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The Queen of the Skies is fading away: My fond memories of the British Airways 747

Feb. 27, 2021
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5 min read
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The Queen of the Skies is fading away: My fond memories of the British Airways 747
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I cannot believe I'll never get to fly on the British Airways 747 again.

Back in July, British Airways announced it was retiring all 28 of its 747s.

The airline had planned to retire the jumbo jets by 2024 anyway, but the coronavirus pandemic dramatically sped up the process. The plane's four engines and relative age led to lots of maintenance. Poor fuel economy didn't help matters.

The last flight of a BA 747 happened back in December. Aviation blogger Sam Chui documented the final flight.


Related: These are the last Boeing 747s you can fly in the world

Over the years, I've gotten to see the planes many times at London Heathrow Airport (LHR), and I've always documented it when I've spotted the plane.

British Airways 747 at London's Heathrow (LHR) November 2016. (Photo by Clint Henderson:The Points Guy)
British Airways 747 at London's Heathrow (LHR) November 2016. (Photo by Clint Henderson/The Points Guy)
British Airways 747 at London's Heathrow (LHR) November 2016. (Photo by Clint Henderson:The Points Guy)
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While I can no longer fly the giant bird, I do look back on the rare times I got to fly the plane with fondness.

Related: Where is British Airways parking its jets during the coronavirus

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I flew coach on the 747-400 in September of 2018. I told the crew how excited I was for my first-ever 747 trip, and they let me take lots of pictures and even chat with the pilots for a few minutes. I loved the kick of the engines on takeoff. Four engines are better than two for takeoffs in my opinion. The massive plane had plenty of room. In fact, I had a whole row on that flight to myself. Poor man's business class.

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Stairway to heaven but not this trip. (Photo by Clint Henderson/The Points Guy)
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Twice I got to sit on the upper deck of the jet in business class. Though the cabins were a bit dated, there was nothing quite like it. My favorite thing was the giant lockers for all your carry-ons and other junk.

British Airways upper deck business class seat February 2019. (Photo by Clint Henderson/The Points Guy)

I flew the 747-400 in business class on Feb. 28, 2019, from London to New York-JFK. Check out the pictures of those side lockers and all that legroom. The staggered front/back seating was always a little awkward, but on this flight, I didn't have anyone next to me so I wasn't looking into someone's face the whole time.

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What turned out to be my final 747 flight was on Aug. 14 of 2019.

British Airways upper deck business class seat August 2019. (Photo by Clint Henderson/The Points Guy)

All three journeys were memorable. I wish I had been able to experience the plane on even longer flights, but I'm happy I got to experience it at all. Service was good on all three legs — very efficient and very British. I was actually treated most warmly on that first flight in coach.

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If you still want to fly the 747 before they all "fly away," there are still some being operated. In fact, we wrote about the last double-deckers you can fly in the world.

Related: These are the last Boeing 747s you can fly in the world

747s are still available for booking by carriers like Air China, Korean Air and Lufthansa. These are mostly the newer-version 747-8s — a little longer upper deck and tweaked wings.

Related: Lufthansa 747-8 returns to U.S. in March

I never got to fly on any U.S. carrier's 747s (they've been gone several years now), but my colleague Zach Honig did. In fact, he and TPG's Nick Ellis were on the last 747 operated by United Airlines back in 2017.

Delta ditched their 747 back in 2017 as well. TPG was on the last revenue flight.

Editorial disclaimer: Opinions expressed here are the author’s alone, not those of any bank, credit card issuer, airline or hotel chain, and have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any of these entities.

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  • Earn 4X Membership Rewards® points per dollar spent at US supermarkets, on up to $25,000 in purchases per calendar year, then 1X points for the rest of the year.
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  • $100 Resy Credit: Get up to $100 in statement credits each calendar year after you pay with the American Express® Gold Card to dine at U.S. Resy restaurants or make other eligible Resy purchases. That's up to $50 in statement credits semi-annually. Enrollment required.
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  • Explore over 1,000 upscale hotels worldwide with The Hotel Collection and receive a $100 credit towards eligible charges* with every booking of two nights or more through AmexTravel.com. *Eligible charges vary by property.
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