The Boeing 737-200 wing was pretty much designed for the weight of that variant and when the 737-300/400/500 arrived, aerodynamic tweaking of the wing was necessary (like a 4% increase in chord)- but the wing wasn’t all that much a departure from the -100/200 wing in the interests of commonality and reduced development costs and as such, so wing loading went up. ⠀ ⠀ At max takeoff weight, a 737-200 wing is loaded to 132 lbs per square foot. By comparison, a 737-300 at max takeoff weight has a wing loading of 122 lbs per square foot- the lower wing loading thanks to aerodynamic tweaks means the longer 737-400 has the same wing loading as the shorter 737-200. ⠀ ⠀ When the 737NG program came along, it got an all new supercritical wing that was not only larger, but had lower drag, the design heavily influenced by the 777’s wing design. One of the side benefits of the new wing was room for about 30% more fuel, giving a significant range boost to the NG variants. ⠀ ⠀ A 737-700 at max takeoff weight has a wing loading of only 115 lbs per square foot. This meant there was considerable growth potential in the NG wing. In fact, a 737-800 at MTOW has a lower wing loading than a 737-200 (129 lbs/sq ft versus 132 lbs/sq ft). ⠀ ⠀ And if you’re curious, I crunched the numbers on the wing loading for a 737-900ER at MTOW: 139 lbs/sq foot.⠀ ⠀ This particular split scimitar-equipped Boeing 737-800 of Westjet, C-GKWJ, heading out at Calgary, happens to also be Westjet’s very first 737-800 (Ship 801), delivered to the airline in April 2005. ⠀ ⠀ #Avgeek #aviation #aircraft #planeporn #CYYC #YYC #Calgary #Alberta #Canada #airport #planespotting #airlines #Boeing #737 #Westjet #CGKWJ #instagramaviation #instaplane #splendid_transport #instaaviation #aviationlovers #aviationphotography #flight #aviationnation #aviationphotography #AvgeekSchoolofKnowledge #AvGeekNation (at YYC Calgary International Airport) https://www.instagram.com/p/B5g8-6LhK9Y/?igshid=1vej26xvj0p0r