Boeing had an advantage in the late 1940s and the 1950s when passenger airliners were first changing from piston-engines to jet engines. The company had already developed the B-47and B-52 bombers, which were powered by jet engines.

By 1954, when the Strategic Air Command needed to upgrade their fleet of piston-engine tanker aircraft used for air-to-air refuelling, it was Boeing that had the expertise to produce the KC-97 tanker using jet engines.

The KC-97 was then easily converted to the 707 series of jet airliners.

By 1968, the first 737s were being used by commercial airlines. They have been continuously improved used the latest technology ever since.