THE final two British Airways Boeing 747s today took off from Heathrow for their last flight.
Once known as the Queen of the Skies, the last of the 31 aircraft were today retired.
The airline had brought forward the retirement of its fleet of 747-400 aircraft due to the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on the aviation sector.
And a small number of people headed to the West London airport this morning – while another 18,000 watched on a Facebook livestream – to see the final flight.
Alex Cruz, British Airways’ Chairman and CEO said, “Today was an emotional milestone in the retirement of our 747 fleet as it was our last chance to see the Queen of the Skies depart from our home at Heathrow airport.
“The 747s have played a huge role in our 100-year history, forming the backbone of our fleet for over 50 years.
“I know I speak for our customers and the many thousands of colleagues who have spent much of their careers alongside them when I say we will miss seeing them grace our skies.”
Instead the BA fleet will use the 787 Dreamliner and Airbus A350 because they are more fuel-efficient than the dated Boeings, which have been in use since 1971.
Today, the G-CIVB and G-CIVY 747 models had been due to perform a synchronised dual take-off on parallel runways, but instead departed from the same runway separately.
BA said the G-CIVB model entered service in February 1994 and had flown 59 million miles, while G-CIVY had clocked-up 45 million air miles having first flown in September 1998.
Launched in 1969, the 747-400 aircraft were considerably larger than existing airliners, with a capacity of around 550 passengers.
They were known by British Airways as The Queen Of The Skies.
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- The first Boeing 747 – and the original ‘Jumbo Jet’ – took its first flight from Washington in 1969.
- The wide-body aircraft, built by lead engineer Joe Sutter, was known as ‘Jumbo’ for its extremely large size.
- The aircraft began flying with passengers from 1970 and was introduced to BA’s fleet in 1971.
- Beyond its high level of comfort, the 747 could carry hundreds of people for the first time – making air travel cheaper and mass tourism possible.
- By the end of 2018, Boeing had built more than 1,500 747s of all types.
- US-based Boeing signalled the end of the plane’s production a year ago.
The airline once boasted the world’s largest fleet of the 747-400 model with 31 aircraft.
The 747 fleet is to be replaced by quieter, more fuel-efficient aircraft as part of the airline’s commitment to achieving net zero carbon emissions by 2050.
The airline expects the last 747s, currently positioned in Wales, to leave the fleet by the end of the year.
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The 747s represent about 10 per cent of BA’s total fleet.
According to travel data firm Cirium, around 500 747s are still in service, of which 30 are still flying passengers.
