British Airways Withdraws All Boeing 747s, the 'Queen of the Skies'

Early Retirement of Ultra-Large Passenger Aircraft as Demand Plummets Due to COVID-19

▲British Airways Boeing 747 parked at London Heathrow Airport. [Image source=EPA Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kwon Jae-hee] British Airways has decided to retire its entire fleet of the superjumbo Boeing 747 aircraft.

According to CNBC on the 17th (local time), British Airways, which owns a total of 57 jumbo jets Boeing 747, has decided to completely phase out the aircraft. Originally, British Airways planned to gradually retire the 747s by 2024, but due to the slump in travel demand caused by the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19), they decided to accelerate this plan.

British Airways stated, "It is very sad to retire all 747 models due to the immediate difficulties," adding, "The 'Queen of the Skies' is unlikely to be commercially operated again due to the global pandemic and the resulting decrease in travel."

British Airways announced plans to deploy more modern and fuel-efficient aircraft such as the Airbus A350 and Boeing 787 models instead of the Boeing 747.

Earlier, Qantas, Australia's largest airline, also announced it would immediately retire six Boeing 747 aircraft.

First introduced in 1970, the Boeing 747 features a two-deck structure with luxurious spiral staircases and has been nicknamed the "Queen of the Skies" and "Hotel in the Sky." As a superjumbo aircraft, it boasts an overwhelmingly large number of seats and stability that withstands turbulence, making it frequently used as a presidential aircraft.

However, due to its low fuel efficiency and the recent travel trend favoring direct flights, the number of routes deploying the 747 has significantly decreased. Coupled with the sharp drop in demand caused by COVID-19, Boeing previously announced it would cease production of the 747 two years from now. Airbus's A380, comparable to the Boeing 747, had already decided to discontinue production earlier than Boeing.

Bloomberg News described this as "the end of the superjumbo jet era."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.