The de Havilland DH.106 Comet is the world's first commercial jet airliner. Developed and manufactured by de Havilland in the United Kingdom, the Comet 1 prototype first flew in 1949. It features an aerodynamically clean design with four de Havilland Ghost turbojet engines buried in the wing roots, a pressurised cabin, and large windows. For the era, it offered a relatively quiet, comfortable passenger cabin and was commercially promising at its debut in 1952.
De Havilland Comet
Design studies for the DH.106 Comet 1944–1947 (artist's impression)
Comet 1 prototype (with square windows) at Hatfield Aerodrome in October 1949
Dan-Air Comet 4C cabin at the National Museum of Flight
A jet airliner or jetliner is an airliner powered by jet engines. Airliners usually have two or four jet engines; three-engined designs were popular in the 1970s but are less common today. Airliners are commonly classified as either the large wide-body aircraft, medium narrow-body aircraft and smaller regional jet.
The Boeing 737 was for many years the most widespread jetliner
The de Havilland Comet, the first purpose-built jet airliner
The Boeing 707, the first commercially successful jetliner
The Tupolev Tu-144, the first supersonic jet airliner
