirect role. Excluded would be events where the only passengers killed were stowaways, hijackers, or saboteurs. The passenger fatalities in the numbered events may be due to accidents, hijackings, sabotage, or military action. The events that are not numbered may or may not include fatalities, and are included because they meet the criteria of a significant event as defined by AirSafe.com

1. 20 November 1974; Lufthansa 747-100; Nairobi, Kenya: The aircraft was not properly configured for takeoff and stalled shortly after becoming airborne, crashing about 3600 feet (1100 meters) beyond the end of the runway. The crash killed 55 of the 140 passengers and 4 of the 17 crew.
2. 27 March 1977; KLM 747-200; Tenerife, Canary Islands: The aircraft had been on a non-scheduled flight from Amsterdam to the Las Palmas airport in the Canary Islands, but had been diverted to Tererife because of a bomb explostion in the passenger terminal in Las Palmas. Because of limited visibility and communications difficulties between air traffic control and the KLM aircraft, the KLM 747 started its takeoff while the Pan Am aircraft was on the same runway. All 234 passengers and 14 crew were killed in the KLM 747. Nine of the 16 crew and 321 of the 380 passengers on the Pan Am flight were killed.
3. 27 March 1977;Pan Am 747-100; Flight 1736; Tenerife, Canary Islands: The aircraft had been scheduled to arrive at the Las Palmas airport after a non-scheduled flight from New York's JFK airport, but was diverted to Tenerife after a bomb explosion at the Las Palmas airport. Because of limited visibility and communications difficulties between air traffic control and a KLM 747 aircraft, the KLM 747 started its takeoff and collided with the Pan Am 747 that was taxiing on the same runway. Nine of the 16 crew and 321 of the 380 passengers on the Pan Am flight were killed. All 234 passengers and 14 crew on the KLM 747 were killed.
4. 3 November 1977; El Al 747; over Belgrade, Yugoslavia: One passenger died after a decompression event.
5. 1 January 1978; Air India 747-200; Bombay, India: The plane crashed in the sea shortly after takeoff, killing all 190 passengers and 23 crew. Flight International magazine states that this accident was due to a failure of an attitude detector.
6. 19 November 1980; Korean Air Lines 747-200; Seoul, South Korea: The aircraft undershot its landing and impacted just short of the runway causing severe damage to the landing gear. The aircraft caught fire after it slid to a stop. Six of the 14 crew members and eight of the 198 passengers were killed. Also killed was one person on the ground.
7. 11 August 82, Pan Am 747, near Hawaii: The aircraft was en route from Japan to the U.S. with 285 aboard when a bomb exploded under a seat, killing one passenger.
8. 16 August 1982; China Airlines 747; near Hong Kong: The aircraft encountered severe turbulence during the flight. Two of the 292 passengers were killed.
9. 1 September 1983; Korean Air Lines 747-200; near Sakhalin Island, Soviet Union: The aircraft was shot down by at least one Soviet air to air missile after the 747 had strayed into Soviet airspace. All 240 passengers and 29 crew were killed.
   International Committee for the Rescue of KAL 007 Survivors
10. 27 November 1983; Avianca 747-200; near Madrid, Spain: The aircraft was approaching the Madrid airport at night when it descended too low and hit the ground. All 20 crew and 161 of the 172 passengers were killed.
11. 23 June 1985; Air India 747-200; Atlantic Ocean, near the Irish coast: The flight, which was en route to Bombay from Canada, had a bomb explode on board near the Irish coast. The aircraft broke up in flight and crashed into the sea. All 307 passengers and 22 crew were killed.
12. 12 August 1985; Japan Air Lines 747SR; Mt. Ogura, Japan: The aircraft had a sudden decompression that damaged hydraulic systems and the vertical fin. That damage also disabled the flight controls for the rudder and elevator. All 15 crew members and 505 of the 509 passengers were killed.
13. 5 September 1986; Pan Am 747; Karachi, Pakistan: Four hijackers attempted to take control of the aircraft while it was on the ground, but the flight crew departed through the cockpit escape hatch. About 16 passengers were killed before the hijacking ended.
14. 28 November 1987; South African Airlines 747- 200 Combi; over Indian Ocean: The aircraft crashed during a flight between Taiwan and South Africa apparently due to a fire in the main deck cargo area. All 141 passengers and 19 crew were killed.
15. 5 April 1988; Kuwait Airways 747-200 Combi; Cyprus: The aircraft, with about 100 passeners and crew was hijacked on flight from Bhangkok, Thailand to Kuwait. During the 16-day event, two hostages were killed in Cyprus before the hijackers surrendered.
16. 21 December 1988; Pan Am 747-100; near Lockerbie, Scotland: The aircraft was about a half hour into a scheduled flight from London's Heathrow airport to JFK airport in New York when a bomb detonated in the forward cargo compartment. The explosion led to an in flight breakup of the aircraft. All 16 crew and 243 passengers perished. Eleven people on the ground were also killed.
17. 24 February 1989; United Air Lines 747-100; Flight 811; near Hawaii: The aircraft was on a scheduled international flight from Honolulu, HI to Auckland, New Zealand. About 16 minutes after takeoff, when the aircraft was climbing through about 22,000 feet, the forward cargo door on the right side of the aircraft blew out and the resulting explosive decompression led to the loss of parts of the fuselage and the cabin interior, including a number of seats and passengers. Some of the ejected debris damaged the two right side engines, and the crew had to shut them down. The crew was able to return to Honolulu and land about 14 minutes after the decompression. All 18 crew members survived, but nine of the 337 passengers were killed.
    Wikipedia Entry for this Accident
18. 20 February 1992; Aerolineas Argentinas 747; en route to Los Angeles from Argentina: One passenger died of food poisoning.

    4 October 1992; El AL 747-200; Amsterdam, Netherlands: Shortly after departing Amsterdam on a flight to Tel Aviv, the number three engine and pylon separated from the wing and collided with the number engine. This collision also caused the number four engine and pylon to separate. Part of the leading edge of the right wing was damaged, and several other aircraft systems were affected. During an emergency air turnback to Amsterdam's Schiphol Airport, the crew experienced problems controlling the aircraft. The crew lost control of the aircraft shortly before landing, and the aircraft crashed into an apartment building. All three crew members and one other aircraft occupant were killed, as were 43 people on the ground.
    Note: This event did not involve passenger deaths on a passenger flight and is not included in the fatal event rate calculations. This event is included because of the significant number of deaths on the ground.

19. 11 December 1994; Philippine Airlines 747-200; Pacific Ocean: A small bomb detonated under a seat, killing one of the 287 passengers. The person who planted the bomb boarded the plane on the first leg from Manila to Cebu, and left the flight at Cebu. The bomb exploded en route to Tokyo, and the crew diverted to Okinawa.
20. 17 July 1996; TWA 747-100; Atlantic Ocean near Long Island, NY: The aircraft was on a flight from JFK airport in New York to Paris and had a catastrophic in flight breakup shortly after departure. All 18 crew and 212 passengers perished.
    NTSB Abstract of Full Report
    NTSB Full Report
    Additional NTSB Background Information
21. 5 September 1996; Air France 747-400; near Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso: Severe turbulence associated with a weather front seriously injured three of the 206 passengers. One of the three passengers later died of injuries caused by an in flight entertainment screen.
22. 12 November 1996; Saudi Arabian Airlines 747-100; near New Delhi, India: The departing 747 had a midair collision with an inbound Kazakhstan Air Lines Ilyushin 76 cargo jet about seven minutes after the 747 had departed New Delhi. The collision occurred near Charkhi Dadri, about 60 miles (96 km) west of New Delhi. All 23 crew members and 289 passengers on the 747 were killed. The 10 crew members and 27 passengers on the Ilyushin were also killed.
23. 6 August 1997; Korean Air 747-300; Agana, Guam USA: The aircraft crashed about three miles (4.8 km) short of the runway during a night time approach in heavy rain. Twenty one of the 23 crew members and 207 of the 231 passengers were killed.
    NTSB Accident Synopsis
    NTSB Accident Report
    Additional NTSB Background Information
24. 28 December 1997; United Air Lines 747-100; Flight 826; over Pacific Ocean near Japan: The aircraft was on a scheduled international flight from Tokyo, Japan to Honolulu, HI and encountered severe turbulence during cruise about two hours after departing Japan. The crew returned to Tokyo without further incident. One of the 346 passengers was killed. None of the 23 crew members were killed but three sustained serious injuries.
25. 4 January 1998; Olympic Airways 747; over Atlantic Ocean:
    Prior to the flight from Athens to New York, a passenger who had asthma and a history of sensitivity to secondhand smoke requested seating in the non-smoking area of the aircraft. Once onboard, the passenger's family discovered that their assigned seats were three rows ahead of the economy class smoking section. This smoking section was not partitioned off from the non-smoking section. Prior to takeoff and during the flight, one of the passenger's family members made three requests of the cabin crew to switch seats, but the cabin crew did not arrange for a switch into one of the 11 available unoccupied seats on the aircraft. Several hours into the flight, the passenger suffered a reaction to the ambient smoke and died.
    
    A U.S. District Court determined that exposure to ambient second-hand smoke was the primary cause of the passenger's death. The U.S. Supreme Court, in a decision made on 24 February 2004 (case 02-1348), held that this event constituted an accident under Article 17 of the Warsaw Convention, an international treaty that among other things defines an accident as something that is an unexpected or unusual event or happening that is external to the passenger.” There were 411 passengers on the flight.
    Fatal Events Since 1970 for Olympic Airways
    U.S. Court of Appeals case 00-17509, 12 December 2002
26. 31 October 2000; Singapore Airlines 747-400; Taipei, Taiwan:
    The aircraft crashed and burned shortly after taking off from Taipei on a scheduled flight to Los Angeles. The aircraft reportedly attempted to take off on a runway that was undergoing repairs and struck construction equipment on the runway. There was rain and wind in the area from an approaching typhoon at the time of the crash. There were 79 fatalities among the 159 passengers and four fatalities among the 20 crew members on the aircraft.
    Accident Details
27. 25 May 2002; China Airlines 747-200; near the Penghu Islands, Taiwan: The aircraft crashed into the sea about 20 minutes into a scheduled flight from Taipei to Hong Kong. The impact area was in the Taiwan Straits near the Penghu Islands about 75 km (47 mi) from the coast of Taiwan. Weather and flight conditions were normal, and no distress signal or other communication was received prior to the crash. The accident investigation concluded that the in-flight breakup was due to a structural failure in the aft lower lobe section of the fuselage. The investigation attributed this failure to an inadequate repair of tail strike damage that was sustained in 1980. All 19 crew members and 206 passengers were killed.

    The accident aircraft was the last 747-200 in passenger service with China Airlines and was to be sold to another carrier next month. According to Boeing, the aircraft was delivered to China Airlines in July 1979 and had accumulated approximately 21,180 landings and 64,394 flight hours. This nearly 22-year old aircraft was newer than similar models in the fleets of U.S. airlines. According to the FAA, the average age of Boeing 747-200 and 747-300 models in U.S. airline fleets at the time of this event was 24 years.

    This was the 26th fatal event involving the Boeing 747. The next most recent 747 event was an October 2000 Singapore Airlines accident in Taipei that killed 79 passengers and four crew members. There have been several fatal events involving in-flight breakups, including the 1996 event involving TWA Flight 800 and a November 2001 fatal event involving an American Airlines Airbus A300 over New York City.

    Previous in-flight breakups involving jet airliners have been due to varied causes, including a fuel tank explosion, severe weather or other atmospheric phenomena, bombs, missiles, and midair collisions.
    Fatal China Airlines Events
    Fatal Events for Airlines of Asia

28. 8 September 2005; Saudi Arabian Airlines 747-300; Colombo, Sri Lanka:
    While taxiing for takeoff on an international flight from Colombo to Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, air traffic controllers received an anonymous telephone call concerning a possible bomb on the aircraft. The crew was informed about this call and elected to perform an emergency evacuation. As a result of the evacuation, there were 62 injuries among the 430 passengers and 22 crew members. One of the passengers died as a result of injuries received during the evacuation, and 19 passengers were hospitalized. No explosive devices were found after a search of the aircraft.
    Fatal Saudi Arabian Airlines Events
    Fatal Events for Airlines of Africa and the Middle East