Hamburg Airport Set To Scrap Former Lufthansa Boeing 707

Despite the ongoing attempts to save Lufthansa’s last Boeing 707, time seems to have run out for the jet. Hamburg Airport has officially scheduled the scrapping on the aircraft from June 8th to 16th, leaving only two weeks. Regular Simple Flying readers might be aware that we have been following the savior attempts for months now. Sadly, barring a last-minute miracle, D-ABOD is heading for the scrap.

Hamburg Airport has officially set a date for the scrapping of D-ABOD. Photo: Lufthansa

Last days

Since February, a group of aviation enthusiasts have been working to secure the last Lufthansa 707 from being scrapped. Ever since Hamburg Airport announced plans to scrap the last jet due to yearly maintenance costs of €4,000-6,000 ($4,873-7,310), the group has been working hard to prevent this from happening.

However, in an update yesterday, the group announced that Hamburg Airport officials have informed them that the scraping on D-ABOD has been scheduled for June 8th to 16th. Despite the group raising over €7,600 ($9,260) for the rescue effort, the airport seems to have moved ahead with dismantling the aircraft instead.

The aircraft was preserved at Hamburg Airport for years after retirement but reportedly became unsustainable due to the pandemic. Photo: wiltshirespotter via Wikimedia Commons

The scrapping decision has come as a huge blow to the aviation group hoping to save the aircraft. They have also alleged that the airport has decided to block their efforts in recent weeks, excluding them from the conversation. In a statement to Simple Flying yesterday, they said,

“Today, due to an email from the Hamburg Airport press office, the situation suddenly turned significantly negative about the receipt…At no point was the airport seriously responding to our rescue efforts. We were ignored or even blocked…We have now collected an amount of donations through crowdfunding that, under the previous conditions, would cover the costs of D-ABOD for 1.5 years. Nevertheless, the airport continues to block us and the scrapping of the D-ABOD is pushed ahead.”

Tough

For a brief period in the last three months, there seemed to be signs of a breakthrough. In March, the removal of the Lufthansa 707 was delayed indefinitely due to the ongoing rescue efforts. However, in mid-April, a new date in June had already been set for the plane’s removal and scrapping. Sadly, today, that date has been confirmed as the final one for D-BOAD.

Despite Hamburg Airport repeatedly saying it wanted to preserve the aircraft, no agreement has been reached. This means, barring a last-minute buyer with tens of thousands of euros, the aircraft is very likely headed to the scrapyard.

After 61 years serving in Germany, D-ABOD could be looking at its final days now. Photo: Getty Images

This would be a huge blow to the aptly named ‘Friends of the Boeing 707 D-ABOD’ group and aviation enthusiasts around the world. D-ABOD first entered the Lufthansa fleet in April of 1960, according to Planelogger.com. It served for over a decade before being preserved at the airport permanently.

As the pandemic continues to ravage the aviation industry, D-ABOD will likely be another piece of history lost.

What do you think about Hamburg’s decision to scrap the last Lufthansa 707? Let us know in the comments.

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