In 2020, KLM retired its last Boeing 747 aircraft. This brought the curtain down
on nearly half a century of jumbo jet operations at the Dutch flag carrier.
The first variant of the ‘Queen of the skies’ that KLM operated was the 747-200,
which initially had the same short upper deck as the original 747-100. However, several examples
of KLM’s 747-200s ended up having a stretched upper deck, which would eventually become a
standard feature on later 747s, but there’s an interesting story behind how these came to be…
In terms of the 747-200, KLM operated 17 examples between 1971 and 2004.
Of these, 10 were the standard passenger-carrying version, five were 747-200M Combis,
and two were full freighters. What made some of KLM’s 747-200s
particularly interesting was their conversion to a stretched upper deck.
The modification was something Boeing offered to give airlines additional capacity.
In the end, just two airlines took up this option for their 747-200s. French carrier
Union de Transports Aériens (UTA) did so for two aircraft. KLM, on the other hand, made
a more significant investment by converting 10. According to Airline Reporter, this modification
increased the length of the aircraft’s conspicuous hump by around seven meters.
The result of this change, Boeing proclaimed, was a quote “10% increase in capacity with only
a 2% change in operating empty weight.” The stretch was a complex, multi-step
procedure that required work on more than just the upper deck crown itself. Indeed,
engineers also had to remove the roof behind the original upper deck, and the cab crown.
These steps left sufficient space for the stretched upper deck, which was positioned
and secured in place following the necessary structural preparations. KLM also used this
as a chance to remove the plane’s overwing exits and slides, making space for more seats.
For KLM’s 747-200s, it applied the stretched upper deck conversion to two freighters, five Combis,
and three standard passenger variants. Overall, these represented nearly 60% of KLM’s total
contingent of 747-200s. While the concept of the stretched upper deck didn’t exactly take off as
a retrofit, it shaped the future of the 747. Indeed, when the next variant of the family
was launched, the 747-300, the stretched upper deck came as standard. Indeed, Boeing
claimed that thanks to the aforementioned minimal increase in weight for the 10%
capacity increase, this feature decreased fuel consumption by 5% per seat-mile. All in all,
it made sense from a financial point of view. While the 747-300 experienced low sales,
the stretched upper deck was retained by the 747-400 that followed. This quickly
outsold its predecessor with 694 examples. Fast forward to 2005 and Boeing would build
on the stretched upper deck by stretching it even further with the 747-8i. Unfortunately, this last
variant of the Queen of the Skies wouldn’t be as popular as previous versions of the aircraft.
Did you know about KLM’s 747-200 stretched upper deck aircraft? Let us know by leaving a comment.