The Boeing 747, the jumbo jet that made air travel possible for the masses, is officially retired, with Boeing having delivered the last instance of its flagship model on Tuesday:
Boeing and Atlas Air Worldwide joined thousands of people – including current and former employees as well as customers and suppliers – to celebrate the delivery of the final 747 to Atlas, bringing to a close more than a half century of production.
Boeing employees who designed and built the first 747, known as the "Incredibles," returned to be honored at the Everett factory where the journey of the 747 began in 1967. The factory produced 1,574 airplanes over the life of the program.
It truly is the end of an era. The Boeing 747 was arguably to airplanes what the Model T was to automobiles: Not the best or the fanciest example of its kind, but the one that more or less democratized that mode of travel and made it accessible to normal, average people.
Check out this 1971 ad for this bad boy:
The history of the 747 really is essentially the history of mass air travel:
Known for its distinctive hump and upper deck, the "Queen of the Skies" made long-haul travel affordable for the masses decades ago and for many symbolizes the golden age of air travel. "Because of its size, because of its range, the economy of this giant airplane…it really gave wings to the world," said Boeing historian Mike Lombardi.
The 747's "hump" is one of its more distinctive features, although after a half-century many of us might not even notice it on first glance:
It's one of the more practical elements of the aircraft:
Joe Sutter, Boeing's lead engineer for the 747, oversaw the development of the plane's unique fuselage hump, which allows it to swallow bigger cargo loads.
Sutter's airplane "almost bankrupted the company" before putting on the map as the world's premier aircraft corporation.
And man, did they really roll out the red carpet for this thing:
The 747's huge cabin space initially provided passengers with room for everything from piano bars to lunch carveries.
There really was a much higher element of luxury on the 747s in those days. Here's a shot from the upper deck of a Lufthansa 747 in 1975:
So suave, so cool. Have a Chesterfield, have a flute of champers, wear a turtleneck. Here's an upper deck on the same model today:
Wow that is so much more lame. Instead of witty banter and Glenfiddich, you get to watch a Marvel movie on a TV screen from 2003.
Still, the 747's sterling reputation is well-deserved. When NASA needed an aircraft to ferry its space shuttle from one base to the next, after all, what did it choose? Ol' Reliable herself:
Times change, and the first era of mass air transit is officially over. It was a great run. What comes next will surely be good too.
But don't forget about the legend herself, the 747. After all, when Iron Maiden needed a craft for its flagship Ed Force One, what did they choose? That's right:
