Photo: 123RF
A QANTAS Boeing 747-400
Goodbye to the Iconic 747 as she flies into the sunset
Imtiaz Hussain who has fond memories of the 747 Jumbo Jet asks why Boeing has decided to stop producing this plane.
Well, Boeing had indeed announced on July 2020 that they have decided to retire this very famous airliner in 2022 after over 50 years of service amid a corona-induced crisis in the aviation industry.
The main reasons cited were ‘dwindling customers demand and low sales’ of its latest variant, the Boeing 747-8.
Perhaps engine technology may be the other reason. New engines are more fuel efficient and on the Boeing 777-300, only two are required to carry almost as many as on the B747. As such, the 747 cannot compete with the 777 except in specialized markets such as in cargo services.
The first 747 flight entered service in January 1970, about 52 years ago with Pan American World Airways.
The successor to the 747 by Boeing is the Dreamliner or the Boeing 787.
Even though the 747 will stop production by this year, the existing planes will continue to fly until they become too expensive to maintain by the current airlines operating them.
Some of the biggest airlines which operate them include British Airways, KLM, Virgin, Lufthansa, Thai Airways and Korean Air. Many other airlines have retired their 747’s and have replaced them with more fuel-efficient ones. The coronavirus pandemic has accelerated the retirement of more 747’s.
Singapore Airlines retired its last passenger Boeing 747 in 2012. While you might still see 747’s flying about featuring Singapore Airlines livery, they are now strictly cargo planes.
Malaysia Airlines retired their Boeing 747 on 25 November 2012 on its last flight out of Sydney to Kuala Lumpur.
United Airlines performed its last passenger 747 services on November 2017 followed by Delta Air Lines in December 2017,
Qantas announced on July 2020, that it was shutting down all of its international routes till March 2021 due to the steep drop in traffic resulting from COVID-19
What happened to retired planes?
Well, most will end up in an aircraft graveyard or sometimes known as an aircraft boneyard. This is a storage area for aircraft that are retired from services. Some of those are kept in storage and continue to be maintained or have their parts removed for sale as spare parts.
Boneyard facilities are generally located in deserts because of its dry condition which reduces corrosion. The biggest one is found in the Arizona, USA and there is another one located at the southern hemisphere at Alice Springs in Australia.
Some planes stored in the boneyard are given a new lease of life. For instance, two Singapore Airlines A380s which were stored in Alice Springs were brought back to services.
On July 2021 the second SIA A380 left the Alice Springs boneyard (see video below) and flew to Sydney for maintenance before eventually returning to service in Singapore.
View a video on ‘Boeing to stop production of 747 jumbo jet in 2022’ here https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bJ2kRRoZRdU
View a video on ‘Singapore Airlines A380 leaves storage at Alice Springs to return to service’ here https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TuGQwL9faO4