The Long-Haul Twin

The Two-Man Crew

During the 1970s, the number of crew on the flight deck had become an important issue, not only because of the elimination of radio officers, navigators, and engineers per se, but because reducing the statutory number from three to two had a significant effect on the operating costs. Four or five complete crews are required to operate an airliner that is being worked at a high utilization rate, so that the airlines encouraged any move towards reducing crew expenses. In the USA, Douglas had initiated the practice with its DC-9s and Boeing followed with the 737s.

The 767 is Launched

Production of the Boeing 767 began when United Airlines placed an order on 14 July 1978. The first flight was on 26 September 1981, and United put it into service on 8 Septem­ber 1982. During the development period, the F. A.A. was still conducting trials for two-crew operations, following the con­
clusions of a presidential task force, announced in July 1981. In fact, the first 767s off the line were retrofitted for two – crew, as Boeing had had to go ahead with the then current regulatory limitations. The first two-crew flight deck made its initial flight on 27 May 1982 — just in time for United’s inaugural — and a versatile new airliner generation was bom.

Outstanding Success

The 767 was outstandingly successful. It proved its worth — thanks largely to the two-crew factor — operationally and eco­nomically, on all routes, short-haul, medium-haul, and long – haul. Its prowess in this last category, in which the reliability of the engines exceeded all expectations, led to serious thoughts as to the possibility of using it for trans-ocean operations.

ETOPS (originally EROPS-extended range…)

In May 1985, the F. A.A. approved the Boeing 767 for Extended Twin-Engine Operations (ETOPS) of up to 120

minutes from an alternate airport. The program was so suc­cessful that in March 1989, the 767 was approved for a
180-minute diversion. This was a far cry from the late 1960s, when airliners could not even fly in a straight line from New York to Miami, because of the distance from an alternate air­port for part of that route. ETOPS was one of the most impor­tant developments in the history of air transport, with thoughts of so-called “four-engined safety” long forgotten, overtaken by technology.

BOEING 767 FLEET