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The DC-7 was Douglas Aircraft’s final design evolution of the piston-powered, four-engine, low-wing airliner concept that began with the DC-4 in the 1940s. In 1953, American Airlines introduced the DC-7 as its first nonstop transcontinental airliner. With the U.S. safety requirement that limited pilots to a maximum eight hours per shift, the airliner was designed to fly fast enough to travel from coast to coast in under that time. It was equipped with four powerful eighteen-cylinder Wright R-3350 Duplex-Cyclone supercharged radial engines, which powered the airliner to cruise speeds of 350 miles per hour. Yet, in actual operation, this goal was often not attained. Like the earlier DC-6, the airliner was pressurized, which allowed it to fly high in the stratosphere at around 20,000 feet, which was above most adverse weather conditions. The DC-7B, with enhanced range and greater load capacity, was the chosen variant ordered by Continental Air Lines and was introduced by the airline in 1957. The propliner could comfortably seat between sixty and ninety passengers, depending on the class configuration. Continental Air Lines offered an all-coach DC-7B service on its domestic flights between Chicago, Denver, Kansas City, and Los Angeles. Branded as “Club Coach,” it included extra amenities not offered in other coach services, including a roomy five-seat Club Coach Lounge in the aft fuselage of the aircraft. See “A Cut Above: Airplane Models from the SFO Museum Collection” on display, pre-security, in the Mayor Edwin M. Lee International Terminal Departures Hall and online at: https://bit.ly/CutAboveModels
This image was posted on May 03, 2024.