Boeing 747

Variants

The 747 exists as several models, to address the specific needs of its numerous customers:

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747-100

The first model of the jet, the 747-100, rolled out of the new Everett facility on 2 September 1968. The prototype, named "City of Everett", first flew on 9 February, 1969, and on 1 January 1970 the 747-100 entered service with launch customer Pan American World Airways. It was later replaced by the 747-100B, a very similar aircraft with a stronger airframe and undercarriage design. The basic 100 has a range of about 4,500 miles (7,200 km) with full load.

Related Topics:
2 September - 1968 - 9 February - 1969 - 1 January - 1970 - Pan American World Airways - Undercarriage

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Boeing also developed the 747-SR as a 'Short Range' variant of the -100. The SR has a lower fuel capacity, but can carry more passengers--up to 498 passengers in early versions and 550 passengers in later models. This aircraft was primarily used on domestic flights in Japan, but one 747-SR46 (N911NA) is currently being operated by NASA as a Space Shuttle Carrier Aircraft.

Related Topics:
Japan - NASA - Space Shuttle Carrier Aircraft

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The very first 747-100s off the line were built with three upper-deck windows to accommodate upstairs lounge areas. A little later, as airlines began to use the upper-deck for premium passenger seating instead of lounge space, Boeing offered a ten window upper deck as an option, and it quickly became the standard. Some 100s were even retrofitted with the new configuration. A few -100SRs serving with Japan Airlines had their upper decks stretched to accommodate more passengers. This is known as the stretched upper-deck or "SUD" modification.

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747-200

Introduced in 1971, and further improved over successive years, the 747-200 had more powerful engines and higher takeoff weights than the -100, allowing it to fly further. A few early build -200s retained the three window configuration of the -100, but most were built with a ten window configuration. As on the -100, a stretched upper deck modification was offered much later. KLM remains the only airline to retrofit their -200's with the SUD option. The last models of the 200, built in the late 1980s, have a full load range of about 6,700 miles (10,800 km).

Related Topics:
1971 - KLM

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The 747-200C and 200F variants were designed to carry air freight. The 747-200F is a pure freighter, while the 747-200C is a "convertible" aircraft that can carry either passengers or freight. A sub-variant is unofficially called the 747-200M and is a "combi" aircraft that can carry both at the same time. Like the 100, many 200s have been given a new lease on life as freight aircraft.

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747SP

The 747SP, or "Special Performance," was first delivered in 1976. The SP was largely a stop-gap model to compete with the McDonnell Douglas DC-10 and Lockheed L-1011. The 747 was simply too big for many routes, and Boeing did not have a mid-sized widebody to compete in the segment of the market that the DC-10 and L-1011 had created. Crippled by the huge costs it had incurred in developing both the 737 and 747 in the late 1960s, Boeing could not afford to develop an all-new design, so instead it shortened the 747 and re-optimized it for speed and range at the expense of capacity.

Related Topics:
1976 - McDonnell Douglas DC-10 - Lockheed L-1011 - 1960s

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Apart from having a shorter fuselage, the 747SP differs from other 747 variants in having a larger tail surface and larger single-piece flaps on the trailing edges (other 747s use triple flaps). The SP could typically only accommodate 220 passengers in a 3-class cabin, but could fly over 6,500 miles (10,500 km) at speeds of up to 610 mph (980 km/h). Some airline insiders call it the "74 Short" or "Baby Jumbo" because of its shortened fuselage, and stubby appearance. Originally designated 747SB (standing for Short Body), by Boeing, the airlines had Boeing change the production designation to 747SP.

Related Topics:
Flaps - Trailing edge - Mph

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The 747SP was the longest-flying airliner available until the Airbus A340, and found its way into the fleets of American Airlines, Pan Am, and airlines that needed its range for trans-South Pacific routes. (American later used its 747SP's for services to Tokyo.) The 747SP was also used by South African Airways on flights from Johannesburg to London, during the Apartheid years, when that airline's aircraft were not allowed to fly over African countries and had to fly around the Bulge of Africa. The extra range allowed aircraft to cover the additional distance.

Related Topics:
Airbus A340 - American Airlines - Pan Am - Tokyo - South African Airways - Johannesburg - London - Apartheid

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For all its technical achievements, the SP never sold as well as Boeing hoped, only 45 were ever built and most that are still in service are used by operators in the Middle East.

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One special 747SP is the SOFIA astronomical observatory, where the airframe was modified to carry a 2.5-meter-diameter infrared reflecting telescope to high-altitude, the limit to which infrared penetrates the atmosphere. Originally delivered to Pan Am and titled "Clipper Lindbergh", NASA has displayed the name in Pan Am script on the plane. It will fly again in late 2005.

Related Topics:
SOFIA - Infrared - Reflecting telescope - NASA

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747-300

The first incarnation of the 747-300 would have been a trijet version of the 747SP, intended to compete with the DC-10 and L-1011 TriStar. This

Related Topics:
DC-10 - L-1011 TriStar

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plan was scrapped due to insufficient demand.

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The 747-300 name was revived for a new aircraft, which was introduced in 1980, and was the first 747 model to feature a "stretched upper deck," which increased its capacity over earlier models. Combi (747-300M) and Japanese domestic (747-300SR) models were also built. The upper deck was now accessed via a straight staircase, rather than the spiral steps that featured in the 100 and 200. The maximum range of 747-300 is 7,700 miles (12,400 km).

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Airlines currently operating a large number of this type are JAL,Air India, Saudi Arabian Airlines, Pakistan International Airlines (PIA), Qantas, Korean Air, Crossair and Thai Airways

Related Topics:
JAL - Air India - Saudi Arabian Airlines - Pakistan International Airlines - Qantas - Korean Air - Crossair - Thai Airways

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747-400

The 747-400 is the latest model of the 747, and also the only series still in production. It added 6ft(2m) wing tip extensions and 6ft(2m) winglets, an all-new glass cockpit which dispensed with the need for a flight engineer, tail fuel tanks, revised engines, an all-new interior, and newer in-flight entertainment to the basic design of the -300 series. It first entered service in 1989 with Northwest Airlines. China Airlines is the first airline to take the new "Signature Interior" with the China Airlines/Boeing livery 747-400, the aircraft entering service in 2005.

Related Topics:
Winglet - Glass cockpit - 1989 - Northwest Airlines - China Airlines - 2005

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The -400 is available in the all passenger, combi (747-400M) and freighter (747-400F and 747-400SF) variants. The Japanese domestic variant, the 747-400D, is the highest-capacity passenger aircraft in the world, and will be until the Airbus A380 officially enters service. The -400D lacks the wing tip extensions and winglets included on other variants, allowing for increased number of takeoffs and landings by lowering wing stresses. The -400D may be converted to the long range version when needed.

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The 747-400ER is 400's extended range version: it also comes in an all-freight version, the 747-400ERF. Plans to develop a newer model, the 747-400XQLR, which stood for Quiet Long-Range (the X being a designator for an aircraft derivative which is still a design study and has not been officially launched), have evolved into the 747 Advanced.

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747 Large Cargo Freighter

Boeing announced in October 2003 that air transport will be the primary method of transportation for 787 parts (as opposed to shipping). Boeing will convert three passenger 747-400 aircraft into an outsize configuration, in order to ferry sub-assemblies to Everett, Washington for final assembly. It has a bulging fuselage like the Super Guppy or Airbus Beluga cargo planes used for transporting wings and fuselage sections.

Related Topics:
787 - Shipping - Everett - Washington - Super Guppy - Airbus Beluga

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Delivery times for the wings - built in Japan - will be reduced from around 30 days to one day with the 747 LCF.

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Boeing news releases

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http://www.boeing.com/news/releases/2003/q4/nr_031013g.html, http://www.boeing.com/news/releases/2005/q1/nr_050222g.html

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747X

The 747X was a proposed aircraft design that was similar to the proposed 747-500 among other 747 Stretches. The proposal was dropped when Boeing decided to develop and commercialise the 747Adv (747 Advanced).

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747 Advanced

Boeing is now working with airlines to create a new 747 design called the 747 Advanced which will use same engine and cockpit technology as the 787. The new design will be quieter, more economical and more environmentally friendly. It will be capable of carrying up to 450 passengers in a 3-class configuration and fly over 8,000 nautical miles (14,816 km) at .86 Mach. It is rumoured that British Airways, Japan Airlines and Cathay Pacific have shown interest in this model. None of them have purchased the Airbus A380 as of yet.

Related Topics:
747 Advanced - 787

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Government and military

The current U.S. presidential aircraft, VC-25A, is among the most famous 747 models. It is popularly known as Air Force One, although that name technically refers to any United States Air Force aircraft carrying the President. VC-25A is based on the civilian Boeing 747-200. Other special 747s include the E-4B National Emergency Airborne Command Post (referred to colloquially as "Kneecap"), modified 747s to transport the Space Shuttle (Shuttle Carrier Aircraft), and aerial refueling tankers. A recent addition to the military's 747 arsenal is the experimental Airborne Laser, a component of the National Missile Defense plan.

Related Topics:
U.S. presidential - VC-25A - Air Force One - United States Air Force - E-4B - Space Shuttle - Shuttle Carrier Aircraft - Aerial refueling - Tanker - Airborne Laser - National Missile Defense

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A number of other governments also use the 747 as a VIP transport, including Bahrain, Iran, Japan, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Taiwan, and the United Arab Emirates.

Related Topics:
Bahrain - Iran - Japan - Oman - Qatar - Saudi Arabia - Taiwan - United Arab Emirates

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