Best and most recognizable planes ever built
 

OK I apologize if there is already a thread on this. In your opinion what are the most recognizable and made the biggest contribution planes ever built.

1. The Boeing 747
2. The Boeing 737 - at any one time there is always a 737 flying somewhere. A truly ubiquitous plane.
3. The SR71 Blackbird =-semi -stealth exceedingly fast - a beautiful plane
4. The Concord - made supersonic travel available for many.
5. The B-29 Super-Stratofortress -ended WW11 and dropped the atomic bombs -place in history guaranteed.

I would also add the F-14 Tomcat and the Lancaster bomber of WWII

What is your opinion?

I'd take 1,3 and 4 from your list. There's a lot of planes in the sky with the same basic size and shape of the 737, though the 73 has definitely by far made the biggest contribution to commercial air travel. Really the only thing that visually differentiates it for me is the flattened engine cowl.

As for #5, damn kids don't remember those planes. They may recognize it, but can't name it. Maybe replace it with the F-14.

Douglas. DC. 3.

Space shuttle - unmistakable shape, even if it only acts as a plane/flying brick momentarily

Most recognizable? I'd agree with 1, 3, and 4.

F-14? most 'kids' haven't seen Top Gun. (unless there was an F-14 broomstick in harry potter ;) )

Agree with number 1. Regarding number 2, I think the 737's grandparent, the 707, is even more recognizable just because it's been around longer. Moreover, the Douglas DC-8 and DC-9 series were equally recognizable.

Agree with Wally Bird: the Douglas DC-3 still is one of the most recognizable planes on earth.

Best and most recognizable planes ever built
 

F-14 and 747 for sure.

747 with that unique upper deck.

I agree with removing the 737, not distinctive enough.

In terms of aesthetics, I'd add:
the P-38 Lightening, the X-15, and the Soviet Ekranoplan. And a +1 to the SR-71.

Recognizeable, I'd add the B2, the B-52, the F-4 Phantom and the An-225.

My personal likes include the F-104B Starfighter, the P-40 Warhawk (w/Flying Tigers livery which I still think AA should have used) and the A-10 (fugly but I like it).

Best and most recognizable planes ever built
 

A380 has to be in that list?!

I'd say that about 90% of the public would be able to identify the 747 and Concorde. Most other planes tend to look similar from a distance.

Definitely. #1 is surely a tie between B747 and A380.

More than just one.

http://www.flightglobal.com/news/art...wonder-204505/

And those numbers are five years out of date. I believe the total sales are now over 8,000 and I have heard that at any one time more than 1,500 737s are in the air, seven days a week, 24 hours a day.

If a plane was unsuccessful and stayed rare, it is not "recognizable", because few have seen it. If it was successful, it made a contribution - but if it inspired close copies then it is not "recognizable" either.

Boeing 747 is a plane which is obviously both recognizable and has made a contribution. No one copied the hump - itself copied from Carvair, but that is a propeller plane.

Now, looking at other planes with appreciable contribution, either themselves or via copies:

Boeing 707 - copied by DC-8 and Convair 880/990. Is DC-8 immediately recognizable?

Boeing 737 - copied by A320 and others, as pointed out.

Boeing 727 - a copy of Hawker-Siddeley Trident. As is Tu-154.

Douglas DC-9/MD-80/-90/B717/ARJ21 - copies of BAC 1-11. As are Fokker 28/100/70, and Tu-134, and CRJ.

Airbus 300/310 - copied by Boeing 767

DC-10/MD-11 - should be fairly "recognizable". No copies, and Tristar is different enough.

Concorde - little contribution, with just 14 frames in service. And how readily is it distinguished from Tu-144? Yes, stand different on ground, Concorde´s smooth ogive wing, Tu-144´s canards... but considering how few airports see Concorde regularly, how many people would immediately recognize Tu-144 as something different from Concorde?

cessna 140/150
piper cub
curtiss JN4
dc3(c47)
beech bonanza

Best and most recognizable planes ever built
 

B2? Doesn't get more distinctive then that design.

Yes the Warthog - ugly but extremely functional - and agree with you on the others.

A380, the shape of an aviation era.

The same is true for the A320 family - ubiquitous, always one flying somewhere. The 737 doesn't really stand out here...

Reaching back a bit farther, the Lockheed Constellation has one of the most distinctive shapes.

I have a soft spot in my heart for the "flying boat" era. The China Clipper, Hawaii Clipper. I attended a lecture by a former pilot and stewardess who told stories of their month long journey from SF to Asia with these elite passengers.

beech stagger wing.....i had an invite for a ride on one in ca about 25 years ago....unfortunately, work didn't take me that way & the friend sold it....

Without looking at you list, I thought CONCORDE...
Was it easy / possible to score an award on Concorde ?

The 727, 747, P-38, Concorde, and A-10 are among my favorites as well. While the B-29 was perfectly fine airplane in its own right, I'm still partial to the B-17. I have to throw in the P-51D as well.

Now I missed out on some of the gorgeous airliners back in 50s/60s/70s, but as far active civilian aircraft go, I'm quite partial to the 757-200, especially with winglets. Perfectly proportioned, long legs... And after the retirement of the Concorde, it's the best performing airliner out there.

The Connie. Without question. Three tails, four engines, and streamlined fuselage. It defined the era.

flew on it in 1959 lga-dca a number of times.....

the fokker tri motor w/corrugated roofing like exterior was a work horse for a long time & easy to recognize....

Adding the Hindenburg as the best known/most famous example of the zeppelin. Though most people couldn't tell one zeppelin from another or the difference between a zeppelin and a blimp, it did define a class of airship - even if only to kill it.

Best and most recognizable (limited to airliners only to avoid going to far afield)....

Both qualities have much to do with overall service life and the number built and operated (built more, flown more, seen more often).

The DC-3/C-47 series ranks high in both categories.
The various Constellations rank higher for recognition than for "best", but still make both lists.
The 727 certainly is more recognizable than a/c which had the same configuration (Trident, TU-154?), and likely did as much to advance domestic air travel as any other a/c.
The humpback B747, still flying in its 6th decade (well, 7th counting R&D), has a place on both lists.

Having seen them both on the ground and in the air, perhaps lower on the "best" list, but few a/c could be as recognizable as the Ford Trimotor and the JU52.

I'll reserve a place for a series of a/c short on best and even recognition, but us older FTers will remember our first Saturday boarding of a "Stretch 8", in which it was already Sunday before you got to your seat in the back.

Flying on and on under many flags, liveries, guises and disguises, the original Twin Beech/B18/C-45 series, pretty damn good and recognizable to old folks.

Definitely not the most recognizable. If presented with an A320 or a 737, I doubt many people could tell you which was which.

I think most people could pick out a DC-10 (although likely calling MD-11s DC-10s).

Definitely 747 and Concorde, as far as commercial airliners go. The 737, while ubiquitous, is not particularly distinctive. And the A380, while unique, is not yet widely recognizable. I had a friend who travels quite a bit look at it and say, "What is that thing?"

As for military aircraft, you have to go with the Lockheed SR-71A Blackbird. I think most would still recognize the F-14 Tomcat. Anyone who has been to an airshow would probably recognize the F/A-18 Hornet (Blue Angels) and F-16 Fighting Falcon (Thurnderbirds). The A-10 Warthog is certainly distinctive. The F-15 Eagle is probably the most well-known fighter plane of the last generation. Anyone familiar with the Vietnam era will certainly recognize the F-4 Phantom, and anyone who has taken an American history class should recognize the B-52 Stratofortress. And I think there is also a place for the F-117 Nighthawk on this list.

Uh, couldn't you say that about all of the major commercial aircraft types being flown today around the world? :)

i see a large number of planes going overhead from about 5 miles out(dca). i cannot tell one 2 engine on the wing jet from another.

As this thread has taken liberties with "best" and "most recognizable" (Ford Tri-Motor, A-10, Space Shuttle, etc.), might I humbly submit the North American XB-70 Valkyrie as simply the most "bad-@ssed" looking aircraft...

http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Un7BTy5c9E...s/s1600/00.jpg

Love the Valkyrie, but I'll always be a Blackbird guy.
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi..._Blackbird.jpg

Not in any particular order.

1. Constellation (Walk up hill then down hill)
2. C46/C47 (Different nose on each makes it easier)
3. B707/DC-8 (Nostrals on the DC-8)
4. L1011/DC-10, MD-11 (Look at the center engine! Winglets on the MD-11)
5. P51 Mustang
6. P38 Lightning
7. B727 (How is it different from a Trident?)
8. B17 Flying Fortress
9. B29 Super Fortress
10. VC10 (Not a TU-154!)
11. F86 Sabre (Distinctive jet intake) and Super Sabre (Horizontal stabilizer higher)
12. B747 (A Beauty.. all models)
13. B757 (Distinctive stance on the ground, takes off like a bat outta h...!)

bj-21.

As a non-geek when it comes to airframes, the B747 is single handedly the most recognized aircraft by Kettles.

<--Total and unapologetic wingnut.

Super Connie, 747 and Concord....the clear choices for civilian birds based on non-wingnuts being able to pick them out of a crowd. Each pushed aviation into unchartered territory and then stuck around long enough to become an icon.
The 727 deserves a lot of credit too.

SR71, Spitfire and (controversially) F16 for many of the same reasons. The Viper gets very little credit for all the new ground it broke, while doing so on the cheap. We could put the MiG 15, 17 and 21 in the same bucket.

Not-as-easily-recognized by non-wingnuts, but equally important:
Harrier, Tu95 "Bear", B90/200/350 King Air, Lear 23, X1.

I would say Concorde.

Hard to believe its 10 years since it retired.

http://www.britishairways.com/cms/gl...geconcorde.jpg

Your post caused me to Google up this impressive-looking bird. When I was a kid (I'm 46) this is what I assumed 'spaceships' would eventually look like.

Was surprised to read that one was lost from, of all things, a mid-air collision. Ouch.