N757HW: Honeywell's 757 with a third engine on its side
An early 757 that carries test engines on a pylon bolted to the front of the fuselage.
Where it is right now
Loading live data…- N757HW…
Positions come from volunteer ADS-B receivers, so an aircraft over the ocean or away from receivers can be flying and still show as not heard.
Honeywell's 757 is the airliner spotters do a double take at: a Boeing 757 with a stubby pylon sticking out of the right side of the fuselage ahead of the wing, sometimes with a small jet engine hanging from it. N757HW is one of the earliest 757s built, delivered to Eastern Air Lines in the 1980s, and Honeywell has flown it from Phoenix since 2005 as a laboratory for the engines, cockpits, weather radars and satellite connectivity it sells to the aircraft industry. It flies test sorties over Arizona and demonstration tours around the world, and it is the only 757 that looks like this.
At a glance
- What it is
- Boeing 757-225, an early-production 757 built for Eastern Air Lines
- With Honeywell since
- 2005; the test pylon was added in 2008
- Job
- Flying testbed for Honeywell engines, avionics, radar and connectivity
- Base
- Honeywell Flight Test, Phoenix Sky Harbor
- The pylon
- A third-engine mount on the right forward fuselage for engines up to business-jet size
- Transponder address
- AA34CE
An engine where no engine should be
Honeywell builds the engines on many business jets, from the TFE731 on Learjets and Falcons to the HTF7000 on the Challenger 350 and Gulfstream G280, and it needs to fly them before customers do. Rather than replace one of the 757's own Rolls-Royce RB211s, which are far larger than anything Honeywell makes, the company fitted a pylon to the right side of the forward fuselage in 2008 so a business-jet engine can run in clean air ahead of the wing with the whole cabin of instruments behind it. The pylon is strong enough that the test engine's thrust and weight hardly disturb the aircraft, and when no engine is fitted the aircraft flies with the bare pylon, which looks even stranger.
The same aircraft tests Honeywell's other products: the cockpits and flight management systems it supplies to Gulfstream, Dassault, Embraer and Boeing, its IntuVue weather radar, and the satellite antennas behind in-flight Wi-Fi, which is why the roof sometimes carries an extra fairing.
A 1980s airliner with a long second life
The 757 was Eastern Air Lines' airplane first; Eastern launched the type in 1983, and N757HW was one of its early 757-225s. After Eastern's collapse the aircraft passed through other hands before Honeywell bought it in 2005 to replace a smaller testbed. Keeping a forty-year-old 757 airworthy for test work is cheaper than a new airplane and gives Honeywell a large, fast platform that can reach 42,000 feet with tons of equipment aboard. Honeywell's flight test department is at Phoenix Sky Harbor, and the aircraft is a regular sight there, as well as at airshows and on sales tours to Europe, the Middle East and Asia.
How to recognize it
A 757-200 in Honeywell's red-and-white scheme with the third-engine pylon on the right side of the nose section, ahead of the wing and just behind the forward door. If an engine is fitted it looks absurdly small next to the RB211s under the wings. On the tracker it broadcasts N757HW with Honeywell callsigns and flies test patterns over Arizona or long transits on demonstration tours.
Questions
Why does Honeywell's 757 have an engine on its nose?
The pylon on the forward fuselage carries business-jet engines under test, such as the HTF7000 and TFE731, in clean airflow ahead of the wing. It was fitted in 2008 and is unique to this aircraft.
Is N757HW an old aircraft?
Yes. It is an early 757-225 built for Eastern Air Lines in the 1980s, which makes it one of the oldest 757s still flying. Honeywell has operated it since 2005.
Where is it based?
At Phoenix Sky Harbor in Arizona, home of Honeywell's flight test operation, with regular trips to airshows and customer demonstrations worldwide.
Sources
- Honeywell Aerospace: Boeing 757 flying testbed program
- FAA registry: N757HW (Boeing 757-225)
- Wikipedia: Boeing 757 (testbeds), Honeywell Aerospace