Illustrative image; it may differ from the actual aircraft.

Boeing 737-300 (737-3Z0)

B737-23450Scrapped

RegistrationCNB-2521

OperatorAir China

2operators

1incidents

0accidents

0logbook years

0photos

Boeing 737-300 (737-3Z0) built in 1986. Operated for China Southwest Airlines and Air China. Scrapped in 2007.

NewNearly newYoungMatureAgingOld

Aging · 21 years · ≈ 69,300 flight hours (approx.)

Vuelopedia is a work in progress: it currently holds about 30% of the information we expect to have by the third quarter of 2027. Although we use only official, highly reliable sources, some aircraft data and history may still contain errors or inaccuracies. We work hard to clear every anomaly from the records using specialized verification tools.

Technical data

ManufacturerBoeing

Engines2× 2 x CFMI CFM56-3B1

First flight1986

Country of registrationChina/Taiwán

MSN23450

VerificationPending check against the official civil register

The model · Boeing 737

Figures for the 737-800 variant, the most representative of the family

Length39.5 m129 ft

Wingspan35.8 m117 ft

Height12.6 m41 ft

Range5,436 km2,935 NMWith a typical passenger load

Cruise speed834 km/h450 ktMach 0.79

Service ceiling12,500 m41,011 ftIt flies above Everest (1.4 times its height)

Maximum take-off weight79,016 kg174,200 lb

Maximum payload37,603 kg82,900 lbIts 162 passengers with baggage would weigh about 16.2 t; the rest is fuel and cargo

Typical capacity162 passengersUp to 189 in a high-density layout

Endurance6 h 31 minAt cruise speed, non-stop

With its 5,436 km range, from Beijing it could fly non-stop as far as:

BOMMumbai4,765 km SINSingapore4,491 km DELNew Delhi3,811 km BKKBangkok3,317 km NRTNarita2,134 km

Beyond its rangeDXBDubai5,846 km

The type first flew in 1967 (59 years ago) · About 10,200 units built · Production ended in 2019

Figures for the type, not for this particular aircraft: each variant and each configuration changes something. They are shown in both systems used in aviation.

The full story of the Boeing 737 Compare this aircraft

Airports

Airports of the airlines that have operated it

2003–2007Air China network of its single-aisle aircraft

Base

PEKBeijing

Main destinations

CTUChengdu (Shuangliu)SZXShenzhen CANGuangzhou (Huadu)HGHHangzhou CKGChongqing XMNXiamen TAOQingdao (Jiaozhou)XIYXi'an TNAJinan (Licheng)PVGShanghai (Pudong)CGOZhengzhou

Flight logbook

Under research

Aircraft chronology

1986

Built

Assembled by Boeing.

Feb 26, 1986

Delivered to China Southwest Airlines

Delivered to China Southwest Airlines as B-2521.

Aug 16, 2002

Incident at Lijiang-Sanyi (LJG) International Airport

On August 16, 2002, the Boeing 737-3Z0 aircraft (registration B-2521), operated by China Southwest Airlines, was involved in an incident at Lijiang-Sanyi (LJG) International Airport (China) due to a runway excursion. Source: China Southwest Airlines.

Source: China Southwest Airlines

Mar 1, 2003

Transferred to Air China

Transferred to Air China.

Feb 2007

Scrapped

In February 2007, the A320 232 aircraft (registration B-2521), operated by Air China, was scrapped. Source: Air China.

Source: Air China

Operators

1986-02-26

China Southwest Airlines

Registration B-2521

2003-03-01

Air China

Registration B-2521

Memories coming soon

The register of memories is not open on this aircraft yet. We are enabling it gradually, record by record, as we consolidate each aircraft's information.

Before opening it we check the aircraft identity — its registration, its serial number and its model — against the civil register of the authority that registered it, so that every memory belongs to the exact aircraft that lived it. When that work reaches this record, the register will open here.

Cite

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This page was last updated on October 10, 2026

APA

Vuelopedia. (2026, October 10). Boeing 737-300 (737-3Z0) · B-2521 · Air China. Retrieved October 22, 2026, from https://vuelopedia.org/en/aircraft/B737-23450

MLA

“Boeing 737-300 (737-3Z0) · B-2521 · Air China.” Vuelopedia, Fundación Poderia, 10 Oct. 2026, vuelopedia.org/en/aircraft/B737-23450. Accessed 22 Oct. 2026.

Chicago

Vuelopedia. “Boeing 737-300 (737-3Z0) · B-2521 · Air China.” Fundación Poderia. Last modified October 10, 2026. https://vuelopedia.org/en/aircraft/B737-23450.

Harvard

Vuelopedia (2026) Boeing 737-300 (737-3Z0) · B-2521 · Air China. Available at: https://vuelopedia.org/en/aircraft/B737-23450 (Accessed: 22 October 2026).

BibTeX

@misc{vuelopedia_en_aircraft_b737_23450,
  author       = {{Vuelopedia}},
  title        = {{Boeing 737-300 (737-3Z0) · B-2521 · Air China}},
  publisher    = {Fundación Poderia},
  year         = {2026},
  date         = {2026-10-10},
  url          = {https://vuelopedia.org/en/aircraft/B737-23450},
  howpublished = {\url{https://vuelopedia.org/en/aircraft/B737-23450}},
  urldate      = {2026-10-22},
  note         = {Accessed 2026-10-22}
}

Wikipedia

{{cite web |url=https://vuelopedia.org/en/aircraft/B737-23450 |title=Boeing 737-300 (737-3Z0) · B-2521 · Air China |website=Vuelopedia |publisher=Fundación Poderia |date=2026-10-10 |access-date=2026-10-22 |language=en}}