The other posts make me feel really old, but my first flight was on a 727 out of Tampa for New York, when Tampa was the old open air terminal.The plane was the brand new "Whisperjet" and we boarded through the airstairs at the rear.I got a set of metal junior pilot wings!The most impressive was though a few weeks later when we returned to Tampa on a DC-8 , very loud starting,and a meal was served.I got wings, and a plastic DC-8 about 4 inches long.Impressive to a ten year old!Don't think things are better in many ways but they are sure different. I liked the lounge seating in Eastern and Delta's DC-8's.And I even like the sound of props on a night flight especially!I guess I'm getting old!But nowadays they're on Beech 1900D's and Embraers, not Constellations and Electras, which I was lucky enough to have flown on, (TWA and Northwest, Eastern).