Steve Miller heard Pena's unreleased "New Train" album through Ben Sidran, who produced it, and who was formerly in Miller's band. Miller recorded "Jet Airliner" in 1975 during sessions for the "Fly Like an Eagle" album, but the song was not issued until 1977, when it was released as a single and was included on Miller's "Book of Dreams" album. The lyrics of the Steve Miller Band version are slightly different from the Pena original. Miller's performance of the main riff also is slightly different from Pena's original, which has a more funky edge to it. The song is also notable for an early reference to the catchphrase "keep on keepin' on", also found in John Lennon's 1974 song "Old Dirt Road" and in the Bob Dylan songs "Tangled Up in Blue" and "You Ain't Goin' Nowhere." The single reached on the "Billboard" chart. In Canada, the song spent two weeks at .