Loads and loads of people bemoan the process and procedure of flying on a modern airliner. As an occupational hazard, I perform this particular function a lot and I honestly like it. Why and how? I’m not sure. Crowds don’t bug me, I always show up on time, and I have a book to read if things get weird. It’s not a luxurious way to get around anymore but it’s still the quickest way to get anywhere and without air travel I’d not have a career beyond driving my car around.
One of the machines responsible for the way we travel today is the Douglas DC-8. When this baby was introduced in the late 1950s it was a machine aimed squarely at taking some of the market back from the Boeing 707 which had beat it to market. The DC-8 stood in as a formidable competitor for the narrow body, long range segment of the industry that it was intended for. Made from 1958 through 1972, these things were anvil simple and expertly engineered.
There are still DC-8 airplanes flying today as cargo carriers with their interiors gutted in order to hold stuff rather than people. If that doesn’t tell you what you need to know, I don’t know how to help you.
