The Boeing 707 was Boeing’s first jet airliner, entering commercial service in 1958.
The aircraft grew from Boeing’s Model 367-80 prototype, often called the Dash 80. That prototype first flew in 1954 and demonstrated the swept-wing, four-engine configuration that would define the company’s early jet transports.
Pan American World Airways inaugurated Boeing 707 passenger service on October 26, 1958, flying from New York to Paris. The aircraft greatly reduced journey times compared with piston-powered airliners and helped make regular intercontinental jet travel practical.
The 707 was also sold as the military C-135 family’s design basis, although the military variants differed in important ways. It is sometimes confused with the Douglas DC-8, another early American jet airliner, but the 707 was Boeing’s first production jetliner.