 From the mid-1970s the Boeing 737-200 Advanced model became the backbone of the fleets of the three major Brasilian airlines - VARIG, Cruzeiro do Sul and VASP. Only Transbrasil resisted the temptations of the baby Boeing - opting for BAC One-Elevens and then 727s instead. VARIG and Cruzeiro had become inextricably linked in 1975 and together they used the marketing name 'Super Advanced 737' to promote their Fat Alberts.
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 Following the breakup of the USSR various Aeroflot directorates gained their independence and spawned a wide variety of successor airlines, both inside Russia and within the newly independent republics. Kaliningrad found itself in an in-between space whereby it no longer bordered Russia but was still part of it. This enabled opportunity but also risk, which eventually didn't pay off for the Oblast's airline KD Avia.
 The glory of the Pan Am name made it almost inevitable that it would return following the original's demise. Interestingly the second incarnation had more in common with another fallen giant, but the mid-90s was a challenging period to start an airline, especially one competing in the cut-throat Northeast-Florida market. The initial bright shoots of Pan Am II faded quickly and a merger with another low-cost airline could not stabilise the situation enough to stop Pan Am II from being a short-lived footnote in the history of the once glorious name of Pan Am.
 I am a major fan not only of Chinese airlines but also obscure airlines so an obscure Chinese airline is surely too good to pass up, especially when it has been represented in 400 scale twice by, that other lover of obscure airliners, Aeroclassics. Air Great Wall was one of many small airlines that appeared after the decentralisation of the Chinese air carrier market, but although some smaller carriers would grow into majors many others were swallowed up by the big three.
Pan Am throughout its history operated a diverse and expansive route network that covered most of the globe at one time or another. It is renowned for its operations with flying boats, Stratocruisers, 707s and 747s but operated a variety of much shorter ranged aircraft as well, especially on the vital Internal German Services from West Berlin. One of these types was the 737-200, which came to Pan Am during a difficult period.
The success of the 737 has been immense but at the time of its development it had a mountain to climb. It would be United Airlines, more than any other, that Boeing has to thank for getting the type past its rough early years to where it is today and the ‘Fat Little Ugly Fella’ i.e. FLUF certainly put in the hard yards over the years for United.
Nothing has changed the face of aviation in the last 25 years as much as the advent of low-cost carriers. Pioneered in the US, with PSA and Southwest, it wasn’t until the advent of the internet that the premise could really take-off. Combined with deregulation of the EU area it has been Europe that has led the transformation, and of course it is Ryanair and Easyjet that have dominated the continent.
The Pacific islands have a proud history of colourful flag carriers, however the majority of the region’s airlines have struggled with their remoteness, the limited investment capability of their home nations and competition from Australia and New Zealand. Polynesian Airlines’ history illustrates all three aspects during its history.
 Hainan Airlines had been the first airline in China to operate the next generation series 737-800 and given that they began to colour their older series 300s with special schemes it is no surprise that they also chose the newer 800s to gain some colour.
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AuthorI'm Richard Stretton: a fan of classic airliners and airlines who enjoys exploring their history through my collection of die-cast airliners. If you enjoy the site please donate whatever you can to help keep it running: Archives
January 2026
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