Blog #13: 2/1/23: Aviation Blog: Remembering the Boeing 747
Boeing 747-8F of Nippon Cargo Airlines (NCA)
Source: (By Maarten Visser from Capelle aan den IJssel, Nederland - JA13KZ B747-8F Nippon Cargo 31 jan 2013 jfk, CC BY-SA 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=26610203)
Welcome to the next Brooke in the Air blog! Today, we take a look back at the Boeing 747! The original Queen of the Skies!
Launch customer (one of several) Iberia Airways’ Boeing 747-200, 1980.
Source: (By Iberia Airlines - Flickr: B-747, CC BY 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=15449551)
Today, Boeing delivered the last 747 and shuttered the production lines, shifting to get ready for the hallowed successor to the 747, the 777X.
Powered by 4 either General Electric CF-6, or Rolls Royce RB211 engines (depending on the customers’ preference, usually US-based airlines chose the General Electric engines, while the European airlines chose the Rolls Royce, but the choice could go either way)
Lockheed L-1011 TriStar
TriStar of Delta Airlines, 1989, on landing approach.
Source: (By Aero Icarus from Zürich, Switzerland - 11df - Delta Air Lines Lockheed L-1011 TriStar 1; N1732D@FLL;30.01.1998, CC BY-SA 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=26741410)
Continental Airlines (later, United Airlines) DC-10
DC-10 Widebody for reference, 2 March, 2010 before the United-Continental merger
Source: (Danielkang7744 at English Wikipedia)
The 747-200 could typically accommodate 366 passengers across three classes (Economy, Business, First), and was unmatched in many categories. Initial competition came from smaller widebody jets, such as the Lockheed L-1011 Tristar, McDonnell Douglas DC-10 and MD-11 (ironically, McDonnell Douglas would be bought out by Boeing later on, eliminating the DC-10 and MD-11 from being any real competition to the 747). All pictured to the left.
KLM-Royal Dutch Airlines McDonnell Douglas MD-11
MD-11 taking off from its hub at Amsterdam-Schipol Airport
Source: (By KLM_McDonnell_Douglas_MD-11_PH-KCK.jpg: Boushh_TFA from Kortenhoef, The Netherlandsderivative work: Altair78 (talk) - KLM_McDonnell_Douglas_MD-11_PH-KCK.jpg, CC BY-SA 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=17563777)
Emirates’ Airbus A380, Direct Competitor of the 747-8i, 2007-2021
Airbus A360 of Emirates taking off from New York-JFK Airport, 2013
Source: (By Maarten Visser from Capelle aan den IJssel, Nederland - A6-EDY A380 Emirates 31 jan 2013 jfk, CC BY-SA 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=56233674)
747-200F Freighter illustrating nose-door loading of cargo at Moscow’s Sheremetyevo International Airport, before the invasion of Ukraine (2022-Ongoing) closed airspace to international travel.
Freighter variants of the 747 are still in service and will remain so, as they are increasingly popular with cargo companies such as Nippon Cargo Airlines, DHL, and UPS Worldwide Freight. The DC-10 is popularly used by FedEx, by contrast, as they find the DC-10 more feasible than the 747. The direct competition to the 747 from 2007-2021 was Airbus’ gigantic A380, which is arguably more popular among several Middle East airlines (Emirates, Etihad) and even supplanting the 747 in some cases, as seen in some European airlines (Lufthansa, Air France, British Airways, etc.) A380 is pictured above.
Boeing 747-8 Digital Flight Deck
747-8 Flight Deck featuring the all-digital glass cockpit.
Source: (By Boeing_747-8I_flight_deck_Beltyukov.jpg: Alex Beltyukovderivative work: Altair78 (talk) - Boeing_747-8I_flight_deck_Beltyukov.jpg, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=16788528)
Boing 747-8i
747-8i undergoing initial testing over Boeing’s Everett Plant in Washington state, USA
Source: (By Boeing Dreamscape - 2010208 747-8 First Flight Everett WA, CC BY 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=12182713)
Eventually, to compete with new advances in aircraft and engines, Boeing created the 747-8i, or 747-8 intercontinental. Pictured on the left-down, and below (labeled), the 747-8 featured a glass cockpit, more fuel-efficient engines, an enhanced fuselage, and enhanced wings using the same type of material the 787 Dreamliner uses in its design and construction.
The noise quotient on the 747-8i is far quieter than that of previous iterations of the Queen of the Skies - the 747’s official nickname, by the way, according to the three main London-area suburban airports.
Underside view of the Boeing 747-8i
While the wing sweep and basic structure of the wing were kept, advancements in aerospace technology and improvements were applied to the 747-8i, enabling better fuel consumption, fuel economy overall, aerodynamics, double-slotted inboard flaps, single-slotted outboard flaps, and raked wingtips which reduces the overall drag coefficient.
Source: (By Aktug Ates - Gallery page https://www.jetphotos.com/photo/7762446Photo https://cdn.jetphotos.com/full/3/98870_1390969503.jpg, GFDL 1.2, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=31484773)
In February of 2015, the ETOPS certification of 330 minutes was given to the 747-8i, the first time ever that a Extended-range Twin-Engine Operations Performance Standards (ETOPS) was given to a four-engine aircraft, regarding single-engine operation.
Close-up of the Boeing 747-8F(i) with the new GE GenX engines (starboard side) with chevrons. Carrier: Cargolux
Source: (By Gleb Osokin - Russian AviaPhoto Team - Gallery page http://www.airliners.net/photo/Cargolux/Boeing-747-8R7F-SCD/2120338/LPhoto http://cdn-www.airliners.net/aviation-photos/photos/8/3/3/2120338.jpg, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=28641209)
The 747-8i is the world’s longest commercial passenger airliner, surpassing the then-new Airbus A340-700 by 18 feet and can carry 465 passengers in 3 classes, with a maximum takeoff weight (MTOW) of 975,000 lbs.
It’s four literal largest competitors are the Airbus A340-600, Airbus A350-1000XWB (Xtra-Wide Body), the fellow Boeing 777X, and the Airbus A380-800.
Current (and primary) users of the 747-8i are UPS Worldwide Cargo, Atlas Air, Korean Air, Nippon Cargo Airlines, Lufthansa, and Cathay Pacific Cargo. Cargo users will only increase with time, even as passenger liners decrease.
The 747-8i isn’t selling very well compared to similar aircraft in 2020-2022, but Boeing isn’t concerned. Those planes that have sold are proving their worth and keeping Airbus on its toes regarding their use of the A350 and its problems, which, in a way, is its primary purpose.
In honor of the Queen of the Skies, this toast is for you!
