The Boeing Company and the General Electric Company in 1996 joined forces to create a comfortable and roomy business jet that could fly more than 6,900 miles. Also known as the BBJ, the airplane is a special derivative of the 737-700. It can cruise at up to 540 mph and its routes include from Los Angeles to London or Paris, and from New York to Buenos Aires, Argentina. It rolled out July 26, 1998. Production of the larger BBJ2, based on the 737-800, began in September 2000.