2004 - Boeing 777-200ER

Westwind found itself at the turn of the millennium in need of a worthy flagship to finish the job of retiring its DC-10 fleet, clean up after the MD-11's pathetic performance, and expand the carrier's horizons. Boeing's 767 had proved itself as a reliable workhorse across the Pacific, and given their experience with the company's long haul products it didn't take much haggling for Westwind to sign off on what would be it's most expensive aircraft order ever. The 777-200ER allowed Westwind to inaugurate direct flights further into Asia than was ever previously possible with its fleet. New routes to new centers of Asian economic development like Singapore and Kuala Lumpur were profitable and prestigious enterprises. Pundits at the time warned that with the new aircraft Westwind was overexpanding its international network without a enough domestic flights to back the expansion up. However, these pundits at least appeared to be largely wrong as Westwind's profits maintained steady and stock prices remained rock solid during the 777 roll out in the late 1990s despite the large debt the airline was acquiring. All 30 of the 777 fleet continued in service with Westwind until the carrier's demise and continue to serve with Valiant today. Even though the seating configurations have changed, the laserdisk video systems are gone, and the aircraft are no longer named after rivers, astute modern passengers will recognize these Boeing behemoths from when they were the Prides of the Pacific.