Condor ordered the stretched 757 to replace its McDonnell Douglas DC-10s and serve as low-cost, high-density transportation to holiday destinations such as the Canary Islands. Because tests showed that boarding the 757-300 could take up to eight minutes longer than the 757-200, Boeing and Condor developed zone-based boarding procedures to expedite loading and unloading times for the lengthened aircraft. The 757-300 has been operated by mainline carriers Continental Airlines (now part of United Airlines), Northwest Airlines (now part of Delta Air Lines), and Icelandair; other operators have included American Trans Air (the first North American operator), Arkia Israel Airlines, along with charter carriers Condor and Thomas Cook Airlines as of 2014. Production for the 757-300 totaled 55 aircraft. All 55 were in service in July 2018.
