Like many iconic airlines of the past Braniff is one I really wish was still around. Braniff started its journey in 1928 by a (World War I) aviator named Paul Braniff and his brother Thomas Braniff. Their first route was between Oklahoma City and Tulsa operating a Stinson SB-1 Detroiter, that only carried 5 passengers.
The airline continued to grow, re-organize and acquire other airlines until its unfortunate shutdown in November 1989. During its 60 years Braniff flew over 420 planes consisting of 23 different types. Still today there are some ex-Braniff aircraft flying around the globe.
Starting with the oldest currently in service the Douglas DC-3 tops the list. Braniff had a fleet of 54 Douglas DC-3 (C-47) aircraft. During WWII Braniff used the majority of these for transporting troops and cargo. After the war many of these were returned to service with Braniff and became a workhorse of their fleet.
Sadly, today there appears to be only one airworthy ex-Braniff DC-3 and it was last seen flying in 2019 around Cape Cod, Massachusetts.
- Douglas DC-3A (1940) currently N61981 (#2216) Braniff = N25685
The Jet Age
Next up is the Douglas DC-8 (quad-jet). Braniff had 21 of these planes and used them mostly for long-haul routes into South America.
Currently the only ex-Braniff DC-8 still flying is owned by NASA and regularly flies out of Palmdale, California.
- Douglas DC-8-72 (1969) currently N817NA (#46082) Braniff = N801BN
Braniff flew 19 Boeing 707s but there is only one of these still flying. The one remaining is the infamous 707 that was purchased in 1989 by John Travolta and named Jett Clipper Ella after his children with a nod to Pan Am.
In 2017 this airplane was donated to the Historical Aircraft Restoration Society and is currently stored in Georgia (KBQK). There are plans to return this airplane to Australia but COVID and other things have delayed this from happening.
- Boeing 707-138B (1964) currently N707JT (#18740) Braniff = N108BN
Braniff also operated the popular Boeing 727 and at its peak had around 130 of these aircraft. They flew both the 100 and 200 series, as well as a combo cargo version.
There are currently two known ex-Braniff 727s that are still flying.
- Boeing 727-227 (1973) currently N422BN (#20735)
- Boeing 727-227 (1976) currently N794AJ (#21243) Braniff = N442BN
After Braniff closed its doors most of the Braniff 727 were transferred to FedEx for cargo operations. But there were some others that flew for the airlines including with American Airlines and Delta Airlines. Those aircraft have all been retired.
Braniff III: A Couple Jets Soldier On
Braniff III was the final attempt to restart the iconic airline’s name. It was riddled with issues and did not succeed. Before their shutdown in 1989 Braniff took delivery of 5 (brand new) Airbus A320s.
These A320s were all transferred to America West Airlines (AWE) and 2 are currently still in service with Lift Airlines (GBB) in South Africa.
- Airbus A320-231 (1989) currently ZS-GAR (#053) Braniff = N901BN
- Airbus A320-231 (1989) currently ZS-GAL (#064) Braniff = N905BN
Other Notables
This article would not be complete if it did not mention some of the other cool aircraft that Braniff flew over its year. Some of them have been preserved so you can still see them.
Braniff became part The “Super Sonic” Transport (SST) days with an arrangement they made with Air France and British Airways offering Concorde service from Dallas to Washington DC. For about 1 year, they flew 9 of these aircraft, but were limited to subsonic speeds (below Mach 1) while transiting the United States. Today, there are 8 of these aircraft preserved at various locations around the globe.
Braniff also flew the Boeing 747 (100, 200 and SP series) currently none appear to be flying they are stored and still intact. They include: N747A (#21992) and A4O-SO (#21785)
Although Braniff is sadly not flying anymore there are lots of fans and memorabilia to keep the airline alive. One place to go back in time is the Braniff International website. Also, on Twitter checkout the https://twitter.com/BraniffIntl account for a great collections of photos. Last, but not least there are also lots of cool collectibles to be found on the internet and a dedicated Braniff Boutique to purchase Braniff items!
Realtime view of the planes mentioned: https://globe.adsbexchange.com/…
