Although many collectors consider 1993 to be the start of Realtoy planes, the first Realtoy planes were actually made in the mid-late 80s. Although we don’t know for sure what the first Realtoy plane was, I think it was most likely the Paradise Airlines 747, because it was the only painted model until later in the 90s, and was produced in 1988. I know this because it was featured in an advertisement for Realtoy in 1988 (shown below).
Even before 1993, Realtoy planes were distributed by Daron, Peterkin, Simba, Nickname, and probably several others. In 1993, Realtoy started putting their logo on their planes landing gear, and also removed the leading edge slats on the 747. That is why most collectors don’t collect “pre-1993” models. In the 90s, Realtoy had molds for the 747, 757, 767, and (most likely) A340. The first A340 was most likely the Aer Lingus A340, which is weird because they never operated them. In the early 2000s, Realtoy planes were updated to have shinier wings, instead of the more dull look they had in the 90s. In about 2002 or 2003, the older Daron logo was put on the boxes of the Daron distributed planes, and was later updated to the new logo around 2007. In late 2008, Realtoy started to put manufacturing dates on their boxes and planes. In 2016, Daron updated their cones to be orange instead of white. This was also around the same time that Daron introduced small “junior” airport playsets.
In 2023, Daron announced the JetBlue Ribbons A321, which was a new mold. This model was unfortunately cancelled, but two were still made as samples, making it the rarest Daron plane ever made. Later in 2023, Realtoy went out of business and Daron took over production of all models. The new Daron planes have the Daron logo on the landing gear, instead of the Realtoy logo. The new Daron models are also unfortunately significantly worse quality. Even though they are now painted, the new paint is grainy, and looks extremely unrealistic. The new planes are also prone to manufacturing errors, especially scratches. In 2026, Daron announced the America 250th anniversary 787, which is the first plane to celebrate an anniversary. It is also the first “limited edition” model, and the first to have rolling front landing gear.
