END OF ERA - Why Qantas Retired 747

[@systeminoperative8790]

I recall when Qantas was the only carrier on the planet that only had 747's & no other aircraft all all.

[@oliverthomas373]

Lufthansa has them, and many cargo airlines.

[@heidirabenau511]

​@@oliverthomas373 I believe that LH never only operated the 747, they do currently operate the 747 but they also operate other aircraft types. The Original Comment says that Qantas once only operated the 747, which is correct, but I believe that LH never fit this category.

[@oliverthomas373]

@@heidirabenau511 Yeah they operate others, but they did (and still do) operate them now.

[@oliverthomas373]

Oh wait - I see🤣

[@oliverthomas373]

I misread

[@nyc1164]

It's sad to see the Queen of the Sky's disappear. But I'm glad I rode Qantas 747 twice.

[@JasonLowderTheRanga]

I once had a flight to LAX on a Qantas 747 combi. To me it was nothing odd - there just just a wall just after the passenger doors on the wing. I can remember it getting loaded from the side as I was waiting in Sydney airport. I flew on it as an unaccompanied minor. I got taken up to the cockpit just after we departed Hawaii, which was amazeballs. When I came back downstairs, the directed me to 1A and plonked me there for the rest of the flight, and I could watch the approach into LAX head on (gawd I haven't flown business class since, let alone first!)

[@xfucjygkvlkbjhgcvm]

goodjob on 25K!

[@nurrizadjatmiko21]

Congrats for reaching 25K subscribers. Yes. Qantas actually plans to retired the last remainning of it's Boeing 747 by the end of 2020 but covid cause Qantas to retired it's last remainning Queen by 5 months earlier than it's original plan

[@gdinsdale68]

I flew London - Kuwait - Singapore - Sydney in 1973 as a 5 year old i loved the old livery

[@kejmat]

A wonderful aircraft in every way. Fond memories even now of my first QF 747 trip BNE-DRW-SIN-BAH-LHR and return.

[@NeilMacedo]

Congratulations on getting 25,000 subscribers DJ

[@christopherhennessey8991]

I remember my first Qantas flight ,a 747- 400 from LAX to Auckland . Qantas flight 25.

[@airtiki2374]

I always liked the "Winged Roo"

[@deanpesci8484]

I flew on 747s to N.Z. and Italy numerous times, and those were very good times.....sometimes lucky enough to be up in the upper deck.....now THAT is flying in style......breaks my heart to see them go.....unless you are a wingtip guru these days, you cant tell one from the other....they are all the same....

[@Supersheep.]

I remember this day like it was yesterday. And I never got a chance to fly it 😢 At least I saw it 👍

[@creditelectric]

VH OEJ or Wunala Dreaming featured was originally red & travelled in it while it was in its original livery, it was sad to see it repainted white & even sadder when it left.

[@skylineXpert]

VH-OEJ is my favourite Wunala dreaming graced It for years

[@quadman2005]

Back in the day some 30 years ago now, i managed to score a flight from BNE to SYD on the SP for my honeymoon, and now both are gone =)

[@tonyburns263]

Qantas still fly the 747. I saw on this week ( late June 2023) flying Sydney to China. Who said the Queen is dead.

[@busfan9874]

I liked the qantas 747-400ER a extended range version.

[@Sacto1654]

I think Qantas should have kept the 747-400ER planes. They would be in high demand right now, especially for flights to the USA.

[@johniii8147]

To expensive to operate and very outdated interiors.

[@michaelosgood9876]

45 SPs were built & Qantas had the monopoly on the Wellington - Australia routes between 81 & 85 using SPs. The only long range type that could land at Wellington since Air NZ retired its DC8s. Qantas missed out on the advantages of the 777 300ER which I believe should have replaced their Jumbos a dozen years prior

[@johniii8147]

It was always strange they never ordered the 777-300ER

[@wotan10950]

I can certainly understand why Qantas retired the 747 from its fleet. But, since the 787 is now flying nonstop between London and Perth, I was sure Qantas would choose modified 787s for their Project Sunrise. I guess their fleet evaluators thought otherwise! Fwiw, my first 747 was in 1973 (yes, I’m way up there in years), TWA JFK-LAX. That route was considered rather long-range in those days.

[@heidirabenau511]

Boeing's offering for Project Sunrise was a modified 777-8, not a modified 787.

[@nntflow7058]

I think Boeing can't provided Qantas with Long Range version of B787. Hence why they offer B777-8 instead. I think Boeing knows that they won't make much profit by modifying B787 for Qantas.

[@johniii8147]

@@heidirabenau511 It's not large enough for what QF was looking for.

[@ftxaviation]

If only they kept it, almost impossible to jump on a Queen in Australia now. No flights from Lufthansa only the weekly Korean Air 747-8 from Sydney. Saddest moment in Australian aviation, I'll put it higher than the demise of Ansett.

[@ronaldcharan2705]

The Qantas 747 is sorely missed 😔. Airports just arent the same anymore without the queen.

[@cliffhigson7581]

I saw the first sp here on the gold coast when it was on a naming ceremony (it was named "city of gold coast tweed") pr trip must've been 1981/82 ?

[@Wongwanchungwongjumbo]

Yes definitely and due to Covid pandemic and Bought 12 Giant Airbus A380 to replace the Boeing 747-400.

[@LLMG6-3]

“DJ’s Aviation and Globetrotting coming to You via Our Sponsors Boeing Dodgy Aircraft” 😂😅😮

[@electro_sykes]

the 747 had way too many spare seats on the BNE - LAX. Who even wants to go to Brisbane?

[@parfittdignum6458]

The 747-200 originally had a silver tail with a red kangaroo

[@kcplanespotting8812]

i flew on vh-oja

[@ThePolaroid669]

not sure they were used for countless decades, I can count them.

[@valluvanthillairajah]

Was hoping to have Qantas replace them with Boeing 777X.

[@johniii8147]

THey have always stayed away from the 777 for some reason which is odd is they were involved in it's original development.

[@jdillon8360]

The 747 was revolutionary when launched, but Qantas definitely made the right call to retire that model in 2020. It's an outdated, inefficient plane now. Having flown many times from Australia to South America on both the 747 and 787, the Dreamliner is much better. Quieter, more powerful, more efficient, more comfortable and more modern.

[@hmsagbakken]

Strange that you do wrong on the facts about the 747SP, it was 45 planes buildt, not 40. It was both used as a 747LR for the, at that time, ultra long haul flights, like SYD and MEL to LAX, but for Qantas it also did some thing else, they could take the 707 out of the fleet. They couldn't use the 747-200 to Wellington, NZ, it was to heavy to land there, and due to this being before ETOPS they neded a at least 3 engined airplane to fly there, So with the 747SP they faced out the 707 and became the only big airline in the world, flying only the 747. This lasted until they got the 767 in 1985. Qantas operated 2 SP, 3 747200M(combi) 6 747-300 and 6 747-400ER

[@mrcaialexander2352]

747 is irreplaceable, but imagine Boeing didn’t have a good deal 777X with Qantas

[@TheAirplanejunkie]

hmmm i rhink your wrong many aircraft types have already replaced the B747 & the B777x that will never take off too many clowns at Boeing these days there just not Going !!!

[@chandrachurniyogi8394]

are the chances the 12 B747-400 ER ever made by Boeing (special order) are still flying in some form or purpose & not been scrapped yet . . . large twin-deck wide body quad jets like the B747-8I & A380-800 can still be operated profitably with new super efficient propulsion systems or combined propulsion solutions, for e.g. hybrid . . . by reducing load on a turbofan engine you can lower your direct operational costs (per mile per seat) . . . by diverting the power source of some aircraft & cabin systems (that are otherwise powered by the engines) to a secondary power source other than the engine, you can get better fuel efficiency & thus more range . . . if not range, imagine the amount of fuel saved for your round trip (return flight) . . . now put that in perspective of a regular long haul flight operated by a full service airline . . . for e.g. a Singapore Airlines A380-800 twin-deck wide body quad jet with a seating capacity of 458 paxs in typical 3-class cabin layout, operating Singapore (SING) - Birmingham (BGR) twice daily . . . that's 38% - 43% fuel saved on each leg of the round trip flight . . . the other factor is minimizing man hours during MRO through fail safe automation, under trained human (oversight) supervision . . . the B747-200 & B747-400 twin-deck wide body quad jet is the one that made full service carrier British Airways & Qantas what it is today . . .

[@johniii8147]

Only in Cargo conversion but even that is not very likely. Both the 380 and 747 programs are officially dead and canceled.

[@davidsilver4339]

Just want to point out that in the USA, this is not the 7-4-7. This is the 7-forty-seven. It was referred to the seven forty-seven since it debuted.

[@johnmoloney5296]

You need to get to the point faster

[@ethanellis1881]

I refuse to accept

[@Rocket-hb6jh]

LAX started with the SP in 1981 not 1974 and it was referred to the pocket rocket, it was operated for 20 odd years, not ‘countless decades’. Please do at least a nanosecond of research. Economic sense NOT economical sense.

[@AgeCobra]

Oh and lets put the A380 back in service way to Qantas never fly you .747 for the win .The 380 was to late for the show .Retie it .

[@aryaansrivastava3756]

I do not like Boeing 747. Qantas is replacing them with Airbus A350 for its long haul Non stop routes to USA to Europe!