The Boeing 747 ‘Queen of the Skies’ is an iconic aircraft that has a history stemming more than 50 years. On February 9, 1969 B747-121 ‘RA001’ took the sky for its first flight and was then introduced into service with Pan Am in January 1970.
The 747-400 is now officially a classic aircraft, and it’s an increasingly rare one too. First introduced in 1989, this very successful update to the 747 line is now reaching the end of its life in the skies as operators retire them in favor of newer and more efficient models. However, one airline has given the 747-400 a new lease
Atlas Air flew home the last 747 ever produced on 1 February, marking the end
On this week’s episode of AvTalk, the final Boeing 747 rolls out of the factory,
The final Boeing 747 rolled out of the assembly building in Everett, Washington this week,
Atlas Air flew home the last 747 ever produced on 1 February, marking the end
On this week’s episode of AvTalk, the final Boeing 747 rolls out of the factory,
The final Boeing 747 rolled out of the assembly building in Everett, Washington this week,
The sheer size and elegance of the Boeing B747 has garnered a fan following for over 50 years. As the flagship aircraft for some of the World’s biggest airlines the flight tracking interest of the B747 is constant. The vast majority of B747’s operating today are freight variants such as the B747-400, B747-400F and the much newer B747-8F. The largest operator of the B747 freight variants is currently Atlas Air with 47 of the type in operation. The largest operator of B747 passenger variants is currently Lufthansa who have both the B747-400 and B747-8i in their fleet.
| Variant | B747SP | B747-100 | B747-200 | B747-300 | B747-400 | B747-8 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Engines | 4 x Pratt & Whitney JT9D or Rolls-Royce RB211 or General Electric CF6 | 4 x Pratt & Whitney JT9D or Rolls-Royce RB211 or General Electric CF6 | 4 x Pratt & Whitney JT9D or Rolls-Royce RB211 or General Electric CF6 | 4 x Pratt & Whitney JT9D or Rolls-Royce RB211 or General Electric CF6 | 4 x Pratt & Whitney PW4000 or General Electric CF6 or Rolls-Royce RB211 | 4 x General Electric GEnx-2B67 |
| Height | 19.9m / 65.5ft | 19.3m / 63.5ft | 19.3m / 63.5ft | 19.3m / 63.5ft | 19.4m / 63.8ft | 19.4m / 63.8ft |
| Length | 56.3m / 184.9ft | 70.7 m / 231.10 ft | 70.7 m / 231.10 ft | 70.7 m / 231.10 ft | 70.7 m / 231.10 ft | 76.3 m / 250.2 ft |
| Wingspan | 59.6m / 195.8ft | 59.6m / 195.8ft | 59.6m / 195.8ft | 59.6m / 195.8ft | 64.4m / 211.5ft | 68.5m / 224.7ft |
| Cruise / Maximum speed | Mach 0.90 / 0.92 | Mach 0.90 / 0.92 | Mach 0.90 / 0.92 | Mach 0.90 / 0.92 | Mach 0.85 / 0.90 | Mach 0.85 / 0.90 |
| Range | 10,800 km / 5,830 nm | 8,560 km / 4,620 nm | 12,150 km / 6,560 nm | 11,720 km / 6,330 nm | 14,205 km / 7,670 nm | 14,320 km / 7,730 nm |
| Typical passenger load | 276 | 366 | 366 | 400 | 416 | 467 |
| Cargo capacity | 3,900cu ft | 30 LD1 | 30 LD1 | 30 LD1 | 5,655cu ft | 6,345cu ft |
Join us for a ride on the beautiful Lufthansa 747-400, a very rare bird these days, and even more so within Europe. We’re flying from Palma in Mallorca (PMI) to Frankfurt, one of Lufthansa’s special
From its conception in the early 1960s to the delivery of the final 747 on 1 February 2023, Daniel Fowkes from @DjsAviation takes us through the development, construction, and iterations of the 747 to see
In this video we take a flight in First Class on the Lufthansa 747-8, on a very special short flight from Palma to Frankfurt.
Given the state of things in aviation amid a pandemic that appears to be worsening in Europe and the Americas, you might assume a plane like the 747 would be parked or stored across the
When British Airways flew its iconic 747-400 out of Heathrow for the last time earlier this month, it was really the end of an era. The BA 747 retirement also means there are now very
The first three years of this decade were supposed to see a gradual and dignified retirement of major airlines’ passenger 747 fleets. With COVID-19 upending fleet planning the world over, airlines are quickly retiring the
The pandemic has put a number of older airplanes into expedited retirement this year, pushing down the world’s average fleet age. Still, it wouldn’t be unusual to fly on a commercial plane that’s been used
The range of the B747 differs significantly between the variants. The shortest range belonged to the B747-100 which could fly up to 4,620nm / 8,560km. This compares to the B747-400ER which has a range of 7,670nm / 14,205km.
The final B747-8 was produced in December 2022 for Atlas Air, and had a reported price tag of $418M.
The final B747 rolled off the production line at Boeing’s Everett site in December 2022. It ended a production run that spanned 54 years and saw 1,574 Boeing 747s made. The final B747 was as Boeing 747-8F and will be in service with Atlas Air. Read more about how you can track all the Boeing 747s still in service >>
In total there have been 95 airlines and operators that put the Boeing 747 into service. The original launch customer of the B747-100 was Pan Am. KLM followed as the launch customer for the B747-200 and Swissair with the B747-300. Northwest was the launch customer for the B747-400 and finally Cargolux with the B747-8F and Lufthansa with the B787-8i.
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