If we just consider the design of the B737 wing, here is an explanation from the web:
There are approximately four main generations of wing designs for the Boeing 737, with further variations based on winglet technology. The primary iterations include the Original (-100/200), Classic (-300/400/500), Next-Generation (NG -600/700/800/900), and MAX (7/8/9/10), with four key winglet types <http://www.b737.org.uk/winglets.htm> often seen, including blended and split-scimitar designs. But within each of the four large variations, there are significant differences. The NG 700 and 900 wings are different, for example. And the Navy’s Poseidon model (the P8) is a mix of different versions. I am not aware of wing variations for the B757 and B767 but maybe there are such variations for the wing. Engines are a very different matter. Bob Ditchey From: Robert Ditchey via Mifnet <[email protected]> Sent: Sunday, February 22, 2026 4:04 PM To: [email protected] Cc: 'Dan Solon' <[email protected]>; [email protected] Subject: [Mifnet 🛰 75503] Re: we miss the 757 I think that I need to clarify my statements here. If we consider the manufacturer’s serial numbers of any given model of aircraft, with each succeeding manufacturing event, the newer aircraft are improved incrementally. That is why we have changes to the aircraft specification, why we have service bulletins, and why we have AD’s. Changes to manufacturing occur continuously. The wing design and construction of the B737 has been changed considerably over the years. The method of affixing the fuselage skin of all aircraft has been changed. (Consider the Aloha accident.) But all of this considered, there are some engineering and technology issues that are static over the years. In some ways, the B737 is fundamentally the same as it always was. That is why the changes to the Type Certificate are both somewhat static and somewhat incremental. In the end, the B767 design is the same as it always was. The technology changes are certainly known to Boeing, as are the things that didn’t change over the years. >From an engineering viewpoint, the old monocoque construction is very >different from the composite construction of (for example) the B787. Wing >construction and design is remarkably different for newer aircraft. And then >we have to consider the engines. And digital controls and “fly by wire.” And we could go much further. Bob Ditchey From: Robert Ditchey via Mifnet <[email protected] <mailto:[email protected]> > Sent: Sunday, February 22, 2026 3:01 PM To: [email protected] <mailto:[email protected]> Cc: 'Dan Solon' <[email protected] <mailto:[email protected]> >; [email protected] <mailto:[email protected]> Subject: [Mifnet 🛰 75500] Re: we miss the 757 What is fundamental to this discussion is whether or not one believes that aircraft coming off the production lines at Boeing and Airbus today are better than those that came off these lines forty years ago. The term “better” encompasses technology in its many forms, including engineering and manufacturing. Are they built better and are their engineering designs better? As an engineer, I believe that today’s technology is significantly better than it was in 1980. If not, then we are truly lost from the point of view of academia. I think that each year produces better engineers and better metallurgists, for example. I have both children and grandchildren, and I need to believe that we are getting better at what we do. (I dislike today’s music.) My engineering degree is from Caltech Pasadena, and I believe that today’s Caltech graduates are better engineers that I was at the same stage of life and education. I simply have to believe that. And we are routinely doing things that were impossible when I was younger, such as landing on Mars. (But we did land on the Moon.) Mars if more difficult. The B767 was a great design and a great aircraft. But it is way too old. Go back to the question about whether or not Boeing and Airbus make better aircraft than they did in 1980. That’s the central question. If you think that they do not, then please explain why not. Why do you think that we have stagnated technologically? I might add that it is self-defeating to operate aircraft that are far too old from a life-limit point of view. We need to continue to renew our “metal” on a continuous basis. Bob Ditchey From: Robert Ditchey via Mifnet <[email protected] <mailto:[email protected]> > Sent: Sunday, February 22, 2026 2:33 PM To: [email protected] <mailto:[email protected]> Cc: 'Dan Solon' <[email protected] <mailto:[email protected]> >; [email protected] <mailto:[email protected]> Subject: [Mifnet 🛰 75498] Re: we miss the 757 Daniel The B757 and B767 were launched in 1983. That was an entire generation before today’s technology. Perhaps before some of your readers were born. Both aircraft reflect aeronautical engineering concepts of 1970 and before. That time lapse is meaningful, both from an economic point of view and an engineering point of view. I would opine that the DC3 was a great aircraft in its day and was a money-maker. But it is just way too old. So are the 757 and 767. Way too old. I am not all that happy putting my family on board a B767. It is an antique by any measure. Your harsh words for management are not necessary for polite and courteous conversation. I suggest being more diplomatic. Try harder. It can be done. Bob Ditchey From: Dan Solon via Mifnet <[email protected] <mailto:[email protected]> > Sent: Sunday, February 22, 2026 2:17 PM To: [email protected] <mailto:[email protected]> Cc: Dan Solon <[email protected] <mailto:[email protected]> > Subject: [Mifnet 🛰 75496] Re: we miss the 757 Jack, You would also still be seeing AA 757s (and 767s) if our former employer had not been captured by intellectually challenged management who shoulda stuck to running America West or, at the most, USAir. Daniel Solon Fuming from the sidelines, but not using the "m" word, to avoid ruffling feathers among our vallued fellow members On Sun, Feb 22, 2026 at 8:52 PM Jack Keady via Mifnet <[email protected] <mailto:[email protected]> > wrote: keady - i still see DL and UA 757s at LAX _____ <https://substack.com/redirect/44fb56f0-bef5-425d-911f-6d924f2dbea5?j=eyJ1IjoiNnpjOGgifQ.kktVkSHgDoIBUrBMveQZgB0T6d_b4N7Ucc4b0A4DrvQ> <https://substack.com/redirect/1b391c7b-1da6-46ac-8bdc-26838626afdb?j=eyJ1IjoiNnpjOGgifQ.kktVkSHgDoIBUrBMveQZgB0T6d_b4N7Ucc4b0A4DrvQ> History <https://substack.com/redirect/44fb56f0-bef5-425d-911f-6d924f2dbea5?j=eyJ1IjoiNnpjOGgifQ.kktVkSHgDoIBUrBMveQZgB0T6d_b4N7Ucc4b0A4DrvQ> 2/19/1982: Maiden Flight of the Boeing 757 <https://substack.com/redirect/44fb56f0-bef5-425d-911f-6d924f2dbea5?j=eyJ1IjoiNnpjOGgifQ.kktVkSHgDoIBUrBMveQZgB0T6d_b4N7Ucc4b0A4DrvQ> Today, in 1982, the prototype Boeing 757 (N757A) took to the skies for the first time from Renton Municipal Airport. -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Revised: 20250507 You are receiving The Mifnet because you requested to join this list. 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