It has been said that William Lyons – stylist as well as company director – did not personally like the model, and the Airline has been attributed to the influence of William Walmsley, Lyons’s original partner, who would soon leave the Company.

In a 1982 interview with Andrew Whyte in The Jaguar Marque, to mark the 60th anniversary of the company he told Whyte “Our only real mistake was the Airline.  The proportions we had established simply did not lend themselves to the ‘fastback’ trend of the ‘thirties’; by the time we’d got enough headroom in the back, it looked most ungainly.” 

Whatever, it is without doubt the most striking of all the different SS1 body styles, with many unique features, such as the twin wing mounted spare wheels.

From the start with a single, rather ungainly looking coupé body in 1931, over the next few years the SS1 underwent considerable development and became available with several different body styles. William Lyons was not particularly happy with the style of the original car, and after production of only one year, the 1933 models acquired a new chassis, underslung at the rear, long flowing wings, and a lower roof line. An alternative body in the shape of an open four-seater tourer was also offered.

The 1934 SS1 models had larger engines, although still rated at 16 hp or 20 hp for taxation, and a saloon body became available, with rear side windows instead of the blind rear quarters.

Further models were added to the 1935 range – a drophead coupé, the now legendary SS90 open two-seater sports car, and the Airline saloon.