Wednesday, February 1, 2023

After 54 years, an aviation legend ceases production

 

Yesterday, January 31st, 2023, Boeing delivered the last 747 "Jumbo Jet" to roll off its assembly lines.  It was the 1,574th to be built, ending a manufacturing history of more than 54 years - an average tempo of almost 30 of the giant aircraft per year, or 2½ every month.



The last Jumbo is a 747-8F freighter model.  She'll probably serve the cargo market for several decades, along with many of her older sisters.

For the occasion, Flight Global has produced a series of articles commemorating the Boeing 747.  Aviation enthusiasts will find them interesting.  Follow these links:



(Flight Global uses a cookie to allow free access to one article, then asks you to register to read more.  If you clear your browser's cache, it'll also clear that cookie.  You can then reload the next article, and do the same every time as you go down the list.)

Also worth your time is this Seattle Times special on how Boeing workers remember the 747, and how they feel about the end of production.  All the above articles are worthwhile and recommended reading.

If I had a dollar for every mile I've flown aboard a 747, I'd have no retirement worries at all . . .

Peter


7 comments:

Anonymous said...

I was at PHNL when I saw the first 747 roll up to the gate. I was struck with how large it was. That was 63 or 64 years after the famous flights of the Wright Bros.
What achievement!

The only other aircraft of such great size I had seen at that time was the C5 (yes, the A model)

The B-52, even though the wings go on for miles, seems almost puny in comparison with the 747.

On that day, I also had the prophetic thought that the 747 will become obsolete before I get to fly on one. So far, that has remained true.

I've stood on the ramp with the 747, B-52, C5, even the Avro Vulcan, and decades later the AN-224. Each have amazing attributes, quite astounding really.

At KJFK, I counted the number of pax deboarding a 747. The count was over 500 head. In itself that was incredible.

RSR said...

You can also open it in an incognito window closing that window after each page to clear cookies (and have no other private browsing windows open) or use something like archive dot is to create a copy...

Unknown said...

It looks like the crew with the delivery flight got permission to do something celebratory.

https://flightaware.com/live/flight/GTI747/history/20230201/1600Z/KPAE/KCVG

drjim said...

That's the coolest flight path I've ever seen. I was working for Boeing in the Long Beach harbor when the last C-17 built took to the skies. They flew around Long Beach for a bit, and then headed to their destination.

FeralFerret said...

Very cool flight pattern!

The 747 has definitely been and continues to be a workhorse.

Old NFO said...

UNK beat me to it, and did you notice they touched 700mph once during the trip? My first ever airline flight was on Big Orange, the Braniff 747-100. I have quite a few miles on various versions of the 747 too...

Anonymous said...

I worked for a Boeing sub in Portland, OR at age 18 in 1969. We produced the flap tracks for all the Boeing models. The flap tracks for the 737 were 5 to 6 feet long; inboard flap tracks for the 747 were 21 feet long, The raw forgings arrived weighing 7 tons - but after machining was complete could be carried by 2 men. I started out driving fork truck and shoveling metal chips and after 4 months got hired into the office as a draftsman at $50.00 less per week. Ended up retiring from the Air Force.

Handyman