Jumbo's Are 747's Only!

flybynight · Thu Jul 31, 2003 12:58 pm

I've always believe the one and only jumbo jet is the 747. So often will I hear on TV or even on the news, widebodies, in general, called Jumbo's. Am I wrong, or Tom Brokaw (sp) wrong? When Swissair lost an MD-11 in the late 90's in Canada, some newscaster referred to the plane as a jumbo jet.

Jean Leloup · Thu Jul 31, 2003 1:08 pm

Flybynight;
The media make major mistakes nearly every time they mention aviation. We can't expect much more, it's not their specialty.

Yes, I think most people would agree that "Jumbo Jet" refers only to 747's, but the vast majority of people have no idea! Don't let it bother you too much. Smile

IMissPiedmont · Thu Jul 31, 2003 1:13 pm

I will disagree. The DC-10/MD-11, L-1011 and A-330/340 are all in the "jumbo" class in my opinion.

vafi88 · Thu Jul 31, 2003 1:21 pm

I hate that in movies they show like an MD-80 on the outside, but the seating is like 2-4-2 making it a 767, can't they just stick to one??

cancidas · Thu Jul 31, 2003 1:37 pm

ever see SNL's "iceman, the later years?" that may be one of the funniest things i've seen. anyway, they have 3 different planes in outside shots in that clip. a 727, dc-9 and maybe a 737. it's probably online. it's great!

about the jumbo, that title is reserved for the 747, and maybe soon for the A380.

WNfan · Thu Jul 31, 2003 1:38 pm

What is the threshold for aircraft to identify themselves as "heavy"? I would think that any "heavy" aircraft could also be called "jumbo".

UAL747 · Thu Jul 31, 2003 1:39 pm

Vafi....uh, 767 seating is 2-3-2.

UAL747

cancidas · Thu Jul 31, 2003 1:43 pm

heavy is any plane over 12,500 lbs in the US. those are ususally 747, 767, 777, MD-11, DC-10, A340, A330, AN124, AN 225, etc...

i'm not sure about the 757, i'll find out.

flybynight · Thu Jul 31, 2003 1:45 pm

I've always believed all widebodies (twin-aisles) are Heavy - so to name some - MD/11's, DC10's, 767/777/747's. A330, A340, A300, A310. Not sure if a C5 would be a heavy, Sure should be!
Jumbo, though, is a term that is associated with the 747.

cancidas · Thu Jul 31, 2003 1:48 pm

according to an unknown C-5 pilot at Stewart ANG base in NY, a 747 is a 'little airplae.' i overheard that whan standing awaiting a touch and go 747 at stewart. the 747 captain's remark to that was 'she might be little but boy does she pay!'

yea, a C-5 is heavy, as are the C-141 and C-17.

GoAround · Thu Jul 31, 2003 1:51 pm

I believe the title 'Superjumbo' is reserved for the A380?! As it should be Big grin

Well, I'm off on holiday now guys, so I'll talk to you all in a few weeks. Bye!

GoAround

UAL747 · Thu Jul 31, 2003 1:51 pm

12,500 pounds seems a bit light. I think 737's are around 125,000 pounds.

UAL747

ben88 · Thu Jul 31, 2003 2:10 pm

I believe a "heavy" is somewhere around 255,000 pounds.

covert · Thu Jul 31, 2003 2:14 pm

heavy is any plane over 12,500 lbs in the US

Umm, a heavy callsign is given to aircraft over 250,000 lbs.....

That will give you from a 757 upwards.

Shamrock1Heavy · Thu Jul 31, 2003 2:18 pm

I always thought Heavy was designated 400,000 lbs plus

-D

cicadajet · Thu Jul 31, 2003 2:35 pm

There's no technical definition for a "jumbo" jet of course. It was either the creation of the media or a PR department to begin with..

However, back when the 747 first emerged on the scene, they were the only "jumbos" at the time, but the DC-10 and Lockheed Tri-Star were routinely referred to as jumbo jets as well. And it makes sense. They were all large wide-body aircraft unlike the other pax airliners of the time.

The term seemed less defined by the time the A-300 appeared on the scene..and the "big three" were not the novelty they were when they first appeared.

Tom

HlywdCatft · Thu Jul 31, 2003 2:37 pm

Ive always called everything 767 and up a jumbo

kaitakfan · Thu Jul 31, 2003 2:42 pm

Ben88 is right. right from the FAR/AIM...

Heavy-Aircraft capable of takeoff weights of more than 255,000 lbs whether or not they are operating at this weight during a particular phase of flight.

I may not ever use the term "jumbo" while talking about large aircrafts (sounds like a young child's term), A 777-200/300, A340, etc are all very large heavy aircrafts and are jumbo aircrafts compared to 737's, Gulfstream V's and Twin Cessna's.

jwenting · Thu Jul 31, 2003 2:43 pm

Many people know only the distinction "small plane", "big plane".
All "big planes" are jumbo jets. This starts with the 757 (and for some the 737).
They don't even know which airline they'll be travelling or how their livery looks like so they can recognise the aircraft to prevent them being at the wrong gate... They know they're on flight VZ4235 and have to check in with MyTravel (which is logical as that's the company they booked their package vacation with).

Also remember that many people have no experience with the distances you can see across an airport.
On several occasions I heard people commenting on a 747 who thought it was smaller than a 737 where actually the 747 was several kilometers away and the 737 roaring past at maybe a hundred meters.

POSITIVE RATE · Thu Jul 31, 2003 3:21 pm

A jumbo jet is any jet falling into the "Heavy" category. So it could be a 747, DC-10, L1011, MD-11, A300, A310, A330, A340, 767, 777, 757. Even the 707 was called a jumbo i believe when it entered service in the early 1960's because at that time it was considered huge.

fly727 · Thu Jul 31, 2003 3:46 pm

Despite that the 757 is considerably lighter than the 767 or all those you guys mention, I think it can be called "heavy" due to the wake turbulence it leaves behind, of great danger for arriving/departing aircrafts. I would have to check the AIM.

Not sure though

Saludos
RM

POSITIVE RATE · Thu Jul 31, 2003 4:29 pm

Yes i'm pretty sure the 757 is classified as a "heavy" due to its very viscous wake vortexes.

Jean Leloup · Thu Jul 31, 2003 4:37 pm

There used to be huuuuuge arguments on this very (what is a heavy?) topic, I guess back before many of you were active. There were big fights and even some banning. People took it very seriously!

Anyhow, this is news to me: I grew up thinking that "Jumbo Jet" was a marketing line specifically associated with the 747, and not just a general adjective referring to large widebodies. That does make sense though.

either way, it doesn't really matter here since we all know to call the planes by their real names. Smile

yyz717 · Fri Aug 01, 2003 10:33 am

I remember when the 747, L1011 & DC-10 came out in the early 70's. They were all called jumbos. Of course, the 747 was the most famous.

MD11LuxuryLinr · Fri Aug 01, 2003 10:54 am

The 752 is not considered a heavy jet ("heavy" isn't attached to the call sign)... Although, traffic flying behind it is given caution for the wake. I'm not positive about the 753, but I'm sure it's over the limit to have the "heavy" call sign.

Big thumbs up

luv2fly · Fri Aug 01, 2003 11:13 am

I remember once I was in the back room at NWA in DTW waiting for a charter flight we had on them to leave and one of the walkie talkies was on the desk and it came over that the whale at one of the F gates was going to have to be moved to make room for another aircraft, well I was headed out the door to see this whale when I told a friend of mine with NWA to come with me to see this, and she goes why do I need to see a 747! That is what they called it. DUH did I feel like a green back.

Guest · Fri Aug 01, 2003 9:29 pm

I am wondering that in the US the name "Jumbo Jet" is in use.
The name "Jumbo Jet" came from Europe, also "City Jet" for 737, "Flying Bull" (or was it "working bull"???) for DC 10 and "Intercontinental Jet" for 707. Btw, in europe we called the 727 the "EuropaJet" (so in the US the 727 would have been called "America Jet").
An american Spotter once told me that they don't use the name "Jumbo Jet".
Anyway, we would never use the word "Jumbo jet" for another plane than the 747, otherwise we would call him an ignorant Smile/happy/getting dizzy

L1011Fan · Fri Aug 01, 2003 9:32 pm

Actually, a 752 is considered heavy. I read that just about a year ago in Airliners magazine. It's called heavy because of the wake turbulence it creates.

aa61hvy · Fri Aug 01, 2003 9:33 pm

I say a jumbo jet is a plane with two aisles.

Guest · Fri Aug 01, 2003 9:37 pm

Come on, AA61, not every car with 4 wheels is a Beetle.
And not every plane with two aisles is a Jumbo Jet. A plane with 2 aisles - it's just a wide-body-plane.

Ealsys1 · Fri Aug 01, 2003 9:40 pm

This is the first time I've heard this. In the 70's I remember Eastern referring to the L-1011 as a jumbo jet. I've always referred to widebodies as Jumbo's. Not that big a deal!

Rattibone · Sat Aug 02, 2003 1:04 am

The term "Heavy" is determined on the wake turbulence the plane creates on either landing or takeoff. These are in place to determine safe seperation with regards to aircraft following each other. The terms "Light, Medium and Heavy" and used in this case. After extensive tests with regards to wake turbulence, the 757 even though it's a narrow body is categorized in the 'Heavy' category due to the excessive wake the aircraft creates.

Therefore it's safe to say that aircraft sized 757 and 767 upwards are called 'Heavy'.

Hope this helps.

MD11LuxuryLinr · Sat Aug 02, 2003 9:16 am

I agree that the 757 has a horrible wake, that's why there is always an entrail spacing issue. As far as air traffic control, the 757 is not a "Heavy Jet", it's not called a "Heavy Jet" and if United flight 99 was being operated by a 757, the call sign would be "United 99" not "United 99 heavy". Or maybe we're talking about 2 different things..

Big thumbs up

ANA777Master · Sat Aug 02, 2003 11:05 am

There can be no further discussion about this topic. A Jumbo jet is a 747, period.

4holer · Sat Aug 02, 2003 11:17 am

The 747 is THE Jumbo Jet.

Everything else is just a wannabe.

Reminds me of Avril Lavigne calling herself "punk".

flyboy36y · Sat Aug 02, 2003 2:24 pm

For the record, there is nothing official here. Its a jumbo if it's a wide boy IMHO.

flybynight · Sat Aug 02, 2003 3:30 pm

I agree with those who say the 757 is not a heavy. If you ever fly United, you can usually listen to the cockpit on one of the audio channels. I have flown on United's 757's more than probably any other plane (and I have flown a lot!). Never has the Heavy designation been used on a 757. In fact, one time a controller referred to us as a heavy on final to O'Hare. The pilot corrected the controller by saying we're not heavy; we're a 757.
Pretty much sums it, in my opinion.

av8rphx · Sat Aug 02, 2003 4:26 pm

The heavy designation has to do with gross weights(empty+pax+cargo)... routinely you will hear AmTran 757s referred to as heavy's.

747400sp · Sat Aug 09, 2003 8:00 pm

I feel there only one jumbo the 747 and only one super jumbo the 380.

2000first · Sat Aug 09, 2003 8:24 pm

I guess before the 747 came out, the dc-8-61/63 were the biggest planes flying (passenger). I have a picture in one of my books of a Flying Tiger Line DC-8 with "jumbo jet" titles in BIG letters down the side of the aircraft. so at least Flying tigers management thought that the even the DC8 was a jumbo at one time!lol! Smile

bmistaff · Sat Aug 09, 2003 8:50 pm

UAL747: Quite a few airlines use a 2-4-2 configuration with the 767

ryangooner · Sat Aug 09, 2003 9:00 pm

A few of you are definately right here!

A JUMBO JET is only a 747

cant get my head around calling a 757,767 or even a 777 for that matter a jumbo jet - heavies yes but jumbo jet - affraid not!

Ryan
only a matter what people get used to though, this is my personal opinion however!

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