The Slow Fade of the Four-Engine Airliner

With its four high-powered turbofan engines and up to 480 all-economy passenger capacity, the Boeing 747 jumbo jet transformed the economics and reach of passenger aviation

BY JOSEPH NORONHA

Time was when a four-engine jet airliner was everybody’s idea of the perfect way to reach a dream destination on another continent. Well-heeled travellers loved the ample space and the lavish cocktail lounges and restaurants on the double-decker Boeing 747. First class Emirates passengers on the gigantic Airbus A380 – of which the Dubai-based carrier has the world’s largest fleet of 118 aircraft – could even enjoy an inflight shower.

In fact when the jet age began in 1952, it was with four-engines all the way. The de Havilland Comet, the world’s first jet passenger aircraft, may have been a safety nightmare. But the Boeing 707 that followed in 1958 proved that jetliners could be both safe and successful. All through the 1960s, four-engine airliners or “quads”, such as the Douglas DC-8 and Boeing 707, dominated both the domestic and long-haul airspace because they were seen as safer than twinjets. In fact, United States (US) Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) regulations required twin-engine aircraft to have a diversion airport available within 60 minutes flying time throughout their route. This made them impractical for transoceanic journeys. In the 1960s and 1970s, three-engine planes or “trijets” were popular since they were more economical than quads and their operation was not as strictly limited as that of twinjets. The Boeing 727 trijet introduced in 1964 was highly successful and 1,832 were built.

BOEING’S BIG BET

However, the real revolution in air travel came when Pan Am’s legendary founder Juan Trippe asked Boeing to produce a much larger airliner. When the Boeing 747 “jumbo jet” entered service in January 1970 it was a true game-changer. With its four high-powered turbofan engines and up to 480 all-economy passenger capacity, the hump-backed “Queen of the Skies” transformed the economics and reach of passenger aviation. By collecting travellers from several smaller planes into one huge airliner, it helped relieve the congestion at major airports around the world.

The Boeing 747’s market entry came even as longer routes were being opened up – routes that only big four-engine planes could serve due to the 60-minute rule. Dozens of airlines snapped up the 747, including Air India. Airbus tried to challenge Boeing’s dominance in the long-haul market; but its A380 “Gentle Green Giant” finally entered commercial service only in October 2007, by which time the slow fade of the four-engine fleet was beginning.

Fall From Grace

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Fast forward to today, both the Boeing 747 and the

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