THE 3RD-TO-LAST 747 and MORE! Plane Spotting at Paine Field (KPAE)

[@AlexPraglowskiAviation]

My good friend Brandon and I went on a bit of a road trip down to the States last week, and naturally had to stop by one of my favourite airports to spot at. We lucked out and managed to capture the third to last Boeing 747 performing its first flight, along with a few other widebodies going for test flights of their own! Enjoy these 20+ minutes of Paine Field action!

[@jackweinborn7907]

Thanks

[@raitchison]

Such a shame to see the production shut down on these but reassuring to know that they will still be flying for decades to come.

[@nickolliver3021]

flying for decades to come? who says it will be decades?

[@wilburfinnigan2142]

@SpaceAce100 Boeing has produced the last 747 ever !!!!! Orders dried up no sales!!!! Period !!!

[@wilburfinnigan2142]

@@nickolliver3021 History !!! The 747 in freighter service will fly for decades to come, many are still in the ar after DECADES of service !!!! DUUUUH!!!!!!!!

[@raitchison]

@@nickolliver3021 In 2016 the AVERAGE age of 747s in Delta Air Lines fleet was almost 25 years with the oldest at 27.5 years. That's in passenger service. Since the 747 is very well suited to freighter duty, including conversion of passenger 747s to freighter service they typically fly another 20+ years in freighter service AFTER they have flown their last passenger. The last batch of 747 production have all been built as freighters, as are most of the entire 747-8 production run. Especially with there being no real direct replacement for the 747 in terms of carrying capacity I would expect that freight operators will be incentivized to keep theirs flying even longer than they have in the past, because they simply won't be able to replace them. Also keep in mind the 747-8 uses the same engines as the 787 which is continuing on in production, and there are a lot of very old retired 747s stored for parts so it will be relatively easy to keep them operational well into the future. Will not be surprised to see 747s still flying regularly well into the 2070s. Well not me because I'll be dead. In fact believe there will still be a few flight worthy (and occasionally flying) 747s into the 22nd century.

[@nickolliver3021]

@@raitchison The Average Age of the 747s in America was above 20 years. At getting on 30 years they would then be slated for retirement. Even those in passenger variants would be taken out of service. Well The 747 has served its duty as a freighter and now the 777X freighter and A350F will be taking over from the 747-8s as that is what will most likely happen. Even those frames that get converted from passenger config so far have had another 20 years of life. Yes, the final 4 Atlas Air 747-8fs have been built as freighters. The whole 747-8 production has all been mostly for cargo anyway. There is a real direct replacement for the 747 but the capacity will be much smaller due to more range needed (the same as the commercial modern aircraft we are seeing delivered). I wouldn't exactly expect any operator to incentivise to keep their 747fs flying even longer with the new environmental laws coming into place sooner rather than later. They will be replacing them. For example Singapore has ordered 7 A350Fs to replace older 747-400fs. That's a starter. Okay the 747-8 uses the GENX 1B engine but burns 12 tons of fuel per hour when the 777xF will burn even less, as well as the A350F. We don't know what those spare parts of those stored 747s will be used for. They could be used for more newer twin aircraft or to replace some faulty parts for the upgraded 747-8 until they are no more. The 747 will never be flying well into the 2070s because the industry will be flying eclectic freighter aircraft by then. Who knows. But again the 747f /8f will most likely will not fly well into the 22nd Century as twin freighters will be fully running anyway.

[@PLANEMANIA747]

Long live the QUEEN ❤ Beautiful video 😍😍

[@ELMS]

I was 15 years old when the 747 first flew and I’m 68 now. What an amazing aircraft. We’ll never see the Queen of the Skies again. Thanks, Alex.

[@TeemarkConvair]

well, they'll be flying for a long time still, earning their keep

[@wilburfinnigan2142]

They will be flying for decades to come. the USAF has not as yet received their last 2 that will be the VC25A's for Air Force One and the old AF 1's are over 30 years old !! !

[@arnepianocanada]

15:25 so CUTE after all the larger ones! That green is the best 747 colour - something soecial in the way it discreetly radiates the colour.

[@adrianleusink1970]

I didn't realize 747s were still being produced to this day. Wow. Great catch by you to get this one recorded. What an iconic and beautiful aircraft. In my opinion the 747 did ONE very major thing for aviation/society. It made air travel much more affordable for the masses.

[@kpaespotter2717]

Great videos dude!! I was probably standing right next to you lol

[@bk1165]

Cool to the RAT (Ram Air Turbine) deployed on the FedEx 777. Looks like they used it to get the gear down, note gear doors open.

[@threeparots1]

Can hear the Rat in the odd shots too

[@TeemarkConvair]

good call, i KNEW someone would catch it

[@CRAZYcoolTy]

It looked to me also that the 747-8F in the last shot had the RAT deployed aswell

[@johncassels3475]

Good work catching the antepenultimate Boeing 747 first flight! 😁

[@trob0914]

AWESOME Footage Alex, some good catches. I live across the water from Paine, however i don't get to plane spot as much as I'd like(maybe some day). Be Safe in your travels, looking forward to your next video!!

[@CoastToCoast_Trains]

What an amazing catch Alex! What are you doing down in Paine Field? Its sad to see this iconic aircraft slowly start to leave our skies over the years.. Thank you Alex for producing this amazing content for us to watch!

[@Sirikiller]

Loved watching all these planes flying with their RATs deployed. 🤩

[@CoastalAutoReactionCAR]

Great Video Alex keep it up!

[@peterdavis3948]

Wow! I thought Calgary shots were great! These were something special. Especially when the planes pivot from taxiway to runway. The engines really jump out

[@alexrebmann1253]

Around 1969, 1970 I was living outside of Roswell NM on a closed airforce base. Walker AFB. My dad was in the army and he had to go to Korea for 1 year and mother, sister, and I could not go with him. The housing on the base was for military family members whose spouses went overseas. Boeing was using the base at the time to do test flights for the first 747. I would get on my bike and ride to the runway and watch touch and go landing. When the plane was not flying I was able to get up close to the plane. Walker AFB was a B-52 sac base so it had wide runways.

[@threeparots1]

Met my other half at the viewing area atop the tour centre. Great vantage point. I hope you got over to the Museum of flight restoration centre over on the other side of the airport. They have a DH Conet 4C among others nifty war planes and they used to have a scale sized wire half of the 2707. Not sure if that has been put into an exhibit. Neat stuff and great spotting. Navigator hotel in Everett has a 727 wing and part of a Fokker f28 fuselage over the lobby entrance.

[@p51mustangflyer3]

Woahhh, I toured the Factory when that exact 747 was still being built, a beautiful machine, any idea when the last two will fly? I would love to get up and see them in person

[@DOMINICAAVIATION]

*Sigh* So sad these are a dying breed! What a wonderful close-up!

[@A340AviationHD]

When I went up to Seattle I saw a green unpainted 747 and it turns out it was the same one you have captured I was hoping to see it on a test flight but it was like two weeks ago. A shame I didn’t see in action but I’m glad you did! Sad to see only two more are being built

[@jordanwong461]

I was literally there spotting that day lol, I recognized a lot of aircraft in your video that I saw irl

[@VancouverAviation]

amazing video im getting a camera soon to make vids just like you!!!

[@frankthomas855]

Bucket list spot for me. Thanks for sharing Alex. Love all your work. Did you hear the R A.T. on that ANA 787? I've never heard one in use before, that thing is loud!

[@joshuahalla.k.a.controlla6333]

Great video. ☺️

[@greg6122]

Awesome video! Thanks for sharing!!!💯👍

[@jamesstenhouse4113]

Great work Alex. I have never before seen speed taxi test's. Cheers from the Canadian Rockies l*l 🙂

[@amtrakharry]

That was amazing Alex !!! Thank you for sharing this with us...:):):)

[@giths19]

nice to see the 777X are somewhat ready.

[@LMays-cu2hp]

Thank you for sharing.

[@davidcole333]

That is one of my favorite places to visit! I went on a cold/rainy day and still loved it.

[@wesmartka8068]

Way to go Dave !!!

[@LittleLazyCat]

nice catch! We did see delivery 747 for so long

[@DrainArchive]

Great video, thanks

[@jaypainespotter]

My home airport! I got videos of Paine Field on my channel with this exact plane and more on my channel. I Just started doing video after years of just still photography, so I'm not as good as you. So much to get used to and learn. Great footage Alex to bad we didn't meet, I enjoy your channel.

[@protector22222]

Hey the dreamlifter...kelsey is on that plane.. 74gear

[@christurner6854]

Hope to see a video from Kelowna some time! Keep it up!!

[@rulinghabs]

Did you stay at the Hilton Garden Inn. At least tell me you went to the flight museum!!??

[@CuteSealYHM]

All those 787s remind me of spotting in Charleston

[@s.z.aviation]

Great video, enjoyed What camera is it? Very good quality

[@davidrosenblum2178]

Hope to be at the controls of 861 someday very soon!

[@Speedster___]

Paine is so underrated.

[@missamo80]

Ahhhhh I didn't know you were in town, I would have come by to hang out!

[@ohareplanespotting]

Beautiful!

[@washingtonstaterailfanning6027]

I'm 90 percent sure I was at the future of flight while you were filming this

[@eqplanes]

Nice was there just a few weeks ago

[@kenbarthSimAV8tor]

Did you visit the aviation museum too? Thanks for sharing eh :)

[@Coupe-sy9nk]

Wait are those 777X-9 in the background parked and already made? I thought they had to be certified before production could start. WOW!

[@wilburfinnigan2142]

They are building them !!!! Waiting for certification for delivery !!!

[@andreforcier97]

Just noticed. The FedEx 777F N849FD had its RAT deployed! Apparently a few others too👍 As they pasted the, was it the RAT that make that high pitched sound? I’ve heard them test on the ground and heard the same but never seen on flying by or landing.

[@stanleovart]

Great!

[@martin-uz5ki]

😍😍😍

[@Agnesdam-g6l]

20:55 total buttered b747-8f

[@washingtonstaterailfanning6027]

I saw that 747 and FedEx 777 doing stuff

[@justspectator3846]

Many 777X in the background

[@SAMann729]

I thought they had already finished up production quite awhile ago

[@wilburfinnigan2142]

They have !!! DUUUUUHHHHH !!!!!! But there is a time frame from production roll out and first flight !!!!! !

[@dhackens]

Turd to last 747-8 from Boeing 🔧🧰🧔

[@CharlesReiche]

Did you see the RAT?

[@edgaravalos4535]

i saw the 777x9

[@Marshal_Dunnik]

The 747 will at least have a long life as a cargo freighter, so it’s not the last we’ve seen of them.

[@wilburfinnigan2142]

You will continue to see the new Air Force ones for decades, as they are still being converted !!! ! They will fly for decades !!!

[@SouthJerseyTransitFan]

Rip to the 747 program

[@jfmezei]

Do your parents know you went there? Sending Alex to Paine Field is like sending a teenager to a porn studio to whatch how it's made :-) Always thought that a plane would get from assembly to paint shop before first flight. Not even the tail of the 747 was painted. (often painted prior to assembly onto fuselage). Wonder if Boeing kept old assembly process from early days of 747 even for the -400 and -8

[@ATH_Berkshire]

Boeing is starting to build up a big collection of currently undeliverable 77X’s on site.

[@wilburfinnigan2142]

They always start production on new models, remember its been about 2 years since the 777X first flew and not for the FAA diddling and jerking Boeing around it would be certified by now !!!

[@TeemarkConvair]

awesome.. curiosity; most of your vids seem to have a fade between 2 sections of clips yet it always looks like the clip could have continued, the "action" seeming the same...as an aside, almost 15THOUSAND views yet only 556 felt it worth the time and effort to "LIKE"?Come ON people.. we know how this works...

[@kurohone]

Start of video: I'm free! Free from the factory! Free to fly free at last! End of video: Crap, forgot my wallet....