
Boeing 707 roll by Test Pilot Tex Johnson
About this video
Footage of Boeing test pilot Tex Johnson barrel-rolling the Boeing 707 prototype over Lake Washington, followed by his explanation of the stunt.
Why it appears in the archive
HN cites it as a famous bit of aviation history showing the roll was a gentle 1G maneuver and salesmanship.
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From the Hacker News discussion
The article on rolls: "but if you ignore convention, you can fly them in any airplane, including a Boeing 737" or a 707: [VIDEO]
Read original comment ↗What were you doing Tex? I was selling airplanes. [VIDEO] Here's Boeing, doing a 'near vertical' takeoff in the Dreamliner (spoilers: not really but still impressive), also presumably selling airplanes. [LINK]
Read original comment ↗I am not at all familiar with aircraft, but in the video were Tex Johnson talks about doing the barrel roll, he literally says it is a 1G maneuver. [VIDEO]
Read original comment ↗Similar video with a test pilot pushing a 707 pretty hard. Includes a barrel roll, which isn't hard on the aircraft, but unusual to see with a passenger aircraft. [VIDEO] The 707 was pretty similar to the 737...same main fuselage dimensions, similar pax capacity, etc.
Read original comment ↗