According to ch-aviation data, Delta Air Lines was the original operator of this aircraft after placing an order in November 1978 and receiving delivery in October 1982. Initially registered as N103DA, it flew for Delta until December 2003 before being acquired by ABX Air in early 2007 and converted to a freighter configuration. After ABX Air operated it until March 2010 and Amerijet International took over for a period, Raya Airways began flying this aircraft in June 2020.
Other aging Boeing 767s remain active primarily with cargo operators. Raya Airways also operates another old model—9M-RXE—which is just slightly younger at nearly 43 years old and was acquired by the airline in April 2025. ABX Air manages several other Boeing 767-200 freighters over four decades old. Additional older models are flown by Astral Aviation and Weststar Aviation Services; Jordan Aviation continues to use a nearly four-decade-old passenger-configured model.
The development of the Boeing 767 began after success with the larger Boeing 747 led to studies for new twin-aisle designs known initially as the “7X7 program.” By mid-1970s planning focused on a smaller fuselage with two engines. In early 1978, expansion of Boeing’s Everett factory was announced to support production of what became designated as the Boeing 767 later that year.
United Airlines launched the program with an order for thirty aircraft; American Airlines and Delta followed with orders totaling fifty more units. Production involved several suppliers including Fuji Heavy Industries and Kawasaki Heavy Industries.
The first prototype left Everett’s facility on August 4, 1981; its maiden flight occurred one month later. The type received certification from both U.S. and U.K authorities by July of the following year. United Airlines received its first delivery soon after; regular service began on September 8, flying between Chicago O’Hare International Airport (ORD) and Denver International Airport (DEN).
Boeing introduced several variants over time:
- The original -200 entered service in September 1982,
- The -200ER arrived two years later,
- The -300 followed in September 1986,
- The -300ER appeared by March 1988,
- And finally, the largest variant—the -400ER—entered service in August 2000.
Typical seating ranged from about 224 passengers for earlier versions up to around 304 passengers for later ones.
The design features include swept wings optimized for cruising at Mach 0.80 using composite materials on certain surfaces to reduce weight. Engine options originally included Pratt & Whitney JT9D or PW4000 models or General Electric CF6 engines capable of producing over 60,000 pounds of thrust depending on variant.
Performance specifications for early models like the -200 include:
- Length: about 159 feet
- Wingspan: roughly 156 feet
- Maximum takeoff weight: up to 315,000 pounds
- Typical cruise speed: approximately 528 miles per hour
- Range: around 3,900 nautical miles
While more than 1,300 units have been built since launch—with just over 800 still active today—production is now limited mainly to military tankers (KC-46) and freighter versions fulfilling orders from companies such as FedEx Express and UPS.
FedEx Express currently operates the largest fleet of Boeing 767s with almost 150 aircraft; UPS follows closely behind while Amazon Air uses more than fifty units primarily for cargo transport purposes.
Delta Air Lines remains one of the most prominent commercial operators alongside United Airlines, Japan Airlines, All Nippon Airways (ANA), Azur Air among others.
Production of new civilian variants is expected to end by late 2027 once current orders are fulfilled.
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