Inititally Swedish-based, created by Swede Johan Lundgren, Jr., the site originated in 1996 as Pictures of Modern Airliners.

Johan Lundgren, Jr., an IT student/aviation enthusiast attending Luleå University of Technology in Sweden, created the site Pictures of Modern Airliners in 1996.

[3][6] In 1997, Lundgren transitioned to a new site entitled Airliners.net and established a web server in his dormitory room.

[7] Reasons behind the decision included the difficulty of managing the rapidly growing site, which was by that point supported by 25 servers.

I could never in my wildest dreams have imagined this success when I started the site ten years ago.

Airliners.net also offers a complimentary newsletter service and a database of information on aircraft types developed with the help of Aerospace Publications.