It’s the end of an adventure that began 54 years ago. The very last Boeing 747 has just left the Everett factory. It will be delivered to the American company Atlas Air at the beginning of next year. The page of four-engine engines is definitely turning.
The very last Boeing 747 rolled off the assembly line in Everett (WA) on December 6, 2022. Recognizable by its famous hump, it will be delivered in early 2023 to Atlas Air, an American airline specializing in cargo and flights charters. This is a freighter version of the 747 (-8F). “For more than half a century, tens of thousands of dedicated Boeing employees have designed and built this magnificent aircraft that has truly changed the world. We are proud that this aircraft will continue to fly around the world for years to come. to come,” said Kim Smith, general manager of Boeing’s 747 and 767 programs. It is the epilogue of an adventure that began more than half a century ago.
The last 747 will be delivered to Atlas Air in early 2023
The 747, fruit of a lost military contract
In the early 1960s, the US Air Force launched a call for tenders for the development of a new, very large capacity military transport aircraft. Boeing and Lockheed respond to it. On the one hand, Boeing presents its project which will become the 747, on the other Lockheed presents the C-5 Galaxy. It was finally Lockheed that won the duel in 1965. Never mind. Despite everything, Boeing decides to continue the development of its aircraft, but this time for commercial purposes. A new gigantic factory is then built north of Seattle to be able to assemble the plane 70 meters long and 60 meters wide. On September 30, 1968, the first test 747 left the factory. Recognizable by its famous bump on the front, it made its first flight on February 9, 1969.
The Jumbo-Jet as it is nicknamed enters service under the colors of Pan Am the following year. Capable of carrying more than 400 passengers over 9,600 km, the 747 will remain for decades, until the arrival of the A380, the airliner with the largest capacity. It is also thanks to him that air transport will be democratized. The aircraft is available in several passenger and cargo versions, and is selling well. But the arrival of high-performance long-haul jets, like the Boeing 777, led to its decline. Boeing is trying to give it a second life by launching in 2005 a modernized and more efficient version, the 747-8. With its 76 meters in length, the aircraft can carry 410 passengers in a three-class version or 133 tons of freight over more than 14,000 km. But nothing helps. The airlines no longer order it, the fault of its four reactors that consume too much kerosene and high maintenance costs.
The very first 747 rolling off the Boeing assembly lines in 1968
The definitive cessation of its production today signals the end of the era of commercial four-jet engines. It thus follows in the footsteps of the Airbus A380, the last copy of which was delivered on December 16, 2021 to the company Emirates. Compared to the 251 A380s delivered, however, the Boeing 747 was much more successful with a total of 1,574 deliveries. But that the enthusiasts of these giants of the sky are reassured, they still have time to embark on board these two mastodons of the sky. Their withdrawal from service is indeed not expected for several decades.