The Boeing 747, or the Queen of the Skies as the type is affectionately known,
has become an icon of the aviation industry over the last half a century.
Despite being much loved by passengers, the inferior economics of four engines
has meant that most remaining passenger operators have said goodbye to the type…
These days Frankfurt Airport is likely your best bet to see passenger Boeing 747s,
thanks to the fleet of -400s and -8s that continue to be operated by Lufthansa.
While the German flag carrier is now the largest user of the type, it wasn't from 2010 to 2019.
Considering this, we've used schedule data from aviation data experts Cirium to reveal
the top ten users of the Boeing 747 for passenger services between January 2010 and December 2019.
Let’s go through this list in today’s video…
Data shows that Saudia was the tenth biggest user of the Boeing 747 for passenger services
between 2010 and 2019 with 57,468 scheduled flights.
When you think of Saudia, the Boeing 747 may not be the first aircraft that comes to mind.
However, according to data from ch-aviation.com, the Saudi Arabian flag carrier operated
18 passenger 747s during the 2010s. The airline operated 747-100s, -300s, and -400s,
with all four of the latter model flying until 2016. According to the available data,
the airline flew the 747-100 until 2011, with the -300s phased out between 2011 and 2013.
This middle eastern carrier then retired its last passenger Boeing 747 in 2016.
There are still 747s operating in Saudi Arabia today. However, these are mainly leases from
Air Atlanta Europe and Air Atlanta Iceland for both cargo and high-volume passenger operations.
In 9th place is UK airline Virgin Atlantic.
Sir Richard Branson launched the full-service
airline with a single Boeing 747-200 named 'Maiden Voyager' back in 1984.
Maiden Voyager, registered G-VIRG, left the Virgin Atlantic fleet in 2001, and by 2010,
the airline was only operating the Boeing 747-400. The London-based carrier used 13 jumbo jets during
the decade, with planes retiring gradually until Virgin Atlantic discontinued the fleet
at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020. Of the jets operated, Virgin Atlantic’s special
Star Wars Boeing 747-400 registered G-VLIP was one of the more interesting sight in the skies.
The carrier had flights scheduled to 26 airports throughout the decade, with 59,191 flights planned
during the ten years. Unsurprisingly, its London Gatwick Airport base came out
on top of the list with almost 15,000 flights. Orlando came second with around 10,000 flights,
surpassing London Heathrow Airport with approximately 7,700 arriving flights.
28 aircraft were part of the Qantas fleet across the decade The Australian
flag carrier takes the eighth spot on our list. Like Saudia and Virgin Atlantic,
the airline has operated a range of 747 variants, though only the Boeing
747-400 and the 747-400(ER) flew with the kangaroo on its tail during the 2010s.
. Like Virgin Atlantic, the airline pulled the plug on the type ahead of schedule due to the
COVID-19 pandemic. One of the airline's jumbo jets will live on as an engine testbed for Rolls-Royce.
From 2010 to 2019, the airline had 62,829 scheduled flights to 27 destinations,
including four that only had a single service planned.
The top airport was unsurprisingly Sydney, while Los Angeles came in at second-place with
almost double the flights that Brisbane, in the state of Queensland, received.
One Qantas 747-400, retired in March 2020, was bought up and sold to Kalitta
Air as a quote-unquote spares ship. From the sounds of it, the jet is slated for dismantling
and cannibalization, with its parts being used as spares for other operational Kalitta jumbos.
The 7th airline is United. While all of the big three American carriers flew the Queen
of the Skies, United Airlines is the only carrier that operated enough flights to make the top ten.
The airline operated a fleet of 23 Boeing 747-400s during the decade,
with aircraft leaving the fleet between 2010 and 2017.
The US carrier operated its final Boeing 747 flight on November 7th,
2017, retiring the fleet long before the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.
United Airlines had 66,543 flights scheduled with the jumbo jet during the ten years from 2010.
The carrier had occasional 747 flights to many destinations, meaning that the type visited
143 cities during the decade. San Francisco was the top city with around 20,500 flights,
while Tokyo Narita came second with about 7,000 services ahead of Chicago. Interestingly,
Birmingham, Alabama, and Birmingham, United Kingdom both had two scheduled services.
Spot number six is Taiwanese airline China Airlines.
This carrier was still flying passenger Boeing 747 aircraft as recently as 2021. The airline
continues to operate the freight variety, having brought forward the retirement of some aircraft.
During the decade in question, the airline had 33 jumbo jets, with 12 of these used to
carry passengers. 18 cargo aircraft remain in service. Interestingly, China Airlines
operated the final Boeing 747-400 ever built for passenger use. This was registered B-18215.
The airline had 87,622 scheduled flights across the ten years.
Around half of these were from Taipei, where the aircraft were based.
Interestingly, the second top destination, Hong Kong, only had around 6,300 flights.
At 5th is Thai Airways.
In November 2020, the airline put up a whopping 32 widebody aircraft for sale, including ten
Boeing 747-400s. According to ch-aviation.com, Thai Airways operated 16 passenger Boeing 747s
during the relevant years, with eight still listed as belonging to the airline's fleet.
As was the case with China Airlines, and unsurprisingly, around half of the 89,921
Thai Airways Boeing 747-400 flights last decade flew to the airline's base in Bangkok.
Interestingly, around 8,000 flights with the Queen of the Skies
operated between Bangkok and Phuket, a simple one-hour domestic hop. The fact that Phuket is
both a popular domestic and international tourist destination explains this route.
These days, Phuket is served by the 777 and 787,
with service to cities like Sydney, London, and Frankfurt.
Airline number 4 is Dutch carrier KLM.
When you think of the Queen of the Skies, this airline is one that instantly comes to mind. While
not alone in doing so, KLM most notably and quite frequently operated the Boeing 747-400M Combi,
an aircraft that could take cargo in a special section behind passengers on the main deck.
As is the case with many other major Boeing 747-400s,
the COVID-19 pandemic marked the death of the airline's fleet.
The last Boeing 747 that flew for KLM left Amsterdam Schiphol Airport on March 15th, 2021.
This airline is one of just four airlines to surpass 100,000 scheduled Boeing 747 flights
in the 2010s, narrowly accomplishing the feat with 100,673 services.
The airline flew the Queen everywhere from Aruba to Washington,
with Amsterdam accounting for slightly fewer than half its flights.
St. Maarten, a notable KLM 747 destination, saw 980 such services over the time period.
Korean Air takes the bronze medal for most passenger 747 operations in the previous decade.
The airline had a staggering 65 Boeing 747s during this period,
though just 33 of these (roughly half) were passenger aircraft.
Notably, the airline is the first in the top ten to operate the newest passenger model of the 747,
the -8i. As such, the airline is one of the few that continues to fly the
type…after all, its oldest 747-8 is just six and a half years old!
Korean Air scheduled the Queen of the Skies for 102,627 flights, flying to cities from Amsterdam
to Zurich. Seoul Incheon Airport saw around 33,000 services, while Seoul-Gimpo saw roughly 18,000.
Jeju saw around 12,000. As was the case with China Airlines, Hong Kong was the
top international destination with around 3,700 flights, giving about 370 a year.
The 2nd place spot goes to German carrier Lufthansa.
Today this airline remains the largest Boeing 747 operator, continuing to fly both the newer -8 and
the older -400s, the latter of which will be phased out when Boeing 777-9 deliveries
eventually begin. Across the period, Lufthansa operated 49 Boeing 747s, including the 747-400M
as was also flown by KLM. Just 22 of these aircraft have been retired since 2010.
It’s a big jump between the third and second place carriers.
Indeed, data reveals that Lufthansa scheduled 62%
more flights than Korean Airlines, with a staggering 166,380 passenger services scheduled.
As expected, around half of these were to Frankfurt Airport,
the airline's main hub. Interestingly,
just four jumbo jets were attributed to the airline's secondary hub in Munich.
The US was and continues to be a major destination for the type, with Chicago, Washington, and New
York making up the airline's three most served international destinations across the decade.
Finally we come to airline number one - the carrier that operated the most 747 services during
the 2010s. If you haven’t guessed already, the airline is British flag carrier, British Airways.
The airline has become synonymous with the Queen of the skies,
operating the type for around half a century.
BA's love of the 747 started with the 747-100, which was initially
delivered to the airline's predecessor, BOAC. The dream was cut short in 2020,
again by COVID-19. Impressively, British Airways operated 52 Boeing 747-400s across the decade,
according to data from ch-aviation.com. All of these were the passenger variant.
British Airways scheduled the Boeing 747-400 on 226,901 services across the decade. With 111,397
flights, the airline operated more services to London alone
than Korean Air scheduled across its entire network during the same time.
The planes flew around the world to diverse destinations ranging from Abuja to Washington.
New York was the top destination for the type.
As the world's most profitable route pre-covid, this comes as no surprise.
JFK saw around 19,600 services. Doing the math, this equates to roughly 1,960 a year or just over
5 per day. The second highest destination, Miami, saw around 7,000 by comparison.
Sadly, after 2020, the 747 has become significantly more rare in the skies
as a passenger aircraft. As we mentioned in our list, Virgin Atlantic, KLM, and British
Airways all retired the type as a result of travel restrictions brought about by COVID-19.
Many of these have been scrapped while others are sitting in long-term storage,
likely waiting to be scrapped.
If we were to find a bright side to this, we would imagine that Germany’s Lufthansa will
have no problem at all sourcing parts to keep its existing fleet of passenger 747-400s operational.
While production of the passenger variant of the 747 has long ended, Boeing continues
to produce 747-8 freighters. However, the US planemaker announced in 2021 that this, too,
would come to an end, with the company no longer taking new orders for the type.
This year, in 2022, the firm is set to fully end production of the 747
as it fulfills the last few orders. Freight carrier Atlas Air is due to
take delivery of the last 747 ever built, with this scheduled to happen in October.
It’s been a long run and an impressive journey for the Queen of the Skies,
with the 2010s marking the beginning of the end for widespread passenger operations.
Going back to our list, did any of the airlines presented surprise you?
Let us know what you think and why by leaving a comment!