The Two Abandoned Boeing 737-200s at Subic International Airport

I recently went to Subic International Airport to do a shoot with Topflite Academy for their Women’s Month celebration, recognizing their women pilots. While I was somewhat prepared for the content I would be posting, I really didn’t anticipate that I would be posting extra content beyond the topic of Women’s Month. This was after I spotted two classic Boeing 737-200s left abandoned on the ramp at Subic.

It’s rare for me to get up close to the world’s most popular narrowbody aircraft, especially its classic version. But seeing these two abandoned Boeing 737-200s up close gave me mixed feelings. First, I felt excitement at seeing these planes and getting close to them once again, especially as an aviation enthusiast like myself. At the same time, it made me somewhat sad to see these two planes just left rotting in Subic when they could have been repurposed for something else, like a restaurant, a lounge, or any repurposed aircraft.

This got me wondering about the stories behind these two planes. One has the Pacific Pearl Airways livery, and the other is painted in PhilAir livery, airlines which seemed unfamiliar to me. Honestly, I didn’t even know these two airlines existed (or did they?) until I saw these two planes.

RP-C8777

The first abandoned Boeing 737-200 is registered with Pacific Pearl Airways, most likely a Philippine airline that never really saw “action” in the skies. This plane was a former Delta aircraft, carrying the registry N316DL, and was delivered to the airline in 1984. Throughout its life, the aircraft went through three airlines: first with Delta, then Pacific Pearl in 2007. However, it’s noted that Aviasta was supposed to acquire the aircraft in 2019, but until now, the frame is still in Subic. So, I have no idea what happened to the deal, but it seems like the plane may remain in Subic longer.

It remains dirty, but its Pratt & Whitney JT8D engines seem intact as they are still on the wings. But the question now lies in whether this plane will ever fly again. If it will, a lot of maintenance and engineering are needed to get this plane into flying condition again, if it still can. And if it will be, it may most probably be used for cargo services. However, I don’t think this may last long, especially since these engines are noisy, and their emissions are high, especially compared to aircraft of today. Fuel efficiency-wise, nope, these planes are not efficient compared to current standards.

N207AU

The second abandoned 737-200, N207AU, which is painted in PhilAir livery, is a more interesting plane. First and foremost, this aircraft is number 67 in the Boeing 737 line and took its first flight on September 9, 1968, making it 55 years old! Wow, definitely older than me. It was first delivered to Piedmont the same year as N740N. In 1989, N740N joined the US Air fleet and became N207AU. Then, in 1994, the aircraft joined Frontier Airlines.

After its service with Frontier, the plane was supposed to go to PhilAir but ended up being an NTU or “Not Taken Up” aircraft, meaning PhilAir did not accept the delivery. The reason is still unknown, but this 737-200 remains in Subic to this day, collecting dust and left abandoned. Will it ever see the skies again? I doubt it, especially given its number of years in service and perhaps the number of pressurization cycles too. However, it can still be repurposed into a lounge or a restaurant.

Honestly, if only I had enough money, I would buy one of these and repurpose it into a restaurant or lounge. But then again, that remains a pipe dream. What remains to be seen are the fates of these planes. I hope they at least regain their dignity, the same they had during their glory days of flying.