Boeing 707 Douglas competition, Boeing soon realized this would not provide a viable payload, so it widened the fuselage to to allow five-abreast seating and use of the KC-135's tooling. Douglas Aircraft had launched its DC-8 with a fuselage width of . The airlines liked the extra space and six-abreast seating, so Boeing increased the 707's width again to compete, this time to . The first flight of the first-production 707-120 took place on December 20, 1957, and FAA certification followed on September 18, 1958. Both test pilots Joseph John "Tym" Tymczyszyn and James R. Gannett were awarded the first Iven C.
1977 British Airtours Boeing 707 crash trainee first officer took 2–3 seconds. After investigating the crash for one year and four months, the AAIB published its final report in September 1978, stating the probable cause of the accident: "A loss of control which resulted from a delay in taking full corrective action during a simulated outboard engine failure exercise during take-off." G-APFK was damaged beyond repair in the accident and fire. It was written off in November 1978 and scrapped in 1979. 1977 British Airtours Boeing 707 crash On 17 March 1977 a British Airtours Boeing 707 being used for pilot training crashed and caught fire