Oldest Boeing Airliner in Flying Condition


RALPHIE

GT Owner
Mar 1, 2007
7,278
This is as it should be -- passengers in closed cabin, pilot in open cockpit so he will stay awake. The airplane is in Spokane , WA and is the oldest flying Boeing in the world.

After 8 years of repair and rebuilding, and 8,000 hours of toil, the Boeing 40C rolled out last winter as a finished airplane, but it took a few weeks for the snow to melt before it was taken out of the hangar. Project personnel received the Standard Airworthiness Certificate from the FAA and completed the engine pre-oil and fuel flow tests for the first of the taxi tests.

Facts about the Boeing 40 project:
221 1/2 gallons of dope/reducer and 120 yards of 102 ceconite fabric.
12 gallons of poly urethane paint for the sheet metal.
The wings have 33,000 individual parts in them.
The airplane weighs 4080 lbs empty and has a gross weight of 6075 lbs..
It is 34 ft long and 13 feet tall with a wing span of 44 1/2 feet.
Wing loading is 10 lbs per sq ft and power loading is 10 Pounds per HP.. It should cruise at 115 mph using 28 GPH, and 32 GPH at 120 mph. It carries 120 gallons of fuel in three tanks.
350 two-inch brushes were used to apply 6 gallons of West Systems epoxy, and 181 rolls of paper towels were used for cleanup.
A total of 62 volunteers worked on the project to some degree, 21 of whom performed a significant amount of work, and nine of them worked on the plane continuously throughout the 8-year project.
 

RALPHIE

GT Owner
Mar 1, 2007
7,278
More Pictures

More Pictures
 

jim gibson

GT Owner
Mark II Lifetime
Dec 13, 2009
199
warren, ohio
What an airplane! I had a grass airstrip in my front yard but it is no longer operable. I love airplanes,especially float planes.
 

Fast Freddy

GPS'D 225 MPH
Mark II Lifetime
Aug 5, 2005
2,727
Avondale, Arizona
very nice restoration!
 

FlorIdaho Chris

Yeah, I've got one.
Mark IV Lifetime
Le Mans 2010 Supporter
...and who gets to be the lucky pilot? What a bird!
 

FlagstaffGT

GT Owner
Mark II Lifetime
Beautiful!
 

Empty Pockets

ex-GT Owner
Mark IV Lifetime
Le Mans 2010 Supporter
Oct 18, 2006
1,362
Washington State
"More leg room in that than in summa the "modern" airliners I've been on...
 
Aug 25, 2006
4,436
Very cool

Thank you for sharing

Shadowman
 

fjpikul

GT Owner
Mark IV Lifetime
Le Mans 2010 Supporter
Jan 4, 2006
11,704
Belleville, IL
Ralphie, is this what you flew in as a kid?
 

DanQ

GT Owner
Aug 18, 2005
336
Lake Zurich, IL
Beautiful! I'd like to sit in it just to SMELL it...
 

Triheart7

GT Owner
Mark IV Lifetime
Apr 3, 2007
2,579
Northern California
Neat plane. Love the woodwork on the interior!
 

Joehand1

Tungsten GT Owner
Sep 20, 2007
600
Hattiesburg, MS, USA
When was it built?
 

RALPHIE

GT Owner
Mar 1, 2007
7,278