Final Boeing 747 jet leaves factory after 53-year production run
The last Boeing 747 jumbo jet left the plane maker’s factory in Everett, Washington, ending a production run of more than half a century for the double-decker, four-engine, twin-aisle pioneer that entered service in January 1970.
The move comes as US-based Boeing transitions to two-engine jetliners amid airlines’ push for more fuel-efficient planes.
The final aircraft is a 747-8 freighter that will be delivered to cargo airline Atlas Air in early 2023, Boeing said on Wednesday.
Boeing’s “Queen of the Skies” made its debut more than 50 years ago. The 747 was the largest commercial aircraft in the world until the Airbus A380 came along in 2007 — when it was commercially launched — and set several records. It was also the first aircraft to have a flatbed seat, pioneered by British Airways in 1999.
Qantas used the jet to fly the world’s first non-stop commercial flight from London to Sydney in 20 hours and nine minutes. However, the final version of the 747 and Europe’s Airbus A380 superjumbo never caught on commercially as airlines turned to twin-engine aircraft and fuel-efficient planes.
United and Delta said goodbye to their 747 fleet years before the Covid-19 pandemic struck while Qantas and British Airways grounded their 747s for good in 2020 during the worldwide travel slump.
Production of the 747 began in 1967 and spanned 54 years, during which a total of 1,574 aircraft were built, Boeing said. The Everett factory was constructed specifically for the jumbo jet in 1967, CNBC reported.
The Boeing 747 made its first transatlantic passenger flight — from New York to London — in May 1970, carrying 350 passengers, a record at the time.
The 747 still serves as Air Force One and two already-assembled planes are undergoing work to be transformed into the next generation of the US presidential jet, according to CNN. Those planes won’t be delivered for at least four years due to delays.
Boeing hasn’t built a passenger version of the 747 jet since it delivered the last one to Korean Airlines in 2017, CNN said.
Today, there are only 44 passenger versions of the 747 still in service, according to aviation analytics company Cirium. More than half of those — 25 — are flown by Lufthansa.
But there are still 314 Boeing 747 freighters in use, many of which were initially used as passenger jets before being renovated into cargo planes, according to Cirium.
