The countdown to the end of the 747 programs is approaching.
Boeing Co. is poised to deliver its final 747 jumbo freighter next October, marking
the end of production of a storied hump-nosed jetliner that introduced air travel to the
masses.
Freight and leasing company Atlas Air Worldwide Holdings Inc., which bought the rights to
the last four 747-8s in January, plans to take delivery of the hulking cargo haulers
between May and October of next year, Chief Executive Officer John Dietrich said during
an earnings call Wednesday.
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And in today's video, we are going to talk about “Boeing Set To Deliver Its Last Ever
747 & More Manufacturer News.”
So without any further ado, Let's begin.
Thousands of jets have been built, and it has gone on to become an icon of the aviation
industry.
Just look at how disappointed many were when they missed out on the chance of a final Boeing
747 flight when many airlines suddenly retired the type without notice last year.
It will be the end of a glorious career for a commercial airline that changed the landscape
of air travel, with its enormous capacity.
Since January 1970, when it entered service with Pan Am, the 747 has been a common presence
at many airports around the world.
Boeing has registered 1,683 orders for the aircraft, from rare models such as the 747SP
(Special Performance) to the popular 747-400, which is still used in passenger flights today.
Until recently, no other widebody has been delivered more than the “Queen of Skies”.
Only recently has the 777 surpassed the 747 in deliveries and it will soon be the turn
of the Airbus A330.
Its biggest competitor, the A380, will also have the last plane delivered soon, but it
hasn’t come close to getting as many orders as the Jumbo.
The largest commercial jet in history will close its cycle with only 251 aircraft built,
or 15% of the 747 built.
Not bad for a project over half a decade old.
Boeing announced in July that the 747 would exit production within the next two years
as dwindling customer demand made clear that the aircraft's time had come to end.
It was thought at the time that either UPS Airlines or Volga-Dnepr Group's AirBridgeCargo
would be one of the last recipients of the plane as the two had the most outstanding
orders.
For Atlas, the 747-8F offers an additional 20% more cargo capacity and 16% lower fuel
consumption compared to the 747-400F, of which the carrier has 34 currently.
And compared to the 777F, the 747-8F offers 25% more cargo capacity.
"The 747-8F is the best and most versatile widebody freighter in the market, and we are
excited to bolster our fleet with the acquisition of these four aircraft," John Dietrich, president,
and chief executive officer of Atlas Air Worldwide, said in a statement.
“The 747-8F is the best and most versatile wide-body freighter in the market, and we
are excited to bolster our fleet with the acquisition of these four aircraft,” stated
John Dietrich, Atlas Air President and Chief Executive Officer (CEO).
“The efficiency and capability of the 747-8F further complement our longstanding focus
on leading-edge technology.
Dedicated freighters like those operated by our Atlas, Polar, and Southern subsidiaries
will continue to be in demand as the global airfreight market, particularly the e-commerce
and express sectors, continues to grow,” further commented Dietrich.
Acquiring the final four aircraft gives Atlas the opportunity to fly the aircraft in-house
or lease them out for other carriers to use.
Cargo airlines like Atlas have been hunting for more planes since passenger airlines cut
their flying schedules and took valuable cargo space with them.
Freighters that were retired and stored before the pandemic began were reactivated and passenger
airlines began dedicating flights solely to cargo.
“These are the last 747s that Boeing will ever produce, and we’re delighted they’ll
be coming to Atlas,” Dietrich said during an investor conference.
American Airlines and United Airlines are among the carriers with outstanding orders
of the Dreamliner.
Both carriers are aiming to expand international flying this year, eager to make up for lost
ground from two years of weak demand for foreign travel due to the pandemic and a host of travel
restrictions.
American Airlines chief revenue officer Vasu Raja said the deliveries of the Dreamliner
will set the pace of its international expansion.
“It’s a pretty meaningful impact on how fast we can build back internationally,”
Raja told CNBC.
Among Boeing’s 27 deliveries last month were 18 737 Maxes, one 747 freighters, one
767 freighter, and two 777 freighters.
Cargo jets and air freight capacity have been in high demand during the pandemic amid supply
chain issues and a loss of belly capacity from other passenger planes.
The manufacturer posted net orders of seven planes, including eight Maxes and two 777
freighters.
It also logged three cancellations, including two 787-10s for Air Lease.
The good news is that they won’t disappear from the skies any time soon.
While falling out of favor with passenger operators, the Queen of the Skies remains
a vital part of the cargo industry, and the aircraft yet to be delivered will have a fair
tour in the skies before retirement.
Even passengers flights are possible, though harder to find, as German flag carrier Lufthansa
has committed to its eight remaining 747-400s until 2023 and its 747-8s for even longer.
Currently, sales for both the Boeing 747 8 and the Airbus A380 are a bit soft, particularly
the 747 8i.
Where many airlines have been buying the Boeing 747 400 over the past years, some have selected
this aircraft, not for its size necessarily, so much as the long-range ability that it
offers.
Today, however, we see that twinjets such as the Airbus A330, Boeing 777, Boeing 787,
and the new Airbus A350 have moved into the long-range niche.
Some of the longest routes in the world are now operated by varying versions of these
twin jet airliners.
Technology today has progressed to the point that jet engines are far more dependable than
their predecessors and long over-water flights are safe.
Something called ETOPS (Extended-range Twin-engine Operational Performance Standards) governs
the ability for new aircraft models to be allowed to fly for extended periods over water.
This is granted to new aircraft models progressively as they prove their reliability.
For example, ETOPS-180 means that an aircraft can only go over the water to an extent where
they can get to the nearest available suitable airfield flying on one engine in under 180
minutes.
So the point here is to show that the advantage of long-range is no longer a sole attribute
of the A380 and 747 alone, their only advantage now is the ability to carry many more passengers
than the smaller twinjets.
The advantage for Boeing is that their Jumbo 747 8 is also sold as a cargo version, the
747 8 Freighter, so this may give them a wider market to appeal to.
After it became a best seller with commercial airlines, the 747's success as a freighter
was due not only to its immense size (the 747-8 can fit 137.7 metric tons of freight)
but also because of its swing up nose allowed for easy cargo loading.
Besides the 747, the only civilian cargo jets that feature a nose door are the Antonov An-224
Mriya and the An-124 Ruslan, both incredibly rare compared to the mass-produced Boeing
planes.
The jet was always intended to be a freighter as Pan Am boss Juan Trippe had figured supersonic
jets like the Concorde would fly passengers while traditional jet aircraft like the 747
would be relegated to cargo.
General Electric GEnx engines with fan blades made from carbon-fiber composites exclusively
power the 747-8F and offer a 15% increase in fuel efficiency.
Takeoff thrust with the four engines is 66,500 pounds, according to the manufacturer.
And despite a published range of 4,120 nautical miles, according to Boeing, the 747-8F can
fly journeys well over 6,000 nautical miles.
UPS Airlines, for example, regularly flies between its Louisville Worldport and Dubai
non-stop using the aircraft, though it's likely the aircraft is weight restricted to maximize
range.
The Boeing 747 will keep flying for years to come as cargo carriers will want to make
the most of the soon-to-be-extinct aircraft.
Passenger airliners, however, have quickly been ridding themselves of the Jumbo Jet with
Qantas, British Airways, KLM Royal Dutch Airlines, and Virgin Atlantic Airways, among others,
all saying goodbye to the aircraft in recent years.
Airbus tried to outdo Boeing with a cargo version of its even bigger A380, but it never
found buyers.
There is technically a tenth outstanding Boeing 747-8, according to Boeing’s books, although
it isn’t a brand new aircraft.
The aircraft in question is a passenger Boeing 747-8 that Lufthansa didn’t take up.
Its MSN is 37826, and it is currently registered as N828BA.
The jet is already ten years old, having taken its first flight on April 26th, 2011.
The aircraft is currently in storage at Victorville in the Mojave Desert.
Boeing has found a buyer for the jet, but the details are being kept under wraps.
Boeing has already ended production of its 747-8 Intercontinental passenger version,
and both it and previous 747 versions are an incredibly rare sight in the skies these
days.
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