Scale: 1/100
Wingspan: 15"
Length: 19"
Code: KB757AWTR

In the 1960s, the Boeing 727 had become the best-selling jetliner produced to date, with over 1,000 sales.  The 727 was a trijet narrow-body airliner which operated short-to-medium routes, and had found particular success in the U.S. domestic airline market.  By the 1970s, Boeing was considering plans to improve on the design of its most popular 727 variant, the 189-seat 727-200.  Two approaches were considered: a stretched 727-300, and a new development study, code-named 7N7.  Along with a parallel development effort code-named 7X7, these studies aimed to take advantage of new materials and propulsion advances in the civil aerospace industry.  The 7N7 was planned as a narrow-body twinjet, while the 7X7, which eventually became the 767, was planned as a mid-size wide-body airliner.  The 727-300 never received enough interest from the airlines to proceed, as the 7N7 came to the forefront of 727 replacement considerations.  Airlines were particularly interested in the new engine technology, reduced weight, improved aerodynamics, and reduced operating cost promised by the 7N7 concept.

In 1978, Boeing's 7N7 studies concentrated on two variants: a 7N7-100 with seating for 160, and a 7N7-200 with capacity for over 180 seats.The 7N7 studies retained the T-tail configuration of the 727 along with its single-aisle, narrow-body layout, while adding an advanced aft-loaded wing and new engines. The narrow-body configuration was touted as offering the lowest fuel burn per passenger-kilometer of any jetliner.[4] On August 31, 1978, the 7N7 received its first airline commitments when British Airways and Eastern Airlines announced launch orders totaling 40 aircraft for the -200 version. These orders were formally signed in March 1979, at which time Boeing formally designated its new twinjet as the 757. The shorter -100 development, which failed to attract any orders, was dropped, with its role eventually taken by the 737-300 and 737-400.