Airliners.net

With UA accelerating the retirement of their 744's, I think most folks will agree the 747 will be a missed plane, if not the most-missed plane to disappear from daily passenger service.

But what about the other planes? Here is my opinion:

737 - agree with those who think that Boeing has milked the 50 year old design to the MAX (!). I fly on 737's all the time with AS and while I am pleased with the flying experience, I would like to see a clean-sheet replacement. I think Boeing is seeing the A320 move ahead. So, the 737 would be missed, but not like the 747

757 - I used to dislike the long skinny sardine box. Now I realize it was a brilliantly-sized plane. I wish it was still being built ( I think Boeing does as well!)

767 - best seating layout of any widebody. While a little outdated, definitely a sentimental favorite flying on SK across the Atlantic. Great plane. Sad to see you go!

777 - Too early to kill

787 - Can't go there yet

A320 - if Boeing replaces the 737 they will likely follow. Great plane. Would be missed

A330 - one of the prettiest planes made in my opinion. Will be flying for years. Will be missed for comfort and overall design

A340 - I miss seeing so few 4-engine planes, but this one was rather inefficient compared with the 777. And those engines always looked under-sized (on the 343 that is)

A350 - just a baby! I haven't even seen one yet.

A380 - Never been on one. I appreciate this huge guy flying around. It will be sad to see its last day; many years from now.

MD80/88/90 - Definitely miss these guys. So quiet (unless sitting way in the back). A different looking plane and design. I am thankful to be flying one next month (Delta)

flybynight wrote:

MD80/88/90 - Definitely miss these guys. So quiet (unless sitting way in the back)

I spilled my coffee!! MD-80 and quiet in the same sentence?

I will definitely miss seeing the 737 classics. They're getting hard to find nowadays, even at Southwest.

I always liked the look of the A310. Especially in the SR colors. I've flown in an A300 but sadly never made it to the A310.

flybynight wrote:

With UA accelerating the retirement of their 744's, I think most folks will agree the 747 will be a missed plane, if not the most-missed plane to disappear from daily passenger service.

But what about the other planes? Here is my opinion:

737 - agree with those who think that Boeing has milked the 50 year old design to the MAX (!). I fly on 737's all the time with AS and while I am pleased with the flying experience, I would like to see a clean-sheet replacement. I think Boeing is seeing the A320 move ahead. So, the 737 would be missed, but not like the 747

757 - I used to dislike the long skinny sardine box. Now I realize it was a brilliantly-sized plane. I wish it was still being built ( I think Boeing does as well!)

767 - best seating layout of any widebody. While a little outdated, definitely a sentimental favorite flying on SK across the Atlantic. Great plane. Sad to see you go!

777 - Too early to kill

787 - Can't go there yet

A320 - if Boeing replaces the 737 they will likely follow. Great plane. Would be missed

A330 - one of the prettiest planes made in my opinion. Will be flying for years. Will be missed for comfort and overall design

A340 - I miss seeing so few 4-engine planes, but this one was rather inefficient compared with the 777. And those engines always looked under-sized (on the 343 that is)

A350 - just a baby! I haven't even seen one yet.

A380 - Never been on one. I appreciate this huge guy flying around. It will be sad to see its last day; many years from now.

MD80/88/90 - Definitely miss these guys. So quiet (unless sitting way in the back). A different looking plane and design. I am thankful to be flying one next month (Delta)

Bae-146 ... very cool.
Beech model 1900 .. the ugliest plane not made in Ireland.
Concorde ... obviously way cool
737 and A320 ... to common to be cool

I know I can't be the only person who is going to miss the DC-10 or MD-11. To me, those were two of the best looking planes out there.

737-900ER when the last one retires a few decades from now: not.

CRJ of any variation: not.

I miss the Tristars lumbering around.. the jet whine those days was different. Maybe it was my younger ears back then but they always felt like an infinitely rising "whistling" crescendo compared to the "humming/ roaring" engines these days.

I miss the VC-10... the best looking and best sounding airliner ever produced.

Only jets? I never flew on a Constellation, and they had their operational issues with engine reliability and baggage capacity, but I not only miss them, I seek out the survivors and take a look whenever I get the chance.

I know I am talking a different category of airplane altogether, but anyone else want to show some love to the Grumman G-21D Goose?

I'm going to miss the 717 when it's gone. I hope Delta buys them outright when the WN leases expire. Boeing isn't going to be able to place them anywhere else, so they might as well make Delta an offer (if they haven't already).

Definitely will NOT miss the wretched Dash 8.

The Horizon Q400's will be missed An icon up in the Pacific Northwest

I will not miss the 787 and its 3-3-3 seating.

767. 2-3-2 is simply the best configuration ever. Only one sub-optimal seat.

CRJ-200's can go take a long walk off a short pier. Those things are garbage.

flybynight wrote:

With UA accelerating the retirement of their 744's, I think most folks will agree the 747 will be a missed plane, if not the most-missed plane to disappear from daily passenger service.

But what about the other planes? Here is my opinion:

737 - agree with those who think that Boeing has milked the 50 year old design to the MAX (!). I fly on 737's all the time with AS and while I am pleased with the flying experience, I would like to see a clean-sheet replacement. I think Boeing is seeing the A320 move ahead. So, the 737 would be missed, but not like the 747

757 - I used to dislike the long skinny sardine box. Now I realize it was a brilliantly-sized plane. I wish it was still being built ( I think Boeing does as well!)

767 - best seating layout of any widebody. While a little outdated, definitely a sentimental favorite flying on SK across the Atlantic. Great plane. Sad to see you go!

777 - Too early to kill

787 - Can't go there yet

A320 - if Boeing replaces the 737 they will likely follow. Great plane. Would be missed

A330 - one of the prettiest planes made in my opinion. Will be flying for years. Will be missed for comfort and overall design

A340 - I miss seeing so few 4-engine planes, but this one was rather inefficient compared with the 777. And those engines always looked under-sized (on the 343 that is)

A350 - just a baby! I haven't even seen one yet.

A380 - Never been on one. I appreciate this huge guy flying around. It will be sad to see its last day; many years from now.

MD80/88/90 - Definitely miss these guys. So quiet (unless sitting way in the back). A different looking plane and design. I am thankful to be flying one next month (Delta)

The 747 not missed? Now that's funny.

Ziyulu wrote:

I will not miss the 787 and its 3-3-3 seating.

Complain to the airlines. No one at Boeing is hold a gun to their heads to do 3x3x3.

MaxTrimm wrote:

The Horizon Q400's will be missed An icon up in the Pacific Northwest

They are not all going away. They still have a role to fill For AS.

I miss my favorite airliner , the Boeing 727-200 .
I grew up flying Braniff 722's all over the midwest

I certainly will be glad if I never have to step foot on a 737 again in my life!

ArmitageShanks wrote:

CRJ-200's can go take a long walk off a short pier. Those things are garbage.

Though I will miss the large CRJs (700/900/1000) when they are gone, and the original CRJs still deserve a lot of credit for creating a viable twin jet RJ market.

On that thought, while Airbus and Boeing models get a lot of attention, I think a lot of the regional aircraft will never get the same emotional appeal but still deserve respect for what they did and how unusual they are. Bae146/Avro RJ, all the Fokkers, and the Dornier 328.

I don't think anyone will really miss the 737/A320 because we're probably going to be flying a variant of those for a very long time. They're going to outlive us. Also, I think they're a little too... generic to make a lasting appeal in people.

Planes in danger that I'll miss? A300-310 for starters, the A310 most, because it's lovely sized. The trijets. The quad jets.

Some that I won't miss? 767. DC9-MD80.

Ones I'll miss:
All trijets
DC-9
MD-80
A310
BAE 146
737-100/200
747
707
Concorde

Ones i won't miss:
CRJ-200
A320
Beech 1900
Dash 8

As mentioned above, the BAC 146. That's a favorite.

I really miss the 727. Not that it was special in and of itself (it was). But it is a reminder of the powerhouse of my childhood.

It's an easy question to answer if you ask me: nearly every aircraft that was designed in the previous century will be missed. Everything designed from 2000 and onwards, well... they all look the same.

L-1011: As a cub scout I got to tour the Palmdale assembly plant. And just a great plane to see. And fly. I did get a ride on the PSA bird (first widebody) as well as the HA and DL versions of the TriStar.

Was driving through Mojave ayears ago and saw the Orbital Sciences Tristar "Stargazer" doing touch and go's, so drove across some bare desert and put myself right in the approach path. Awesome. And bonus got to see the WhiteKnight take off minutes later. Wish I had a long lens that day for sure.

Will miss the 747 (last rode on the MH version in 2009, don't know if I will get another chance)

I don't care for the looks of the A300/310 and 767s, the engines just look tiny to my eye. Give me the big honkin' 777 GE or RR powerplants, they just look great and please the eye

I also think the A333 and NEO are one of the prettiest birds in the sky

Concorde of course!

I saw a IL96 at TAS in 2010, that is a pretty 4 holer

Despite travelling a bunch the last 2 years, have not seen an A350 in the wild yet.

Coming back to the start of my love for aviation, the TriStar on that desert morning 3 years ago at MHV

For me it is the 757. She's good looking and has lots of capability for a twin engine narrow body.

How about the DC-8 and 707. In the early to mid-1980's I was able to fly on both. Now they are pretty much all gone and I kind of miss them, especially the DC-8 with their nice lines.
DC-9's, especially the smaller versions. They just had something cool about them.
A-300's were a early mid-sized widebody, a bit wider as to interior width so a bit more comfortable than the 767, most still around as freighters.

Anything by Douglas/MDD
DC8/DC9 - Love the "bullet proof" nature of the DC9 build and the sound of the engines.
DC10/MD11 have gone from passenger service and I do miss them, and when FX retire their last trijet soon the world of aviation will be a lot less interesting.
The 767 I think I probably will too. It has been a very important aircraft for a lot of airlines.
The A340-500/-600 I miss already and they aren't even all gone yet

The ones I really don't miss,
Collectively I won't miss the current 737 or A320. the A318, 737-200 and 737-600 on the other hand I will.
777/A330 too ubiquitous for words.
787 - horrible windows, horrible seat config, and a decade late. Not to mention it looks like a vibrator with engines..

aviationjunky wrote:

I know I can't be the only person who is going to miss the DC-10 or MD-11. To me, those were two of the best looking planes out there.

Same here. I have a soft spot for planes with more than 3 engines even though the 787-9 has grown on me. My personal favorites are the DC-10/MD-11, the Boeing 727, and the Airbus A340, especially the ultra-rare -200 and -500. Also, the Boeing 767 will forever be the plane that changed the wide-body game once the -200ER and later the -300ER were produced, as that meant 6,000 miles were possible in the 190-240 seat class...in the 767, my favorite ones are 6 doors/2 overwing exits and 6 doors/2 hatches. Who could have predicted that the 767 program would have a 40-year lifespan even though the 787 should have killed it by now?

DFW789ER wrote:

flybynight wrote:

With UA accelerating the retirement of their 744's, I think most folks will agree the 747 will be a missed plane, if not the most-missed plane to disappear from daily passenger service.

But what about the other planes? Here is my opinion:

737 - agree with those who think that Boeing has milked the 50 year old design to the MAX (!). I fly on 737's all the time with AS and while I am pleased with the flying experience, I would like to see a clean-sheet replacement. I think Boeing is seeing the A320 move ahead. So, the 737 would be missed, but not like the 747

757 - I used to dislike the long skinny sardine box. Now I realize it was a brilliantly-sized plane. I wish it was still being built ( I think Boeing does as well!)

767 - best seating layout of any widebody. While a little outdated, definitely a sentimental favorite flying on SK across the Atlantic. Great plane. Sad to see you go!

777 - Too early to kill

787 - Can't go there yet

A320 - if Boeing replaces the 737 they will likely follow. Great plane. Would be missed

A330 - one of the prettiest planes made in my opinion. Will be flying for years. Will be missed for comfort and overall design

A340 - I miss seeing so few 4-engine planes, but this one was rather inefficient compared with the 777. And those engines always looked under-sized (on the 343 that is)

A350 - just a baby! I haven't even seen one yet.

A380 - Never been on one. I appreciate this huge guy flying around. It will be sad to see its last day; many years from now.

MD80/88/90 - Definitely miss these guys. So quiet (unless sitting way in the back). A different looking plane and design. I am thankful to be flying one next month (Delta)

The 747 not missed? Now that's funny.

"The 737 will be missed, but not like the 747"

My last flight a while ago was in the rear seat of an AA MD-87, ex-TWA according to the first officer. Spent the flight looking at the port engine. Pretty loud, but it was just from DFW to PSP. Quite a few years ago I flew a Hughes Airwest DC-9 in the front row. Now that was quiet.

The most missed for me are:
a) Boeing 757, simply the single BEST looking airliner of ALL TIME! When they are gone it will be a sad sad day.
b) Delta L-1011, shook, rattled and rolled but was a great looking a/c and my first overseas flight ATL-STR
c) SAAB 2000, great, fast, comfortable regional prop and easy on the eyes
d) Fairchild Dornier 328Jet, High wing, jet, T-Tail, reasonably comfortable compared to CRJ's but easy to stand up in and a single seat on one side - fantastic regional
e) 717/MD/DC-9's, I have been lucky enough to fly on all variants thru the years and once the 717 has gone the way of the Dodo it will be a truly sad sad day

Those aircraft that will not be missed:
a) CRJ's - without question the CRJ is Canada's cruel joke on the World. Flush them, crush them and recycle them all
b) ERJ's - not too much better than the CRJ. However, Embraer learned to make a better a/c in the E jets.
c) 737-900, slow, shallow ascent. Dislike partially due to DL seating but seemingly crowded
d) A346 - flown on VS a number of times and just feels too cramped in the economy (2-4-2). Premium Economy is ok but asthetically the A346 just looks out of scale in length
e) Beech 1900D - came to hate this a/c because of the constant cancellations between AHN-CLT due to mechanical issues - miss the route but not the plane

aviationjunky wrote:

I know I can't be the only person who is going to miss the DC-10 or MD-11. To me, those were two of the best looking planes out there.

Agreed. I love all the tri jets really. The L1011 to me was awesome looks great was over engineered for its time every pilot I know that ever flew it will testify it was the best airplane they have ever flown. I grew up in the 60's and 70's I loved the airplanes of that era the 707, 727, DC-8, DC-9 and DC-10. Sorry you can keep all the barbie jets although I did like the RJ-85 when Mesaba flew them in the US. I remember flying all over the US and to Hawaii in wide body airplanes and going though security without taking off your shoes. Would love to go back to those times.

I will greatly miss the 757 for its looks and 763 for the 2-3-2 seating. I miss the DC-10 (AA) and L1011 (DL).

I'm young and grew up in the time of flying the 767 to Europe. I honestly disliked the 767, mostly because on the news I would see all the stories of the 787, a380, a350, and of course I was jealous of the 777s/a330/747. I always seemed to get stuck on the 767. And for some reason (way when I was like 5) I thought the faster a plane went on a runway the better the TV's worked. When I flew the 747 I felt like I was a super rich guy and it was great. Now (as a high school freshman) these beautiful birds are literally flying out the window. I have yet to fly on any new generation plane (aka a350, 787, a380) and I hope I fly one soon. I find the 767 to noisy and it's always super squeaky as it rolls down the runway. And just to be clear, the a320 is and always will be better than the 737.

DDR wrote:

I always liked the look of the A310. Especially in the SR colors. I've flown in an A300 but sadly never made it to the A310.

It's not too late! Granted, at 3-3-3, it's really not the most comfortable, but the A310 is still a regular part of Air Transat's fleet. Cheap-ish flights to Europe from Eastern Canada, and to Mexican/Caribbean destinations from most major Canadian cities.

I don't think, at least within the pilot circles at DL, there is a plane that is missed more than the L1011. Even though those that flew it went on to the 767 and 777 for the most part, and many have long since retired, you'll never hear a bad word spoken about the TriStar from those that knew it best.

I miss the AA A300B4-605R SO much.
The md80 can melt in airplane hell lol

Will be missed: 737-300 - I have more hours and flights on this type than probably all others put together.

Will not be missed: Any and all CRJ's and ERJ's.

Of course the Tristar-1/100, those RB211-22b's make/made some unique sounds from start up to taxi to full power being applied. Also will miss the 747-200 with Pratts, once Kalitta retire those here at LAX we will not get to here that unique takeoff power sound as it approaches and pass you by of the old Pratts! Will miss the DC-10 both -10 and 30 of FX as well, guess I am an old school widebody fan, and hopefully AeroUnion holds onto those A300B4-200's for a while. Always a treat to see those here at LAX as well!

Concorde
727 - Best ever looking subsonic airliner
767 - Best seating plan interior even though inefficient
757 - Best takeoffs
Don't miss the DC10.
Won't miss the 737, A32x. Probably because almost all of my flights are on those two.

Planes that i will miss / do miss:
DC10 - flew on a MyTravel DC-110 MAN-HER back in the day, such a good looking aircraft
757 - love the powerful takeoff in a 757.
767 - a 2-3-2 seating in economy is ideal.
A340 - such a handsome aircraft, love the 4 engines, hope i get the opportunity to fly on this soon.

Planes i wont miss:
CRJ's - absolutely horrible, they're rare in Europe, flown on a fair few in the States and each time its been a hellish experience
737 - common as mud, does anyone get excited by a 737?

Planes that I'll miss seeing:

DC-10 / MD-11
DC-9 series
MD-80 / MD-90 series
Boeing 717
BAC 1-11 series
Boeing 707
Boeing 727
Boeing 757
Fokker F-28 / F-70 / F-100
Fokker F-27 / F-50
Lockheed L-1011
Tupolev Tu-154
Ilyushin IL-86

LBA1432 wrote:

737 - common as mud, does anyone get excited by a 737?

At the moment, no. At least, not yet another 737NG. If it's a classic 737 (300/400/500) I might get a bit excited, they are getting rare. I do get excited to see a 737-200, they're really rare these days.

One day the 737NG, that's so common these days, will be rare. I figure they'll be missed then.

Concorde! I'm still peeved that it was taken out of service right when I was finally able to afford to fly it
Other than that they all pretty much look and feel the same on the inside.

For me it will be the Queen of the Skies. It breaks my heart every time I see a thread of a major carrier retiring the 747-400. Guys, get on this bird before it is too late, will be a sad day once the last one leaves us. Over the past 2 weeks I have had 3 747-400 flights (UA SFO-NRT/ LH SEA-FRA/ BA LHR-KWI) and have another 2 coming up next week (BA SAN-LHR-LAS). I go out of my way to get on this bird as I can't get enough of flying on the 744.

These (and most other Soviet era airliners) are dearly missed.
So common in the 1990s but almost all gone now apart from military use.

The A300s/A310s were very much fantastic to ride. Fun, and the A310 was a little 'zippier'. It's odd to consider South Asian aviation during the 80s-90s-2000s without them. AI, IX, BG, PK - and extend that to IR, FG and then to TG, SQ - what a region. Asia is where the type started out, and where it served well, for decades. AA, and the Caribbean Trunk were a fluke, and a fabulously profitable one at that. It was mightily impressive to see AA sending A300s to 'compete' against Caribbean competitors into MIA, SJU and/or JFK.

I know that no one else might, but I miss the 727s. What a plane!

Of 'upcoming' aircraft to miss - it will be not so much an aircraft, but a passenger experience. Everyone here bemoans the death of the 767, however - far more passengers are exposed to shorter stage lengths. Removal of the DC-9 (and all future iterations of that fuselage design) eliminates, for a time - the 2X3 layout. That I will miss, until the introduction of the C-Series! I wish Bombardier well, and soon - because 2X3 beats 3X3 from a passenger perspective. In cases where it also does so in costs, I hope airlines strongly favor it - if only for the completely auxiliary benefit of a better passenger experience.

Though I rarely had the opportunity to fly on them, I miss the L-1011s. BW's examples, when applied with the 'steelpan' paint were gorgeous - and always evoke a nostalgic mood. What a different World, it was.