Boeing 757 Finally Leaves UK Passenger Service

The last Boeing 757 used by a passenger airline in the UK has been retired. It served continuously for nearly 40 years.

Jet2 is a charter and package holiday operator in the United Kingdom. It has retired its last Boeing 757-200. This brings to an end a long history of the type in the UK.

The Boeing 757 has been a mainstay of the charter operators here since the late 1980’s.

I have memories of flying on them to the Canary Islands with my parents in the mid-to-late 90’s. We flew with airlines like Airtours and Britannia.

My most memorable trip on a 757 was from Manchester to Orlando. Yet, we made a fueling stop in Bangor, Maine in 1996.

We flew with Airtours. Due to fog, we experienced a 24-hour delay on the outbound flight. We ended up in the Britannia hotel in Stockport!

Flying to America on the Boeing 757 is one thing, but flying to Lanzarote, Fuerteventura and Gran Canaria on the type of plane was just as amazing.

On one flight, back when it was allowed, the pilots invited me to the flight deck for landing.  As a 15 year-old, the experience was exillerating.  It is a memory that I will never forget!

One of the sad factors of the 757’s life, despite it’s exceptional rapport with pilots and crew, was that Boeing decided not to continue development of the model.  It instead focussed on it’s Boeing 737-Max range, which ended up nearly bankrupting the company.

If Boeing had opted to develop the 757 further, who knows? We all might still be enjoying this marvel of aviation for generations to come.  But it wasn’t destined to be, sadly.

Regardless, I’ve flown many hours on the type, and will miss the “Jaguar of the Skies” immensely.

(Video courtesy Think Planes/YouTube)