According to the final customer, Atlas Air, Boeing is expected to deliver its last 747 next October. Just a handful of freighters are set to be built before Boeing closes the book on an era over half a century-long, with the first 747 being delivered to Pan Am over 50 years ago.
From the original -100 to the latest -8s, the Boeing 747 truly is an icon of the aviation industry. However, while the Queen of the Skies remains popular with the world’s cargo carriers, it is falling out of favor with passenger carriers, with just a handful of airlines still flying the type.
Final delivery in October
It seems as though the final Boeing 747 is going to be delivered in October 2022. Earlier this year, it was revealed that Atlas Air had purchased the last four 747s to be built. Commenting on Atlas Air’s Q3 earnings call, and as reported by Bloomberg, the airline’s CEO, John Dietrich, said,
“These are the last 747s that Boeing will ever produce, and we’re delighted they’ll be coming to Atlas.”
He then went on to add that the airline is planning to take delivery of the four aircraft between May and October 2022. This is in line with dates previously published by Simple Flying, based on data from ch-aviation.com. Their latest data suggests the following delivery schedule,
- UPS – Delivery: November 2021
- UPS – Delivery: November 2021
- UPS – Delivery: November 2021
- Atlas Air – Delivery: May 2022
- Atlas Air – Delivery: July 2022
- Atlas Air – Delivery: September 2022
- Atlas Air – Delivery: October 2022
Wrapping up the program
The final Boeing 747 delivery will be a hugely special moment for Boeing. Over 52 years have passed since the aircraft first flew on February 9th, 1969. The aircraft entered service with Pan Am in January 1970, and since then, more than 1,500 jets have been built in various variations from the shortened 747SP all the way to the latest 747-8F.
With so much history behind the Boeing 747, you can expect that Boeing won’t let the program end without saying a proper goodbye, so be on the lookout for a couple of special events to mark the final delivery.
No place for four engines?
As the world and the aviation industry take steps to slash their carbon emissions, the four-engined giants have been falling out of favor. This was abundantly clear through sales of the last 747 variants. Just three passenger airlines took on the Boeing 747-8. In addition to this, many airlines have scrapped their 747-400s over the past year or so.
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It’s not just the 747 feeling the pinch, though. Despite being decades younger, the production of the Airbus A380 is also set to come to an end in the coming 12 months. Unlike the Queen of the Skies, the giant A380 failed to sell in desired amounts before the 4-engined giant started to fall out of favor.
What do you make of the final 747 delivery plan? Let us know your thoughts in the comments!
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