Delta Air Lines  Boeing 737-347   N306WA                      (c/n  23347)

                                    

                                        The 300 series Boeing 737 represented the first major stretch of the design, and quite a stretch it
                                        was, too.  Forty-four inches were added forward of the wing and five feet aft.  To compensate for
                                        this added side area a dorsal fin was added and the wing tips were extended.  Two 22,100 lb s.t.
                                        CFM56-3B-2 turbofans in oval section nacelles set forward of the wing provided power.  All of
                                        these changes are admirably illustrated in this side view by Michael McLauchlan taken at LAX in
                                        2003.
                                        In 1987 Delta took over Western Air Lines (for whom I had worked in the 1950s and 60s) and
                                        absorbed its large hubs at Los Angeles and Salt Lake City.  The acquisition made Delta the world's
                                        fifth largest carrier.  N306WA was a former Western Airlines machine.