Commercial Jet Airplane Pilot Reports - From The Archives

Details of the Boeing 707 were first revealed by Aviation Week in 1953. Less than a year after the December 1957 first flight of America's first jetliner, the flight characteristics of the aircraft were put to the test by Aviation Week's Richard Sweeney, who wrote a detailed two-part report. "Pilots will find their new aircraft is honest. It has performance to spare when properly handled."

Boeing 707 pilot report part one: Oct 6, 1958

Part two: Oct 13, 1958

"High degree of stability and controllability of the Douglas DC-8 jet transport when maneuvering along the outer edges of its performance envelope" was demonstrated during a flight evaluation by Aviation Week pilot Richard Sweeney.

Read the April 1960 pilot report. 

Flight evaluation by Aviation Week pilot William S. Reed reveals that the 720 is a "true medium-field aircraft, capable of cruising at 600mph, with control forces and response at a level better than might be expected from a large transport."

Read the August 1960 pilot report. 

Having flown in the 727 with Boeing test pilot Jack Wadell in the right seat, Aviation Week's C. M. Plattner commented on Boeing's efforts to "design an aircraft capable of consistent performance under all flight conditions."

Read the November 1963 pilot report

Boeing's 737 was found to be a "nimble, responsive performer," by Aviation Week's C. M. Plattner, who flew the new short-haul transport in August 1967, four months after first flight of the narrowbody. "The 737 flies with nearly the same snappy responsiveness of the 727, whose reputation as a "pilot's airplane" is well established."

Read the September 1967 pilot report.

Ease of flying the Fokker F-28 Fellowship was evident from the initial back-pressure on the takeoff, according to Aviation Week's Herbert Coleman, and another impressive feature was the aircraft's mild reaction to a Dutch roll at 20,000ft., "which tends to  damp itself when the aircraft is left to its own devices."

Read the January 1968 pilot report

Aviation Week's Robert Ropelewski flew the DC-10 prior to its entry into scheduled service and found the aircraft "to be stable but exceptionally agile, and a surprisingly easy airplane to handle despite its size. The evaluation flight also provided an effective demonstration of the capabilities of the DC-10's automatic flight guidance and control system, and particularly its automatic landing system."

Read the August 1971 pilot report. 

"The emphasis Boeing placed on procedural simplification and operational ease was observed first-hand" by Aviation Week's Robert Ropelewski during a 1hr, 45min demonstration flight in the 767 shortly after it was granted FAA type certification. 

Read the August 1982 pilot report.

"Significant cockpit workload reduction, improved man/machine dialogue, and better than anticipated fuel economics are being demonstrated in the Airbus Industrie A310 widebody transport as the aircraft proceeds through development flight testing toward certification in the first quarter of 1983."

Read the October 1982 pilot report.

The Brazilian built EMB-120 was the second of the new generation of 30-50 passenger commuter airplanes to be flown by Aviation Week's David North (after the DHC-8). The aircraft has "excellent handling characteristics, high cruise speeds and attractive financing."

Read the May 1984 pilot report

An evaluation flight by Aviation Week's Dave North "convinced me that Airbus has carefully matched human engineering and pilot workload with aircraft performance to develop a transport that is enjoyable to fly. The company, in the process, has not forgotten possible concerns over an almost fully electronic cockpit and automatic safety features, and has provided a redundancy in systems that should be able to overcome almost any combination of emergencies."

Read the November 1987 pilot report

On the McDonnell Douglas MD-11, notes Aviation Week's David Hughes, "computers perform everything from checklist tasks to stall recover in an aircraft where the flight engineer's duties are accomplished by a bank of automatic controllers."

Read the October 1990 pilot report

"Pilots of cable-controlled, glass-cockpit aircraft will feel right at home in the Boeing 777 cockpit," wrote Aviation Week's David Hughes after flying the twin-engine. "The 777 cockpit is a cross between the 747-400 and 767, but the similarities are only skin deep."

Read the May 1995 pilot report

When Aviation Week's David North flew the 717-200 in 1999, he called it a point design for the short-range airline market. "The 100-seat aircraft has the body of the venerable DC-9, the soul of the much larger MD-11 and the heart of a new Rolls-Royce turbofan engine."

Read the June 1999 pilot report

After flying the original prototype A380, MSN 001, Aviation Week's David North noted that despite its large presence, it is a pilot's aircraft. "It earns this accolade because of its excellent flying qualities, precise ground handling and the large amount of flight, system and operational information available."

Read the October 2006 pilot report

Aviation Week's chief aircraft evaluation editor Fred George became the first journalist to fly the Boeing 787 in 2012. And he liked it. "Pilots who strap into Boeing's new 787 most likely will conclude that it is the easiest to fly and most intuitive jetliner ever built by the Seattle-based manufacturer."

Read the December 2012 pilot report

Strapping into left seat of the Airbus A350, Aviation Week's Fred George was impressed with the quiet, dark cockpit design and host of safety features to help protect the aircraft and occupants from a raft of pilot errors. "The A350 is the most technology-laden Airbus I have flown, and quite a leap forward from the A330."

Read the May 2015 pilot report