9. What was the first airline to operate trans-Atlantic flights with 727s?
Wardair - vs - American Flyers Airline.
Wardair got their only 727, CF-FUN, in April 1966. they had been using DC-6Bs on transatlantic flights until then. They operated summer flights over to Europe, and winter flights down to Mexico, California, etc, and in fact they never got any contracts for winter 1966, so at the end of the summer season leased it out to National, but it was back in summer 1967, which is when WHBM's aunt and uncle travelled in it to Europe (and so I got to see it at Gatwick when we met them). The notable thing is they ran it not to Eastern but to Western Canada, refuelling at Sondrestrom in Greenland.
American Flyers Airlines' two 727s, N12826 and N12827, were new to them for summer 1968. These too did charters to Europe, some commercial and some military, and they too could be seen at Gatwick, in fact doubtless from time to time parked next to the Wardair one. Here are the two of them, on the same stand there (but at different times)
http://www.airliners.net/photo/Warda...fdcdf1a1645673
http://www.airliners.net/photo/Ameri...1d422ad5241104
World also started using their 727s as such in the same year. You might find that AFA was the first US carrier to use them as such, The Canadian carrier got their first 707 in 1968, but the 727 carried on for some years more, and in fact if you go back to post #3821 in this thread, you'll find that I was on it going to Vancouver in 1969 !
Anyone else cross the Atlantic in a 727 ?