“StarStream” is a great name for an airliner. N750TW served with TWA for many years.
N778TW on the Boeing flightline at Renton. The first 727 lurks in the background.
N738TW in Feb. 1961. A company Connie in the foreground looks on with a decided lack of enthusiasm.
One of the many versions of the 707, namely the 707-131, is seen here. Once a familiar sight at airports around the globe, the 707-131 is, alas, no more. However, even in retirement it still had an important job to do: After faithfully serving TWA (and other airlines), the -131 became a useful source of parts for the USAF in the 1980s. Namely, the Air Force wanted the -131’s Pratt & Whitney TF-33 engines for the purpose of upgrading the KC-135A. Once re-engined, the “A” model became the KC-135E. Thus the retired 707-131s were given a lease on life to serve as suppliers of engines and parts.
For many years, the retired 707s were a familiar sight at the Davis-Monthan AFB boneyard as they were slowly picked to pieces for useful KC-135E parts (The E-model was retired in 2009). No doubt, more than a few boneyard visitors in the early 21st Century wondered why the USAF was storing a fleet of somewhat dilapidated civilian 707s.
The Jive Bomber 