747 going out of production

[DWalt]

I assume many of the present passenger 747s will eventually be refitted and repurposed for air freight service.

 

[Mahalo_.32]

I am the son of a 747 Captain so I grew up with the Queen of the sky. She will always be remembered as the BEST serving aircraft ever constructed. The retirement of the Queen is bitter sweet

 

[vt_shooter]

I assume many of the present passenger 747s will eventually be refitted and repurposed for air freight service.

Interesting thought. I wonder if cargo doors can be added without rebuilding too much of the airframe, the issue being whether major structural components are in different places for the airplanes originally built as cargo carriers with big cargo doors.

 

[Tradewind36]

I remember seeing the 747 for the first time in the late 60's or early 70's, in flight looked like a cloud with rivets it was so huge. I retired 8 years ago from a major air freight company that has since closed their doors. I was a 747-400 ground instructor training company pilots on 747 systems and procedures, a great job to finish 40 plus years of my aviation career. Unfortunately I was past the pilot retirement age and never got to fly it.
The company 747's were converted from passenger aircraft with large cargo doors installed.

 

[bigwheelzip]

Had a unique flying experience on a KLM 747. About 35 years ago we noticed that KLM check-in agents seemed to have a policy of upgrading large-framed Coach Class passengers like my husband to larger seats in the upper class sections of the plane when they issued boarding passes. They did this upgrade without mentioning to us what they were doing, and we only found out when we were directed left on boarding the plane.
After several flights where this upgrade occurred, we were once again turned to the front. We showed the Business Class attendant our tickets and she pointed us farther forward. The First Class attendant looked at our tickets and pointed us forward again.
We passed through one last bulkhead opening and entered a previously unknown section called Ambassador Class. It was in the very nose of the plane, farther forward than where the pilot sits in the cockpit up above. The experience of flying in the pointed curvature of the fusilage, looking out the window at a forward viewing angle, was very cool.
No other plane I know of offers that experience.

On a Swissair flight in the mid-1980s, approaching Geneva Switzerland at sunrise, I remarked to the stewardess that the pilot must have a beautiful view of dawn over the Alps. She asked if I wanted to visit the cockpit and see for myself. Of course I said, and she went to check if it was OK.
The cockpit crew were very nice and when I asked permission to take a picture, they turned on the dashboard lights so they would show better in the picture. I think it was a 747-200.

 

[Absalom]

Interesting thought. I wonder if cargo doors can be added without rebuilding too much of the airframe, the issue being whether major structural components are in different places for the airplanes originally built as cargo carriers with big cargo doors.

You may find this short video interesting. IAI is Israel Aerospace Industries. They are selling freighter conversion kits and actual conversions worldwide.

(Turn the sound down. There is no narration and the music is annoying )

[ame]https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=0JeDrrOL5gk[/ame]

 

[hsguy]

Sorry to see "Big Bird" go as my wife called it when she was a flight attendant for United. The first couple of times I flew on one I was a bit white knuckle on takeoff, couldn't imagine how something so big would actually get airborne! I am sorry to see it go but it could not compete for passenger service with the more efficient later generation planes such as the 777 or the 'Plastic Princess" 787. Flown both several times, great planes but not a 747. Even the smaller planes are being used now on medium haul routes, flown a 737 to Hawaii a few times and a 757 to Europe, not terribly comfortable.

I have seen more 747's in the past few months than the past several years. I live about 20 miles west of Chicago O'Hare airport and planes often fly past my home and then turn towards the airport for landing. With the marked decrease in commercial flying I often see 747 freighters in strange livery delivering freight much of which would have travelled on scheduled airlines previously.

When United retired the 747 employees and their survivors were offered an opportunity to purchase a piece of the skin from a retired plane so I did. The opposite side is engraved with my name, address and phone number. Sorry for the bad reflections. Video of the the plane the piece came from below.

I think the Airbus 380 will be next to go after a short lifespan. Too big given the current state of airtravel which will take years to recover.

[ame]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IouyzL6RsqM[/ame]

 

[Checkman]

At the Evergreen Aviation Museum, not too far from where I live, a retired 747 sits on top of a building as the main attraction of a waterpark; slides actually start inside the fuselage.

May seem a bit undignified, but it looks quite impressive and is a better resting place for the old lady than some boneyard in the desert.

Our daughter attended Linfield College and she never went to the museum. Not once even though she was a five minute drive from there. I went twice on different visits.

 

[LVSteve]

My first two experiences on British Airways' 747s were not inspiring. When I came to the US I flew to the East Coast out of Heathrow. The takeoff run was so long, I wasn't worried about running out of runway so much as running out of England. I think rotate was somewhere near Membury services on the M4 motorway. Have fun with Google maps to see what I mean.

That kite was a knackered banana boat. Slightest bit of turbulence and the center overhead bins snaked like a Sidewinder. The engines and aft edges of the wings were black. I swear from the rearmost windows looking up the engine exhausts I could see men stoking coal.

The second time was out of LAX heading to England. Again, the takeoff run and slow climbout had me wondering about the maximum elevation of Catalina Island. Before we turned East the pilot throttled back so far I think it was only the the LA Basin pollution holding us up. I became very unhappy that day an hour later when I realized I'd been traveling 6 hours and could now see my house in Vegas from 35k feet.

It was very different on a Virgin 747-400 taking off from Vegas in 113°F heat. That thing hurtled down the runway and was up in no time, pressing us back in the seats during the climb. That was impressive.

 

[hsguy]

Great post Steve! Some of the early planes seemed to be rather underpowered. My wife started flying in the 727, affectionately known as the "lead sled". She also worked on DC 8's and they improved that plane by adding several feet to the fuselage and adding more powerful engines. The plane was so flexible that if you were sitting in the rear in rough weather you couldn't see the floor in front as the plane flexed. The new engines were powerful though. We were flying on a newly repowered DC8 one time from Cancun to Cozumel and were gabbing with the captain before departure and he was very proud on the increased power. He told us he would leave the cockpit door open so we could see the plane takeoff before he pushed the throttles all the way open, it sure did. Those were the days, open cockpit door! She also worked on DC10's (DC stood for death cruiser), 737, 757, 767 and Airbus planes which she called scare buses. She had an interesting career. She liked the 777 but it was introduced after she retired so she never worked on it and never had the chance to ride in a 787 unfortunately, I think she would have liked it.

 

[Absalom]

Our daughter attended Linfield College and she never went to the museum. Not once even though she was a five minute drive from there.....

“Local syndrome”. I know someone who attended the University of Nevada - Las Vegas and claims to have never bothered going to the Strip

 

[Checkman]

My first two experiences on British Airways' 747s were not inspiring. When I came to the US I flew to the East Coast out of Heathrow. The takeoff run was so long, I wasn't worried about running out of runway so much as running out of England. I think rotate was somewhere near Membury services on the M4 motorway. Have fun with Google maps to see what I mean.

That kite was a knackered banana boat. Slightest bit of turbulence and the center overhead bins snaked like a Sidewinder. The engines and aft edges of the wings were black. I swear from the rearmost windows looking up the engine exhausts I could see men stoking coal.

Back in the eighties and nineties the U.S. government contracted with Tower Air. I flew on Tower Air 747s when going to Germany in 1993 and again when we flew from Fort Drum, N.Y. (the old air force base in Ithaca, N.Y. actually) to Fort Polk, Louisiana for training in 97 and 98. Those 747s were flying deathtraps (or so I thought at the time). The description of the overhead bins moving around is exactly what I observed on those old planes operated by Tower Air. I am not a pilot or an aeronautical engineer but something told me that couldn't be a good thing. I also observed that the planes were rather threadbare inside. Heavily used. Though I understood it was mostly cosmetic it made me wonder how much care went into more critical aspects of the plane.I later learned that the airline was rated 59th our of 61 airlines in terms of maintenance. It scored above Aeroflot and ValuJet. The airline was fined by the Federal government for flying planes in poor repair and it finally went under in 2000.

I know it isn't fair, but I've always been wary of the 747 since those experiences. One thing I found amusing was us packing onto those planes carrying our M16A2 rifles, M9 handguns and M249 light machine guns. Flying for several hours in a 747 with a machine gun under your feet - literally. Granted we had no ammo, but nevertheless it was a sight to see.

Photo of United States Marines ,back in the day, being transported by a Tower plane (I'm assuming they are Marines based on how their sleeves are rolled). U.S. Army soldiers loading up to fly to the Middle East in the late Nineties. Brings back memories.

 

[steveno]

charter airlines have never put as much money into maintenance as the regular airlines. several of my trips between the West Germany and the states were on DC-8 stretched models on charter airlines. I don't remember the names but the stretch DC-8's I try to forget

 

[Checkman]

charter airlines have never put as much money into maintenance as the regular airlines. several of my trips between the West Germany and the states were on DC-8 stretched models on charter airlines. I don't remember the names but the stretch DC-8's I try to forget

Yes indeed. Flying with the lowest bidder.

 

[THE PILGRIM]

One of these Indiana Good Old Boys is Sam Miller.
He flew the first Trans Atlantic 707 and later the first 747 Commercial Flights.
I only who one guy is.
That's my FIL with the ball.
Decker Chapel, IN HS.
School song was The Bear Comes Over the Mountain.

 

[Absalom]

charter airlines have never put as much money into maintenance as the regular airlines. several of my trips between the West Germany and the states were on DC-8 stretched models on charter airlines. I don't remember the names but the stretch DC-8's I try to forget

My very first transatlantic flight was on a DC-8 in 1980, the cheapest charter flight I could find, Brussels to JFK. I was seated aisle close to the front (there was no first or business class on that bird), and some time before pushback all the lights went out, including in the cockpit, and I could see the pilots shining flashlights around the panels for some minutes before the lights came back on. No kidding. Wasn’t exactly confidence-instilling.

 

[Dave_n]

Had an entertaining series of flights that started with a BA 747-100 out of PHL where we were told we had to fly up to JFK because the incoming BA flight "lost an engine" coming into US Airspace. The closest replacement (lost meaning power) RR engine was at JFK, so up we flew. Then it turned out they could not refit the engine in time, so PHL-LHR passengers were put into any available flight that evening. Since I was traveling alone and had no need to arrive at a specific time into LHR, I was sent to the BA lounge to "await my fate". About an hour later, I was asked if I would mind "deadheading" in a VC10 that had to go back to LHR without any passengers. So in exchange for a promise that BA would call my mother in the UK when the time zones worked , I had a very enjoyable trip back in First Class on a fully manned VC10 as the only passenger. Very enjoyable flight indeed. Dave_n

 

[MRB1]

I was an earlier flyer on a 747. Flew on one for the first time from Columbus OH to Miami in early 1972, but I don't remember the airline. Quite a thrill at the time. I frequently flew Lufthansa 747s from DFW to Frankfurt back in the early 1980s. Lufthansa had three nonstop flights per week on that run, and the 747 was half freight, half passenger. Lufthansa carried about every German beer brand there was for their drink service, and I tried all of them. I didn't really like most of them.

Yep, I made that same run from DFW to Frankfurt on both AA and Lufthansa ,and always scheduled the flights around 747 A/C. Lufthansa would sometimes upgrade to upstairs seating, which was always a treat. Better looking stewardess than AA.

 

[Kurusu]

My very first transatlantic flight was on a DC-8 in 1980, the cheapest charter flight I could find, Brussels to JFK. I was seated aisle close to the front (there was no first or business class on that bird), and some time before pushback all the lights went out, including in the cockpit, and I could see the pilots shining flashlights around the panels for some minutes before the lights came back on. No kidding. Wasn’t exactly confidence-instilling.

As long as you don't overhear one of them ask to the other

"Is this thing three on a tree or four on the floor?"

You're alright.

 

[Sgt911]

you can see all the 747 you want.
tar1090

Its like where's waldo though