Boeing 707 lb (57.8 kN) with water injection. Maximum takeoff weight was 247,000 lb and first flight was on December 20, 1957. Major orders were the launch order for 20 707-121 aircraft by Pan Am and an American Airlines order for 30 707-123 aircraft. The first revenue flight was on October 26, 1958; 56 were built, plus seven short-bodied −138s; the last −120 was delivered to Western in May 1960. The 707-138 was a −120 with a fuselage 10 ft shorter than the others, with 5 ft (three frames) removed ahead and behind the wing, giving increased range. Maximum takeoff weight was
Air Zimbabwe 1967, Air Rhodesia inherited CAAC operations, as well as a fleet of Boeing, DC-3 and Viscount aircraft. It became the short-lived "Air Zimbabwe Rhodesia" in 1978, and finally "Air Zimbabwe" in April 1980 when the Republic of Zimbabwe was formed. Services connecting Harare with South Africa (Durban and Johannesburg) had been operated before the country gained its independence. Scheduled services began on to London-Gatwick. The company had leased a Boeing 707 from South African Airways until , when three Boeing 707-320Bs were bought from Lufthansa. That year, flights to Frankfurt were inaugurated. The airline recorded a ZWL 330,000 (£220,000) profit