TUI Airways (UK) retires final B767s
31 October 2023 marks the end of an era in the UK, as it saw the final passenger flight of a TUI Airways Boeing B767-300ER. The honour of the last flight goes to G-OBYF (28208), which flew its last flight from Heraklion to Manchester. On 1 November 2023, it was ferried to Istanbul where it will be converted into a freighter. The same will happen with the airline's other remaining B767-300ER, G-OBYK (29617), which flew its last passenger flight on 28 October 2023 and will soon be ferried from Manchester to Istanbul as well.
The history of the airline operating the B767 goes back all the way to the era of Britannia Airways. Back in 1984, it took delivery of its first B767-200 and would operate a total of 25 B767s, including G-OBYF, which joined the fleet in March 2004. It continued to serve the carrier when it was rebranded into Thomson Airways and later Thomsonfly and TUI Airways. In total, TUI Airways itself operated five different B767-300ERs.
TUI Airways UK's fleet now consists of thirty B737-800s, eighteen B737-8s, eight B787-8s, and five B787-9s.
Photo by Ton Jochems.