The -100 was 94ft
(28.65m) long, carried 115 passengers and had an MTOW of just 42,411Kgs, less than half that of the
current -900
series. The original choice of powerplant was the Pratt & Whitney JT8D-1 at 14,000Lbs thrust,
but by the time negotiations with Lufthansa had been completed the JT8D-7 was
used. The -7 was flat rated to develop the same thrust at higher ambient
temperatures than the -1 and became the standard powerplant for the -100.
Just 30 series 100's were built, with 22 going to Lufthansa, 5 for Malaysia Airlines and 2 for
Avianca. The last
airworthy 737-100,
L/N 3 which first flew 12
June 1967 was finally retired from Aero Continente in Peru as OB-1745 in 2005.
1114 Built, 81 In service, plus 68 in storage (All -200 versions)
It was immediately realised that most airlines wanted a slightly higher passenger load,
to which Boeing responded with the 737-200. Two sections were added to the
fuselage; a 36in section forward of the wing and a 40in section aft of the wing,
giving a maximum capacity of 130 passengers with a 28in seat pitch. All other dimensions remained the
same. The JT8D was increased to
14,500Lbs with the -9. Six weeks
later on the 5 April 1965 the -200 series was launched with an order for 40 from
United Air Lines. Development and
production of the two series ran simultaneously.
An original 737-200, L/N 54. Notice the short nacelles and
clamshell thrust reversers. Photo: Steve Williams 1969.
Flight testing had shown a 5% increase in drag over predicted figures, this
equated to a 30kt reduction in cruise TAS. After almost a year of wind tunnel
and flight testing several aerodynamic modifications were made. Flaps
and thrust reversers were improved from aircraft number 135 (March 1969) and free mod kits
were made available for existing aircraft. The thrust reversers were totally
redesigned by Boeing and Rohr since the aircraft had inherited the same internal
pneumatically powered clamshell thrust
reversers as the 727 which were ineffective and apparently tended to
lift the aircraft off the runway when deployed! The redesign to external
hydraulically powered target reversers
cost Boeing $24 million but dramatically improved its short field performance
which boosted sales to carriers proposing to use the aircraft as a regional jet
from short runways. Drag reduction measures included extending the engine
nacelles by 1.14m (3ft 9in) and widening the strut fairings. Enhanced flap, slat and panel
seals were also incorporated.
The
original series 200 had narrow engine pylons and smaller inboard leading edge
flaps.
The
later series 200 had broad engine pylons and the inboard leading edge flaps
extended to the fuselage.
The MTOW of 49,440kgs and MLW of 44,450kgs were often limiting so Boeing made
structural changes to increase these weights and called the redesigned aircraft
the 737-200 Advanced.
As well as incorporating all of the later -200 modifications, the -200 Adv included
major wing improvements such as new leading edge flap sequencing, increase in
droop of outboard slats, extension of
the inboard Krueger Flap (see flight controls
section), to produce
a significant increase in lift and a reduction of take-off & approach speeds
for better short field performance or an MTOW increase of 2268Kg. Autobrake,
improved anti-skid, automatic speedbrake for RTO, automatic performance reserve and even nose-brakes became available. Again, kits were
available for existing operators of the -200. With the JT8D-15 at 15,500Lbs the MTOW was now up to 52,390Kgs and MLW 48,534Kgs. These performance improvements
increased the service ceiling by 2,000ft to 37,000ft and the maximum cabin
differential pressure was increased from 7.5 to 7.8psid to accommodate this.
In 1973 when noise was becoming a factor, the nacelle was acoustically lined
by Boeing and P&W swapped one fan stage for two compressor stages in the
JT8D-17 while increasing thrust to 16,000Lbs. The JT8D got up to 17,400Lbs
thrust on the -17R.
For many years United remained the only major US carrier to order large numbers of 737's
because although the aircraft was designed to be flown by 2 crew, the US
flight-crew union ruled that aircraft in that class had to be flown by three
crew. United were forced to fly their 737's with three crew until 1981. Air
France had also been trying to order the aircraft for several years but were
unwilling to because of staff opposition until after 1981.
Most pilots who have flown different generations of the 737 say that this is
easily the best for handling. Read some comments at PPRuNe.
The Convertible passenger/freight version had a 3.4m x 2.18m
(138in x 86in) side cargo door
(SCD) on the forward port side for pallet loading. They also had strengthened
floors and additional seat tracks. As a
freighter it could accommodate seven LD7 (88in x 125in) palettes on the main deck plus any
loose cargo in the two holds. Conversion time was approximately 3hrs but this was later reduced to
about 1hr
with the QC which had 12 passenger seats ready mounted on each pallet. This realistically
allowed the aircraft to used for both roles allowing it to earn money around the
clock by carrying pax by day and freight overnight. Some airlines even operated them as Combi's with pallets at the front and pax at the
rear.
.
The
cargo 737's had a pressurisation feature which allowed the crew to pressurise or
unpressurise the passenger compartment for smoke clearance.
They also had
smoke detectors.
737-200 Executive
Originally designated the Corporate 77-32 or the Corporate 200, this was an
executive jet version of the -200 and -200 Adv, similar in concept to the
current BBJ. These were either
fitted with one of the many Boeing interiors or were delivered green for
customer installation of special interiors. Aux fuel tanks were also fitted to
give a maximum range of up to 4,000nm with a 1,134kg payload.
Unpaved Strip Kit
This
was an option available for the 737-200 from Feb 1969 and included:
A deflection ski on the nose gear to keep gravel off the
underbelly
Smaller deflectors on the oversized main gear to prevent damage
to the flaps.
Protective shields over hydraulic tubing and brake cable on the main
gear strut.
Glass fibre reinforced underside of the inboard flaps.
Teflon based paint on wing and fuselage undersurfaces.
Strengthened under-fuselage aerials.
Retractable anti-collision light.
Anti vortex jets fitted to the engine nacelles. These consisted
of a small
forward projecting tube blowing bleed air down and forward to break up
vortices which could otherwise ingest gravel.
The nose gear unit folds forward as the gear retracts seating into the faring
in front of the nose wheel well. See photo.
Navigation and multi-engine trainer for the USAF 12th FTW, based on the -200Adv. Fitted with
an 800 USGal auxiliary
fuel tank in the aft cargo hold, giving it a range of over 2900nm.
Maritime Patrol aircraft for the Indonesian Air Force. Fitted with Motorola
AN/APS-135(V) Side Looking Airborne Modular Multi-Mission Radar (SLAMMR) The
antenna of which was mounted in two 16ft housings on the upper rear fuselage.
This system could spot small ships at ranges of 100nm.
This was a joint venture between Boeing and Kawasaki to build a 4-engined maritime patrol aircraft for the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force. It was proposed in 1974 to replace the Kawasaki's licensed P-2 "Neptune" but Japan chose the Lockheed P-3C "Orion." and in 1977 Kawasaki began producing P-3C under license. The PXL was to have four 9,280lb, GE TF34 engines and a MTOW of 120,000Lbs with fuel of 5,270USG wing tanks and 1,250USG centre tank.
The illustration shows an extended and lowered nose radome and wing tip booms which are possibly MAD probes or other antennae.
The IAI Elta division 737-200A testbed has been used to develop systems since
1979. These have included maritime patrol signal intelligence, image
intelligence using synthetic aperture radar, AEW and most recently Flight Guard,
a commercial aircraft anti-missile protection system. The Flight Guard flight
trials began in July 2004. Note that El Al now use Elbit Systems C-MUSIC laser DIRCM.
First flown 26 March 1999, this highly modified 737-200 was modified by
Boeing Aerospace Support to accommodate special avionics and instrumentation for
development of the JSF.
In a less-than-one-year design and modification program, Boeing Military
Programs - Wichita Division fitted a 48-inch nose and radome assembly to the
forward pressure bulkhead of the 737-200 aircraft. The elongated nose will house
avionics and instrumentation to aid development of the next-generation JSF
aircraft. The aircraft also was fitted with several antennas, a heat exchanger
and provisions for a supplemental power system.
Photo: Boeing
Last of the Originals
Such was the popularity of the -200 that its production continued for over four years after the introduction of the
first -300. The last -200Adv
(l/n 1585) was delivered on
2 August 1988 to Xiamen Airlines. 1,144 originals were built, many of which are still flying
today although noise restrictions
have made necessary the installation of stage 3 hush kits available from Nordam or
AvAero.
P&W was even considering a re-engining program with the PW6000, but with
the post Sept 11th economic downturn sending thousands of aircraft into storage,
the idea was dropped.
The 737-200 is still being developed by third party companies. In June 2005
Quiet Wing gained FAA certification for a flap modification package to increase
take-off performance by 3,200kg, reduce fuel consumption by 3% and reduce
stalling (and hence take-off & approach) speeds by 5kts. It works by drooping
the TE flaps by 4 degrees and the ailerons by 1 degree to increase to camber of
the wing. Whilst this does slightly increase drag it does give much more lift
there by increasing the aerodynamic efficiency of the wing. One unusual benefit
is that operators may want to replace their JT8D-15 engines with older but lower
thrust, lower fuel consumption -9A's. Quiet Wing are now developing the
same package for classics.
History & Development of the Boeing 737 - Originals
FF 9 April 1967
The Convertible passenger/freight version had a 3.4m x 2.18m
(138in x 86in) side cargo door
(SCD) on the forward port side for pallet loading. They also had strengthened
floors and additional seat tracks. As a
freighter it could accommodate seven LD7 (88in x 125in) palettes on the main deck plus any
loose cargo in the two holds. Conversion time was approximately 3hrs but this was later reduced to
about 1hr
with the QC which had 12 passenger seats ready mounted on each pallet. This realistically
allowed the aircraft to used for both roles allowing it to earn money around the
clock by carrying pax by day and freight overnight. Some airlines even operated them as Combi's with pallets at the front and pax at the
rear.
The
cargo 737's had a pressurisation feature which allowed the crew to pressurise or
unpressurise the passenger compartment for smoke clearance.
This
was an option available for the 737-200 from Feb 1969 and included:
JSF
Avionics Flying Laboratory
