Last Wednesday marked the end of several eras with Boeing's rollout of the last 747 to be built, destined for freight service with Atlas Air. It marks not only the last 747, but the last four-engine commercial jet of any company.
Of course, the 747's era is not completely over, after being in constant production since 1967; several hundred of the 1,574 planes built are still in the air, although increasingly rare in passenger service. It's given way to twin-engine planes that carry nearly as many passengers at a much lower fuel cost.
And, for the statistics-minded, here's some data on the final model, a 747-8F. It can carry over 146 tons of cargo (equivalent to 10,699 standard-size gold bars) but is roomy enough if you were shipping 19 million ping-pong balls. At over 250 feet, it's the longest plane in commercial service. In a likely meaningless statistic, it can fly the length of three soccer fields per second.
Comments (0)