Western Air Lines  Boeing 737-247  N4517W             (c/n  19614)

                                 

                                      The above image is one of the few Kodacolor shots I took in the late 1960s.  This shot of one of
                                      the first batch of 737s (the so called Fat Albert) delivered to Western, was taken at John Wayne
                                      (Orange County) Airport in 1969.  The 737 was the aircraft of choice to for the carrier's short haul
                                      routes.   Including the series 300s, they eventually operated almost 70 of them at one time or another.
                                      This aircraft was sold to Air California in 1981 and hence was not one of the ones picked up by
                                      Delta Air Lines in 1987 when that carrier absorbed Western in 1987.  Between the time the 737s
                                      were delivered and the takeover, they went through at least two livery changes.  Immediately below
                                      is the one adopted in the late 1970s, whilst the bottom image illustrates Western's final treatment,
                                      sans white top, prevalent in the mid 1980s.   The image of N4509W is courtesy of the  Brian Peters
                                      collection and was taken at San Jose in June of 1985, whilst the bottom photograph showing N4516W
                                      taxiing past the Marriott Hotel at LAX is from Ellis Chernoff and was shot just before the takeover
                                      early in 1987.  The lighting effect is making the cheat line appear more orange than it really was.

                                   Boeing 737-247  N4509W    (c/n   19606)                                 

                                 

                                        Boeing 737-247  N4616W                     (c/n   19613)
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