The Boeing 737: Britain's Favourite Aeroplane
From Heathrow to Edinburgh, the 737 has carried more British passengers than any other jet in history
By Michael Sorsky
The Workhorse of British Skies
Ask any frequent flyer in Britain which aircraft they have spent the most time aboard, and the answer is almost always the same: the Boeing 737. Since its introduction to British routes in the late 1960s, this narrow-body jet has become as familiar a sight at UK airports as the red telephone box or the black cab.
From the short hop between London Gatwick and Edinburgh to the sun-soaked runs to Malaga and Tenerife, the 737 has carried hundreds of millions of British passengers. It is the backbone of easyJet's fleet, a mainstay for Ryanair, and has served British Airways, Monarch, and dozens of charter carriers over the decades.
A Brief History of the 737
Boeing launched the 737 programme in 1964 as a short-haul companion to the larger 707 and 727. The prototype first flew on 9 April 1967, and the type entered commercial service with Lufthansa in February 1968. British operators were quick to follow: British Caledonian placed early orders, and the aircraft soon became a fixture at Gatwick.
The original 737-100 and 737-200 variants were relatively compact, seating around 85 to 130 passengers. They were designed for short runways and high-frequency operations — exactly the kind of flying that suited Britain's regional airports and the emerging package-holiday market of the 1970s.
Boeing has continuously evolved the design across four generations. The Classic series (737-300/400/500) arrived in the 1980s with more powerful CFM56 engines and improved fuel efficiency. The Next Generation series (737-600/700/800/900) followed in the 1990s and remains the most common variant in British skies today. The 737 MAX, the fourth generation, entered service in 2017 before a worldwide grounding in 2019 following two fatal accidents; it returned to service in 2020 after extensive modifications.
The 737 and British Aviation
easyJet
Europe's largest 737 operator by passenger numbers, easyJet flies the 737-700 and 737-800 from bases at Gatwick, Luton, Bristol, Edinburgh, and Manchester. The airline has operated over 300 737s and carried billions of passengers since its founding in 1995.
Ryanair
Although an Irish carrier, Ryanair is the dominant airline at many UK airports and operates one of the world's largest 737 fleets — over 500 aircraft. Its 737-800s are a constant presence at Stansted, Liverpool, Edinburgh, and Glasgow.
British Airways
BA operated the 737-200 and later the 737-400 on domestic and European routes for many years. The type served Heathrow and Gatwick until BA transitioned to the Airbus A319 and A320 family in the early 2000s.
Monarch Airlines
The beloved British charter carrier flew 737-300s and 737-400s on holiday routes to the Mediterranean and Canary Islands from the 1980s until its collapse in 2017. For a generation of British holidaymakers, the Monarch 737 was the gateway to sunshine.
Know Your 737s
| Variant | In service | Seats |
|---|---|---|
| 737-200 | 1968–1988 | 97–130 |
| 737-300 Classic | 1984–1999 | 128–149 |
| 737-400 Classic | 1988–2000 | 146–168 |
| 737-800 NG | 1998–present | 162–189 |
| 737 MAX 8 | 2017–present | 162–178 |
737 Facts Worth Knowing
The 737 is the best-selling commercial jetliner in history, with over 10,000 aircraft delivered and thousands more on order.
At any given moment, approximately 1,250 Boeing 737s are airborne somewhere in the world — one takes off or lands every 1.5 seconds.
The 737's fuselage cross-section is the same as the original 707 from 1958, a design decision made to save tooling costs that has endured for over 60 years.
easyJet's 737 fleet has collectively flown enough miles to reach the moon and back more than 10,000 times.
The 737-200 was so short it could be loaded without steps at many regional airports — ground crew simply walked up to the door.
Spotting the 737 at UK Airports
If you want to see 737s in action, Gatwick's South Terminal viewing area is one of the best spots in Britain. easyJet's orange-and-white jets queue up in their dozens on busy summer mornings, a testament to the type's dominance on European leisure routes.
Stansted is Ryanair's primary UK hub, and the 737-800s there operate with remarkable frequency — at peak times, one departs every few minutes. The airport's single terminal makes it easy to watch the action from the departure lounge.
For something more atmospheric, Edinburgh Airport offers views of 737s against the backdrop of Arthur's Seat and the Pentland Hills. On a clear winter morning, few aviation sights in Britain are more dramatic.
An Enduring Icon
The Boeing 737 has been part of British aviation for nearly six decades. It has carried us on our first package holidays, our city breaks, our business trips, and our journeys home. It is not glamorous in the way that Concorde was, nor historic in the way that the Spitfire is — but for sheer, democratic, everyday aviation, nothing comes close.
The next time you settle into a narrow seat at 35,000 feet somewhere over the English Channel, glance at the winglet outside your window. Chances are you are aboard a 737 — and you are in very good company.
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