航空传奇:波音公司交付第7500架737飞机
In the time it takes you to read this story, more than 600 Boeing 737s will have landed or taken off, somewhere in the world.
本周交付的第7500架波音737飞机驶出西雅图波音公司的油漆车间This week, Boeing delievered its 7,500th 737, to MAlaysia-based Malindo Air. There are a further 3,100 orders for 737s, making it the most commercially successful air liner in history.
在你阅读这篇文章的短短时间里，在世界各地的机场里就会有超过600架的波音737飞机在起降。Boeing's 737 output single-handedly outnumbers the entire Airbus fleet. And the plane recently got a new engine and a new "Sky Interior."
本星期波音公司向总部在马来西亚的马印航空公司交付了该公司生产的第7500架波音737飞机。目前波音公司还持有3100架737飞机的订单，使该飞机成为史上最成功的商用飞机。
The hype surrounding Boeing's workhorse can't compare to that of the Airbus A380 (the largest jet ever built) or the Boeing 747-8 (the longest) or the Boeing 787 (the most high-tech).
波音公司仅737飞机单一型号的产量就超过了空客飞机全部型号加在一起的产量。最近737飞机又有了新引擎和被称为“天空内饰”的新内饰。It's not glamorous, it's not eccentric, and it's often overshadowed by its bigger, sparklier peers. But the 737's success lies in its ability to continually reinvent itself.
737是波音公司生产的一种结实耐用的飞机，用在737飞机上的宣传广告不多，与对空客A380（迄今为止最大的喷气飞机），波音747（世界上最长的飞机）或波音787（最高科技的飞机）的大肆宣传不可同日而语。The original series
早期的型号系列The first 737 -- the 100 model -- entered service in February 1968. With a typical two-class seating capacity of 85 and a range of only 2,850 kilometers, the 737-100 wasn't terribly popular.
第一架737飞机——100型——于1968年2月投入营运，典型的座舱布置为两个等级85座，航程仅为2850公里。737-100飞机卖得不是很好。Launched simultaneously, however, was the 200 model. With slight increases in length and fuel capacity, the 200 could carry 97 passengers up to 3,500 kilometers on roughly the same amount of fuel. A far better proposition for airlines, Boeing sold 1,114 of the 200 model, compared with just 30 of its 100s.
737-200型飞机几乎与100型同时推出，这架飞机的机身长度和燃油容量略有增加，在用几乎相同燃料的情况下可以载客97人，航程增加到3500公里，对于航空公司而言737-200飞机是更好的选择。波音卖出了1140架737-200，相比之下737-100只售出了30架。Superseding the 737-200 was the 200 Advanced, with technological improvements to thrust-reversal, flaps and two larger, more fuel-efficient engines, giving operators yet another 15 percent increase in payload and range.
替代737-200飞机的是200 Advanced（200先进型），这个型号的飞机对反冲、襟翼做了技术改进，使用了两个更大，更省油的引擎，为营运商增加了15%的载荷和航程。The classic era
经典系列时代In the early 1980s, Boeing completed its first major overhaul of the jet, with the release of three new models in what is now called the “Classic” series. The updated aircraft offered more power, more range, more seats and a shiny, new, digital flight deck.
在1980年代初期，波音公司完成了对于喷气飞机的第一次大整合并且发布了三种新型号的飞机，这些型号的飞机如今被称为“经典”系列。所有改进过的飞机有更强劲的动力，更长的航程，更多的座位，还有新的数码飞行甲板。The 737 Classics were up to 36.5 meters long, 20 percent longer than the popular 737-200, and had a range of 4,200 kilometers or more with 25 percent better fuel efficiency.
经典系列的737飞机长度增加到了36.5米，比737-200飞机增加了20%，航程为4200公里，燃油效率提高了25%。The catch for the new, more-powerful jets was that they were too big to fit on the wings, resulting in a redesign into a shape aptly dubbed the “hamster pouch.” Even so, the jets still had an uncomfortably shallow 46 centimeter ground clearance.
这架动力强劲的新飞机给人的感觉是机身太大以至与机翼不相匹配，结果设计师们进行了重新设计，使机身巧妙地安放在一个“仓鼠车”上。即便如此，这架飞机仍只有较低的46厘米地面净空，给人的感觉不太舒服。The Classics also inherited the then-new 757's funky new interior. All together, 1,988 Boeing 737-300s, -400s and -500s were built.
经典系列的737飞机也沿用了当时尚属新机型的757飞机的时髦内饰。波音公司一共生产了1988架737-300、737-400、737-500型号的飞机。
