5 E R I E 5

JUMBOJET I VOLUME 10 I

-

• Improved 747 Models• 747-400 Variants• Technical Description

~~

• 747-400 Roster• Advanced Engines• The World's Largest Airliner

AirlinerTech Series IiJ!LHEl!!~!!I~LOCKHEED ~

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II

I

AIRLINERTECH "5 E R I E 5

VOLUME 10

BOEING

By ROBERT F. DORR

COPYRIGHT © 2002 ROBERT F. DORR

Published bySpecialty Press Publishers and Wholesalers

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Title Page: Atlas Air was not the first user of the popular 747-400F freighter but it became the largest when it acquired PolarAir in 2001, and now hauls cargo in several other liveries in addition to its own. This jetliner is operating at California's LosAngeles International Airport in August 2001. (Sunil Gupta)Front Cover: This study ofa Japan Airlines 747-400 from beneath provides an excellent view of some of the technical featuresof the aircraft. Note the complexity of the three-piece trailing edge flaps located inboard of the engines and the separate set oftrailing-edge flaps outboard. We can also see detail of the leading-edge flaps and main landing gear. (Tom Pesch)Back Cover (Left Top): Illustrating an airliner with characters from the children's game Pokemon was a pleasing move byAll Nippon Airways. This aircraft is Boeing 747-481, line number 979, c/n 25645, registered as JA8962. Unlike -400s in earlyoperation on domestic routes, this aircraft's international configuration is equipped with winglets. (Alex Hrapunov)Back Cover (Right Top): This is the underside of the left wing ofa partially assembled 747-400 in the Everett factory, prior toinstallation of engines. The split pylon doors are in the open position. Each wing of the 747-400 weighs 33,000 pounds butwould be heavier were it not for the counterbalancing influence of the pylon-mounted engines. Games c. Goodall)Back Cover (Right Lower): The -400's most widely-used power plant is the General Electric CF6-80C-B1F high bypass ratioturbofan engine, a derivative of the CF6-50E2 but with a shorter overall length, larger diameter fan, four-stage boostercompressor, shorter combuster, core-mounted accessory gear box and engine accessories, and relocated engine mounts. (Boeing)

TABLE OF CONTENTSBOEING 747-400

Introduction 4

A Word from the Author

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Flying a 747-400 7

Long Haul Mission in Boeing's Biggest

Why the 747-400 ? 25

Improving Upon Aerial Success

747-400 Airlines 75

Today and Tomorrow

Color Section Colorful Jumbos . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 65

A 875,000-pound Flying Canvas

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Appendix A

Appendix B

747-400 Variants 51

Main Models in Use

Technical Details. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 35

Walk-Around Check

747-400 Roster 96

By The Numbers

Significant Dates 103

Key Dates in the History of the Boeing 747-400

BOEING

141-400

INTRODUCTIONA WORD FROM THE AUTHOR

The 747-400's distinctive winglet seen from the passenger's viewpoint. This shotof a Singapore Airlines craft was taken over Mount Everest, but the world'shighest mountain eluded the camera while the winglet stood out distinctively.(Jim Winchester)

Tv'" ~..,..,..,••"",~""he Boeing 747-400 is the! transformed version of the,..,.L. airliner that changed the

world. In many ways, it is a new air­craft rather than a development ofthe wide body "jumbo jet" thatbrought air travel to the everydaycitizen. With an outer shell that datesto the mid-1980s and an interior thatreflects a digital revolution and anew century, the 747-400 is a com­plex and smoothly functioning thingof beauty. Many regard the 747-400as the most majestic flying machineplying the world's revenue routes.

The aircraft is a fitting successorto the 747 "classic" airliner thatcame before it. In like manner, thisvolume is a follow-up to Volume 6in the Airliner Tech series by DennisR. Jenkins, which tells the story ofthe 747-100/200/300/SP series.

When this volume was begun,the world's airlines already wereparking and storing three-pilot jet­liners to cut costs. By the time it wasfinished, they were beginning topark and store more four-~ngine jet­liners-yes, even the stately 747­400-for the same reason. Anyonelooking at the future of air travelmight wonder whether the future liewith any commercial aircraft pow­ered by more than two engines, butBoeing is proceeding with the"Longer-Range 747-400" due in2002, and its hopes are high.

I started work on this mono­graph when the United States was atpeace, Americans were prospering,and air travel was increasinglybecoming a hassle. To us frequentflyers, the air travel year 2000seemed the worst experience anyonecould have-crowded flights, soar-

ing prices, staggering delays, surlyemployees, lost baggage. No matterwhat happened, things would haveto get better.

Briefly, they did. A non-stop747-400 flight from Chicago toTokyo, which inspired the firstchapter, was a delight.

However, while his book wasunder way, the United States wasattacked. Nineteen men transformedour beloved airliners into lethal mis­siles; they were used to kill 3,000innocent people. In the aftermath ofthe attack of September 11, 2001, airtravel slumped badly, and then beganto improve a.little, but not much. Atthe start of 2002, it was more a hasslethan ever-inexperienced leisuretravelers deterred by their fear of ter­rorism, seasoned frequent flyersequally deterred by the inconve-

nience of new security measures.Now, the United States was at war,Americans saw their economy in atailspin, and air travel, once so glam­orous and exciting in an earlier age,was now more an ordeal than ever.

The 747-400 continued to travelthe globe hauling people and car­goes. However, some -400s joineduneconomical 747 "classics" thatwere basking in the sun in bone­yards in the American Southwest ­too costly to yield a profit for air­lines experiencing one of the worstslumps ever.

The 747-400 was at a crossroadswhen this volume went to the print­er, and its future was waiting to bedefined. Meanwhile, tumult in theairline industry meant that informa­tion about any airline or airliner wasin danger of being out-of-date before

4 AIRLINERTECH..

The enormous bulk of the 747-400 fuselage contrasts dramatically with the high-incidence, relatively thin wing when viewedfrom the front, moments after takeoff. This is a KLM aircraft. (Andre Ran)

•

the printer's ink was dry. This bookcontains plenty of information aboutthe ownership and operation of the747-400, and much of it will remainvalid. Some of it will change, fasterthan in better times.

A note about Boeing designa­tions: The type is obvious: 707, 727,737, 747, and so forth. Next are ahyphen and the series number"-400." But while 747-400 is the cor­rect, generic term for every aircraftin this series, each can be describedmore precisely by replacing the "00"with a customer code: "22" for Unit­ed Airlines, for example. Thus, atypical aircraft belonging to Unitedcan be called a 747-400 (generic) or a747-422 (specific), and either term iscorrect. Occasionally, a letter suffixalso appears, the 747-400M being a"Combi," the 747-400F a freighter.

Numbers identify every aircraft.Production of the 747-400 began withthe 696th aircraft in the larger 747series. After the 721st, every 747 beingmanufactured was also a 747-400 andthe series now extends to at least thel,272nd. This number, identifying thesequence of the aircraft on the assem­bly line, is called a "line number" andis usually not abbreviated.

Every Boeing aircraft (whether737,747, or another model) is assigneda five-digit manufacturer's serialnumber in a series that only recentlyreached 30,000. The 696th aircraft inthe 747 production run was givenmanufacturer's serial number 23719.I have followed longstanding prac­tice and referred to the manufactur­er's serial number as a constructor'snumber (not construction number),spelled out when first encounteredbut otherwise abbreviated c/n.

Every civilian aircraft has a civilregistry number assigned by theauthorities of the country where it islicensed to fly. The civil registrynumber can change if the aircraftchanges owners, or even countries.American civil registry numbersbegin with "N."

Using the formula describedabove, the first Boeing 747-400 (or747-451) was assigned line number696, constructor's number (c/n)23719, and civil registry N661US.This aircraft first flew in 1988 andflies today with Northwest Airlines.

Again, as with the earlier vol­ume on the "classics," Boeing didnot assist in the preparation of thisbook. Boeing provided photos, its

BOEING

141-400

history office unearthed documents,and the manufacturer providedfacilities to a photographer whosework appears here. However, Boe­ing could make no one available tobe interviewed, to review the manu­script, to make suggestions, or to fillout our roster of 747-400 aircraft,which is current through line num­ber 1203, but has gaps afterward.Again, this was a dramatic contrastto Airbus, which is always eager toassist with books about its products.

Again, too, it must be said againthat an invaluable resource forresearch on individual aircraft is JetAirliner Production List: Volume 1­Boeing, by John Roach and A. B.IITony II Eastwood (Middlesex: TheAviation Hobby Shop, 1999). On thepages that follow, readers will getrepresentative information about the747-400 fleet, including a roster of air­frames, or "hulls," as some call them,but Roach and Eastwood list everyBoeing jetliner, its registration, whooperates it, and various significantevents in its history. Their work is asuperb companion to the technicaland pictorial material appearing here.

The author is responsible forany errors that appear here, but this

5

book would have been impossiblewithout help from many, includingBoeing historian Tom Lubbesmeyerand international airline captainsRobert Beavis, Robert L. Burns, Cortde Peyster, Dennis Hoffman, andDarrel Whitcomb.

Among the fraternity, those who

helped make this book possible areColin Clark, Bill Crimmins, MichaelFrance, James C. Goodall, SunilGupta, George W. Hamlin, Joseph G.Handelman, Rob Hewson, DennisR. Jenkins, Jim Kippen, Jon Lake,Nate Leong, Jason S. MacLean, AlMongeon, Tom Pesch, Andre Ran,

"Michael Shayler," Michael Stroud,Nick Stroud, Kirsten Tedesco, DaveWillis, and Jim Winchester.

This book is dedica ted to MarcReid, who is finally able to straight­en up and fly right.

Robert F. Dorr

Oakton, Virginia

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32 FEET2 INCHES

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25 FEET-+_-_;----- 84 FEET 0 INCH~5 INCHES 1-- _

71 PERCENT

69 FEET6 INCHES

A two-view plan drawing of the 747-400 from side and top provides an appreciation for the size and shape of the aircraft. The

747-400 introduced a new wing with greater span than the wing of "classic" 747 models. The fuselage length of the Dash Four

Hundred is fully three times the length ofa Convair 240 propeller-driven transport. (United Airlines)

6 AIRLIJVERTECH..

FLYING 747-400LONG HUAL MISSION IN BOEING'S BIGGEST

The magnificent lines of the 747-400 are evident in this view of Air-India's fourthBoeing 747-437 (VT-ESP), named AJANTA, which made its first revenue flight

from New York to New Delhi to Mumgai on June 30, 1994. As the l,034th aircraftin the 747 series and assigned cln 27214, AJANTA displays the obvious recognitionfeatures: winglets at the ends of the extended wings and the stretched upper deckinherited from the 747-300. Not seen from this exterior shot at London's HeathrowInternational Airport in 1999 is the revolutionary flight deck that enabled airlinesto operate this "jumbo" jetliner with just two pilots. (Jim Winchester)

er

•

T·he aircraft snuggled up tothe jetbridge at Chicago

,~~ O'Hare International Air­port is a Boeing 747-400, an up-to­date and decidedly high-tech ver­sion of the "jumbo" jetliner thatbrought air travel to the everydaycitizen.

It's a distinctive aircraft. Itstands apart from other airlinermodels with its 6-foot (loS-meter)winglets, those upturned wingtipsdesigned to enhance fuel efficiency(found on nearly all 747-400s) andwith its stretched upper deck (SUD)which extends the upper-fuselagehump by 23 feet 4 inches (found onall 747-400s except freighters, but onsome -200 and all -300 models aswell). To passengers loitering at thegate and peering out toward the air­craft, other distinguishing featuresof the Dash Four Hundred are notreadily apparent. From outside, theycannot see the new structural alloysor the new carbon brake units. Theycannot see the high-tech flight deckwhere a flight crew of just two peo­ple will rely on a digital "glass cock­pit" to fly this SOO,OOO-pound(362,SOO-kilogram) leviathan.

The 747-400's two-crew cockpitdiffers significantly from the two­crew cockpit of the 757, 767, or 777.The four throttle levers in the centerconsole are the immediate tip-off. Ofthe four Boeing jetliners coming offthe production line today, the 747­400 is alone in having four enginesand it has a choice of General Elec­tric (GE), Pratt & Whitney (P & W),or Rolls-Royce (R-R) power. Thisdoes not fully explain why the cock­pits of modern jetliners from thesame manufacturer are not inter-

changeable. The short answer is thatBoeing resisted the temptation toinstall a common flight deck on allof its major airliners, preferringinstead to give the 747-400 a fewextra bells and whistles. The747-400's two pilots were trainedspecifically to fly the 747-400 while757 and 767 pilots routinely fly bothof those aircraft. Compared to otheraircraft, the electronic flight instru­mentation system (EFIS) of the 747­400 uses larger cathode ray terminal(CRT) screens that provide more atti­tude and navigational data in digitalform than on the other models.

Arriving at O'Hare, the captainand first officer check in at Opera­tions, sign in, and check their com­puters for schedules and the latestcompany information. Then they

BOEING

141-400

check the flight plan and weather fortoday's 6,274-mile (5,453-nautical

.mile, or 10,097-kilometer) nonstopflight from Chicago to Tokyo. Today,an extra pair of pilots is comingaboard because of the distance andduration of this trip. The rule is thatthree pilots must be on board; one isfor relief duty on a flight longer thaneight hours. Four pilots are requiredfor a flight longer than twelve hours;this includes a complete, two-pilotrelief crew.

To most airlines, this require­ment means the obvious-carryingan extra captain, an extra first offi­cer, or both. Some, however, followthe practice of Air New Zealand ofhaving a second officer fill the thirdcrew position when three pilots areaboard. This means that a co-pilot

7

Sucking in its wheels while climbing in the pattern at Chicago's O'Hare

International Airport in August 1997, N195UA is a United Airlines 747-422

(c/n 26899/ line number 1113). The complex, double-bogie main landing gear/ wing

spoilers/ and leading- and trailing-edge flaps are all new metal-the manufacturerdelivered this aircraft to United on May 23/ 1997. United had some interest in the

747-400 having the same flight deck as the airline's 757 an.d 767 models/ which areflown interchangeably by pilots having identical training, but the builder eschewed

cockpit commonality and gave the two-pilot Dash Four Hundred a unique set ofinstruments and controls. (Tom Pesch)

So where are the winglets? Well, they aren't found on 747-4000 (jar "domestic")

models, used for short-distance flights. These aircraft were delivered with the short

wing and without winglets, so that externally they appear identical to the 747-300

model except for minor changes in engine nacelle shape. Internally, however, theyhave the two-pilot cockpit and other modernized features of the Dash Four Hundred

series. This aircraft is All Nippon Airways' 747-4810 registered as JA8959 (c/n25646, line number 952) which made its first flight on December 18/ 1992 and is

used for high-density flights within Japan. (George Hamlin)

fills in the reserve position/ which ineffect/ gives a three-pilot crew to atwo-pilot aircraft.

The airline industrts standard isthat the pilots should be on board 45minutes before departure time. Sinceboarding begins 45 minutes prior topushback time on internationalflights, the passengers may alreadybe boarding. In reality/ pilots preferto settle into their ergonomic seatsbefore the passengers arrive. Interna­tional flights like this one requiremore time/ anyway. The pilots mustmeet quickly with the flight atten­dants, or at least the head attendant(called the purser by some carriers)for a quick briefing. Then they mustprogram the flight computer/ talk tomaintenance if there are any discrep­ancies on the aircraft, determine howto depart the airport, and insure thatthe aircraft is properly loaded. Thefirst officer will also do a walkaround inspection of the aircraft.

Passengers coming aboard theDash Four Hundred may not notice/but this aircraft has larger/ fixed­shelf luggage bins than earlier 747s.Ceiling light is more indirect andsubdued and creates the illusion of awider passenger cabin although theinternal fuselage dimensions are/ infact/ the same as previous 747 mod­els. The 747-400 uses tougher/graphite-based materials in panelsand bulkheads. All materials on theinterior of the aircraft are of plasticor graphite materials that meet orexceed the requirements of fire/smoke/ and toxicity regulationsestablished after earlier 747 modelswere manufactured. At 31/285 cubicfeet (876 cubic meters)/ the 747-400has the largest passenger interiorvolume of any commercial airliner­the equivalent of more than threehouses each measuring 1/500 squarefeet (135 square meters).

Once the passengers areonboard the Dash Four Hundred/ a

8 AIRLINERTECH..

HORIZONTALSTABILIZERTANK(3,300 U.S. GALl(2,748 I"" GALl(12,492 LTI;l

NO.2 RESERVE TANK<1,322 U.S. GALl<1,10' INP GALl(5,0~ LTN)

NO. 1 IlAIN TANK(~,482 U.S. GAL)(3,132 IMP iA!.l(16,"6 LTR)

MAIN LANDING GEAR AND DOORS

NO. 3 RESUVE TANK(1,322 U.S. GAU(1,10' IIII' GALl(5,004 LTU

NO.3 IlAIN TANK(12,544 U.S. GALl(10,441 IMP GALl(41,~92 LTNl

VENT SUltGETANI:

NO. 2 IlAIM TANK<12,544 U.S. GALl<10,447 IIIl' GAll(47,492 LTRl

CUTER VING TANK(11,'" U.S. GALl(1~,292 IIIl' GALl(64,913 LTNl

NO. ~ MAl II TANK(~,~82 U.S. GALl<3,132 IMP GALl('6,966 LTRl

VENT SlMGE TANK

STRUTWELl..DOORS

WHEEL.WELl..DOORS----~

The fuel tank arrangement of the 747-400. The captain and first officer monitor thesituation constantly, but the electronic flight system determines when and how fueltanks feed the engines. On shorter flights, only the principal fuel tanks in the wingsare used. (United Airlines)

Once into the air, the 747-400 flight system cues the pilot to bring up the landinggear at the appropriate speed. While retracted in the air, the main gear trucks aretilted, forward wheels up. Wing gear trucks tilt approximately 52 degrees and bodygear 7 degrees. (Boeing)

OTHER RESPONSIBILITIES

While the captain and first offi­cer run through preparations andchecklists, dozens of other people arereadying the 747-400 for flight. Forthe Dash Four Hundred, it's entirelyunremarkable to have every seatfilled on a run favored by businesstravelers. A typical aircraft (using aUnited Airlines 747-422 model in"Sleeper seat" configuration as anexample) will carry 418 passengers:14 in first class, 80 in business class,and 270 in economy. (United's 747­422 "Genesis Seat" aircraft have 18 infirst class, 84 in business, and 270 ineconomy. United also has some air­craft configured to carry 14 in firstclass, 73 in business, and 260 outback.) For a flight with a typical gate-

fueler (typically a contractor, not anairline employee) will give the cap­tain the fuel sheet stating how muchjet fuel was put aboard. This is forcomparison with cockpit instru­ments and it is rare for the fuel sheetand the cockpit instrument not tojibe. When they do not, the conflict­ing figures must be resolved-in anextreme case, by actually measuringfuel levels in each tank-beforepushback can be authorized.

In addition, as part of the start­ing process the captain has to signa flight release. Prior to pushback, amechanic will give the captain aflight release form as part of thepaperwork for the flight.. This is hiscertification that the flight is in allaspects ready and legal to go.According to one captain, "This isthe most important thing a captaindoes." In the airline world, especial­ly the world of long-range heavieslike the 747-400, the man or womanin the cockpit's left seat enjoys enor­mous authority-but at the cost ofshouldering more responsibilitythan most mortals.

BOEING

141-400 9

This computer-enhanced photo shows Virgin Atlantic's Boeing 747-4Q8

(c/n 24958, line number 1028) wearing the airline color scheme introduced in 1999.

This aircraft was delivered to Virgin on April 28, 1994 and is named LadyPenelope. That very lady appears as a caricature beneath the first officer'S cockpit,

carrying a stylized version of the Union Jack and an apparent magnum of

champagne. The British flag also appears on the winglet~. Virgin aircraft all haveregistrations that can be expanded into happy exclamations for the eager vacation

traveler. This ship is registered G-VFAB, for 'fabulous." (Virgin Atlantic)

to-gate time of 12 hours 45 minutes(dependent on winds, weather, andair traffic control), the caterers willhave to load up 1,254 meals, to saynothing of pillows, blankets, liba­tions, entertainment tapes, and allthe other paraphernalia designed tocomfort the passengers. For a typicalinternational flight, one 747-400operator uses no fewer than 5.5 tonsof food supplies and more than50,000 in-flight service items. Smallwonder, then, the 747-400 has anoth­er distinguishing feature: Look forthe catering door three-quarters ofthe way back on the SUD.

Ground crews load galley sup­plies aboard the 747-400 at both for­ward and aft locations. The aircraftwill carry 11,400 pounds (5,170 kilo­grams) of food and 2,700 pounds(1,224 kilograms) of water. Groundpersonnel also load cargo and bag­gage into the two principal baggagepits in the forward and aft lower

Qantas, the Australian flag carrier, already had 24 Dash Four Hundreds in its fleet of 104 aircraft when the airline celebrated

its 80th birthday on November 16, 2000 by ordering more. The inevitable kangaroo is outlined in red on the fin of this 747-438(c/n 24887, line number 286), registered as VH-OJI, and seen in Europe in 1993. This is a "Longreach" aircraft, optimized for

the vast distances of Qantas' routes. The legend "The Spirit of Australia" appears under the airline's name on the forward

fuselage. (Silvano Tirtei)

10 AIRLINERTECH..

fuselage. When an aircraft is beingturned around after an arrival, theprepping process is more complex:ground personnel tidy up the interiorbefore boarding begins (typically, 40minutes before scheduled pushback)and toilets must be serviced using atoilet servicing vehicle dubbed a"Honeycart" by crews. The 747-400was redesigned with a central toiletdrainage point rather than widelyscattered separate drainage locationsfound on earlier 747 models.

The fueling ritual is less obviousthan loading catering supplies.Today, as usual, the 747-400 took onits supply of jet-fuel kerosene fromunderground tanks beneath the gateparking position, pumped aboard bypumping vehicles. The Dash FourHundred holds a maximum fuel loadof about 58,000 U.S. gallons (217,000liters). The aircraft has four main fueltanks in the wings, two reserve tanksfarther out on the wings, and addi­tional tanks in the center fuselageand stabilizer. The fuel system islargely automatic and is set beforedeparture-the pilots don't spend alltheir time switching fuel tanks andattending to weight and balanceissues. After take-off most centertanks will be employed first, then thesystem will balance its usage of fuelfrom the inboard and outboard wingtanks on both sides, so that the wingsremain the same weight.

Those who enjoy numbers loveto attach statistics to the 747-400.When any 747 is fully pressurized,nearly a ton of air is added to itsweight. Any 747 has six million parts.The Dash Four Hundred model's tailheight of 63 feet 8 inches (19.41meters) is equivalent to a six-storybuilding. The wing area of today's747-400, which adds up to 5,650square feet (525.45 square meters) isan expanse sufficient to hold 45medium-sized automobiles. Thepowered flight made by Wilbur and

FLIGHT CONTROLS

Flight control surfaces of the Dash Four Hundred include leading-, mid-wing, andtrailing-edge flaps, ground and flight spoilers, and inner and outer ailerons andelevators, and upper and lower rudder panels. The leading edge flaps are pneumatic.Hydraulic actuators drive all other flight surfaces. (Boeing)

r-'

A passenger boarding the 747-400, ifable to peek into the cockpit, would see a scenelike this. The Boeing 747-400 flight deck, designed for full operation by twocrewmembers instead of three on earlier 747 models. All engine instruments,primary flight instruments, and gear and flap indicators have been replaced by sixidentical cathode ray tubes. The manufacturer points out that the 747-400 has just365 lights, gauges, and switches, as compared with 970 on earlier 747 models.(Boeing K55674)

BOEING

141-400 11

This is the typical first-class sleeper seat of the 747-400 in April 2001. Thisconfiguration, found on several airliner types operated by this carrier, gives the top­drawer passenger a carefully crafted region of personal space for working, sleeping,and eating. The seat is canted at an angle to the centerline of the fuselage, whichincreases privacy and comfort, but at the expense of disorienting some passengers.Curiously, back in the 1950s, the airlines decided not !o use rearward-facingseats-which offer the best chance for survival in a mishap-precisely because theywere concerned about disorienting their customers. (Nate Leong)

The first class cabin in the Dash Four Hundred is a very comfortable place to be,although actual airline seating differs from one carrier to another, and from thisearly manufacturer's concept. This version of a first class cabin offers 34 sleeperseats. In practice most carriers have smaller first class sections, typicallyaccommodating 18 to 24 passengers. (Boeing)

Orville Wright on December 17, 1903could have been completed in thelength of space provided by the 747­400's 187-foot (57-meter) interiormain deck, and handily across thespan of its 211-foot (64-meter) wing.According to a press release dating tothe origins of this huge and gracefulairliner, one 747-400 has enough inte­rior space to hold 4,000,000 golf balls.

TAKING OFF

When all of the passengers areonboard, ground personnel close thedoors and flight attendants arm theemergency escape slides attached toeach. While flight attendants briefpassengers on emergency evacua­tion procedures, emergency oxygenmasks, and life rafts, the pilots wrapup final checks and prepare to bepushed back from the gate.

The captain and first officerreview safety procedures, includingsteps they'll take if a malfunctionoccurs during the takeoff roll. Apushback buck attached to the nosewheel will handle the 747-400 for itsfirst few seconds of movement. The~aptain radios the ground engineer,who is connected to the interphoneby an umbilical wire plugged intothe nose. Typically, the captainrequests pushback and he and theground employee confirm the direc­tion the 747-400 will face to taxi out.

So is it difficult, moving somany tons of man-made machinery?':This is a ground-handIer's issue,"one pilot says. "A 747-400 has terri­ble rearward visibility from thecockpit, and I suspect the 777 is asbad or worse. If you're looking justright, you can barely see the wingtip(which is many meters aft of thewing root). To me it's a miracle wedon't see more bent tin. Somethought has been given to hanging aproximity detector on the extremi­ties of the aircraft." This pilot recalls

12 AIRLIlfERTECH

Compared to earlier 747 models, the Dash Four Hundred offers business classcustomers enlarged overhead bins as standard in sidewall and center locations. The

relocated stairway to the upper deck is straight, giving carriers improved flexibilityin seating layouts. The area aft of the stair can be configured either for business

class or economy. The configuration shown here is representative of the 747-400 atthe start of its flying career in the late 1980s. (Boeing K55740)

747-400 economy section, April 2001. At the start of a new century, the air trafficsystem was more congested than ever, too many aircraft were using too few

runways, and too many people (according to some) were crammed into too fewairplanes. However, even in economy class, the average airline passenger still

enjoyed more amenities than many would admit. This configuration is typical of a

747-400 carrying 270 passengers in coach. (Nate Leong)

After requesting and receivingclearance to take off, the pilot pressestakeoff/ go-around switches at thefront of the throttles, the thrust leversautomatically advance to takeoffpower setting, and the huge aircrafteases forward and begins its takeoffroll. If something goes wrong on take­off, the pilot at the controls willdecide whether to attempt to halt theaircraft prior to the "commit" point,known as VI, or alternatively to liftoff, go around the airfield pattern,and make an emergency landing. Thepilot not performing the takeoff isbusy monitoring instruments andannounces "Vee One" (VI) at a speedof about 150 knots and "rotate" atabout 160 knots. The pilot eases backon the control column in a careful,measured motion, and the 747-400 isin the air, climbing away from one ofthe busiest airfields in the world. A747-400 typically takes off at 180 milesper hour (290 kilometers per hour).The passage of time from rollout toliftoff has been about 50 seconds.

aircraft in its turn to the runwaythreshold point, while both pilotscheck takeoff data, flaps, flight con­trol, and trim.

one event in Atlanta when two air­liners "were powering back fromopposing gates, and backed intoeach other" In June 2001, a similarmishap affected a most unlikely per­son. Jim Coyne, president of the AirTransportation Association-the air­line industry's Washington lobby­was on an airliner at Washington, D.C. Dulles International Airport taxi­ing toward the gate when his air­craft was hit by a Lufthansa 747-400being pushed back by a tug. Coynelater said that, "A lot of aluminumwas bent, and passengers on bothplanes were delayed." Anotherobserver noted, "Sometimes there'sjust no substitute for eyeballs."

Continuing our account of push­back, start-up, and taxiing: the air­craft engines are started beginningwith no. 4 (right, outboard) and theflight crew requests permission totaxi. The ground engineer pulls hiswire, leaving the 747-400 no longerattached to anything. The pilot mak­ing the takeoff (who could becaptain or first officer) moves the

BOEING

141-400 13

1------------- [!> -----------~

IIlli.:. JIG POSITIDN - JACKED LEVEL SUFFICIENT TOSWING LANDING GEAR AND NO FUEL.

FULLY FUELED - TIRES AND SHOCK STRUTSCO"PRESSED 8 INCHES.

WING SPAN - JIG POSITION - 211 FT 5 IN- FULLY FUELED - 213 FT 0 IN

WING HEIGHT - JIG POSITION - 30 FT 7 IN- FULLY FUELED - 22 FT 0 IN

Viewed from the front, the 747-400 is a formidable sight. The legend with this linedrawing describes the variation in wingspan and height between an unfuelled and afully fueled aircraft. (United Airlines)

Remember that movie where anti-terrorist commandos were crawling around insidethe roof of a 747? This nook for weary workers really is up there in the roof, at leastfrom the passengers' viewpoint. This is the famous "overhead crew rest"accommodation which allows flight attendants to take a break above their customers.The optional crew rest facility is located above the passenger compartment at thedoor 5 life raft support beam and aft lavatory complex. The facility is not certified foroccupancy during landing and takeoff. (via Michael Stroud)

EN ROUTE WESTWARD

The 747-400 responds to easypilot handling and begins its climb.Its quiet engines give noise reliefto residents around O'Hare; itsupturned winglets provide fueleconomy to the airline. In the air,flight director commands will guidethe pilots throughout every phase ofthe flight. They are, of course,trained for emergencies-a suddendecompression, for example, willtransform the more routine flightinto a chaotic event-but duringmuch of the flight the captain andfirst officer will be monitoringdevelopments, acting on cues, andrelying on autopilot.

Pulling up the wheels on the747-400 takes about 9 seconds. Firstthe gear doors open, temporarilyincreasing aerodynamic drag. Thencomes retraction of the nose gearand four main-gear trucks (eachwith four wheels inside their wheelwells) as the aircraft makes a stan­dard instrument departure. At 1,000feet (305 meters), the horizontal baron the flight director bar commandsa greater degree of nose-down atti­tude (provided by the pilot) so thatflaps can be raise, first to 10 degreesand, as speed increases, to fivedegrees. The flaps-up cue appearson the speed tape typically at about245 knots, typically at about 2,000feet (610 meters). During the earlystage of the climb, the outboardleading edge flaps come up first,followed by the leading and trailingedge flaps closer to the fuselage.

The captain and first officer gothrough an after-takeoff checklist. In"clean" condition (wheels and flapsretracted), the 747-400 passes 250knots, the pilot lowers the nose toincrease climb rate, and then engagesautopilot when ready. The 747-400climbs to altitude and begins its pre­programmed journey along estab-

14 AIRLINERTECH

..~'"t">l

S ...~ ..

-".

...

This is a typical 747-400 seating configuration for international operations by a U.S. carrier. The airline calls this the"B747-400 Worldwide 2" configuration. It offers 18 seats in first class, 84 in business class, and 270 in coach. The seat pitch is5feet in first class, and less than 3 feet in coach. (United Airlines)

lished airways. Passengers nowbegin to experiment with in-flightentertainment systems, all designedto make them forget tha t they areinside a steel tube flying at nearlynine-tenths the speed of sound at theedge of the stratosphere.

Earlier literature for the 747-400touted the ACESS (Advanced CabinEntertainment/Service System).This system combines passengerentertainment, including 18-channelaudio capability, four passenger­address zones, and cabin inter­phone, as well as passenger services

such as halogen reading lights intoone system. That was the concept inthe prehistoric 1980s, before lap­tops, palm pilots, or the Internet.Today, Each airline has a differentin-flight menu of movies, music,and news. In every case, however,equipping a seat with entertainmentgear has rendered the seat heavier,bulkier, and less ergonomic indesign. Many in-flight entertain­ment systems are still user­unfriendly-difficult to reach andoperate. Airlines are still scramblingto develop real-time news, interac-

tive entertainment, and of coursein-flight Internet access.

The 747-400 is unique in offer­ing its flight attendants a place towhich they may escape during pre­scribed breaks. An option on allDash Four Hundreds, the overheadcrew rest area is located above theceiling of the passenger compart­ment in the rear of the fuselage(coincident with the leading edge ofthe fin). In a copyrighted story inUSA Today newspaper on May 11,2001, reporter Jayne Clark wrote of"ladderlike steps ascend[ing] to a

...

A newer configuration, known as "Worldwide 1," reduces first class from 18 to 14 seats, retains the same seating elsewhere as"Worldwide 2," and adds a section called economy plus for frequent flyers. (United Airlines)

BOEING

141-4~~ 15

Germany's Lufthansa was the lead customer for the General Electric-powered 747­400. Lufthansa places the "last two" letters of the civil registry in white letters onthe upper rear of the fin, in this case "VN," signifying the aircraft that is registeredas D-ABVN, otherwise known as 747-430 line number 915, c/n 26427, whichmade its initial flight on April 23, 1992. A tiny German flag appears behind thecivil registry on the rear fuselage, in this view barely visible behind the extendedtrailing-edge flap. (Lufthansa)

This is the aft upper crew rest area in a United Airlines Boeing 747-400, as viewedfrom the top of the entry stairs. (Nate Leong)

tern at each waypoint, while keepingwatch on air speed and flight andengine displays. However, much ofthis work is "hands off." If anythinggoes wrong, the captain and firstofficer will know instantly, eitherfrom the behavior of the aircraft orfrom their displays.

The 747-400 is at once identicalto, and also completely differentfrom, every aircraft that came beforeit. With a single stroke of the hand,either pilot can disengage the auto­mated systems and fly the DashFour Hundred using throttles, yoke,and rudder pedals-the same flightcontrols that determine the fate of aCessna 150 or a B-52 Stratofortress.More frequently, the captain andfirst officer spend a fair amount ofeffort monitoring, tweaking, andcommunicating while allowing theaircraft to fly itself. As one airlinecaptain described it, the systems onthe 747-400 "talk to each other," aconversation that includes the ILS(instrument landing system) at thedestination. If he chooses to, thehandling pilot can allow the 747-400to land itself on arrival at Tokyo's

inertial navigation units, while thetwo flight mqnagement computerscue information to them. They con­tinue to monitor navigation andplug new information into the sys-

Considerable attention by thecaptain and first officer is needed asthe 747-400 begins the northern,great circle route, which will take itfrom Chicago to Tokyo. Once awayfrom the crowded air traffic of theNorth American landmass, if not atthe very start of the flight, the pilotsallow the 747-400 to be flown by itstriple-redundant autopilots and

TRAVELING TO TOKYO

claustrophobic space equipped withfour bunks and two airline seats. Ontrips of more than eight hours, thecrew gets downtime. On this flight,[the flight attendants] each haveabout four hours in the cubbyhole,taken in shifts. The protocol is strict:lights out and no talking." The crewrest area, like the rest of the interior,comes in several configurationsdepending on the wishes of the air­line. It is not certified for use duringtakeoff or landing.

16 AIRLINERTECH..

Usually seen only when there's a mishap, this is the digital voice recorder, carried on the flight deck of the 747-400. (Nate Leong)

Narita Airport, while staying alert totake over the controls if necessary.

The human element is alwaysvital. At times the pilots' long hoursof boredom can be punctuated bysudden drama. In a typical mishap,the pilots were blamed when a land­ing on a wet runway that resulted ina spectacular crash in Bangkok.

A report on the 1999 Qantascrash (in which no one was killed)stated that the accident could havebeen averted if reverse thrust hadbeen deployed on landing. The DashFour Hundred, with 410 passengersand crew on board, attempted toabort a landing, but the crew thenreversed this decision. Instead, it

landed and fishtailed more than amile (3 kilometers) down the run­way of Don Muang Airport, endingup in a golf course. Said the report:

As with other [Qantas] B747-400pilots, the crew had not been provid­ed with appropriate procedures andtraining to properly evaluate thepotential effect of the weather condi-

The very first of United's fleet, posing in the snow in Chicago. The aircraft is Boeing 747-422 line number 733, c/n 24333,registered as N171 UA, which made its first flight on May 25, 1989. This portrait was snapped on January 2, 1999. (Nate Leong)

BOEING

141-400 17

0<. BOEING~ 747-400

MAINTENANCE MANUAL

RIGHT SIDE ENGINE 1

0\ BOEING~ 747-400

MAINTENANCE MANUAL

RIGHT SIDE ENGINE 3

RIGHT SIDE ENGINE 4

0<. BOEING~ 747-400

MAINTENANCE MANUAL

LEFT SIDE ENGINE 1

LEFT SIDE ENGINE 2

0\ BOEING~ 747-400

MAINTENANCE MANUAL

There are minor differences in the appearance of the engine nacelles from one nacelle to another, and depending on the side fromwhich the engine is viewed. These line drawings illustrate the Pratt & Whitney-powered Dash Four Hundred. (United Airlines)

18 AIRLINERTECH..

The 747-400 is aformidable sight from any angle, but it is not exactly elegant when

everything is hanging out/ as in this close-up at Chicago's O'Hare International

Airport. This angle emphasizes the complexity of the main landing gear, which

consists of 8 tandem trucks and 16 wheels. (Torn Pesch)

tions. In particular, [the pilots] werenot sufficiently aware of the poten­tial for aquaplaning and of theimportance of reverse thrust as astopping force on water-affectedrunways. That error was primarilydue to the absence of appropriatecompany procedures and training.

The airline disputes some find­ings in the report.

Mishaps are the exception. Aspromotional literature tells us/ the747 fleet has logged 20 billionstatute miles (32 billion kilome­ters)-enough to make 42/000 tripsto the moon and back. To put itanother way, the 747 fleet has car­ried 2.2 billion people-the equiva­lent of nearly 40 percent of theworld/s population. The typical air­line pilot can fly 30 years and log30/000 flight hours without once

One of the least-photographed operators of the 747-400 is South African, which operates several ROlls-Royce-powered 747-744

models. This ship, at London's Heathrow International Airport in 2000 is Boeing 747-444 line number 1162/ cln 28468/

registered as ZS-SAK, which made its first flight on June 30/ 1998. This is the second paint scheme to be used by South Africanon its aircraft. (Jim Winchester)

BOEING

141-400 19

In what could be the final scenes of the typical flight described in this chapter, aUnited Airlines Dash Four Hundred pulls into the gate at Washington Dulles in

July 2001. The aircraft is Boeing 747-422 line number 1113, c/n 26899, registeredas N195UA. (Alex Hrapunov)

experiencing a serious emergency.This is truer than ever with the newgeneration of airliners, of which the

747-400 is typical. Like the pilotswho fly it, the 747-400 has beenthrough a maturing process: initial-

ly a creature of the 1980s, the 747­400 preceded much of the softwareand technology of today, but hasgrown and changed on the insidewhile changing little on the outside.

REACHING THE DESTINATION

Our flight is nearing its end,after traveling a significant portionof the globe. Few airliners today canmatch the "legs" of the 747-400,which has a range of approximately8,400 statute miles (13,515 kilome­ters), an increase of nearly 2,300statute miles (3,700 kilometers) overthe first 747. Typically, the flight hasbeen cruising at 565 miles per hour(910 kilometers per hour). For thepilots up front, the letdown andapproach to the destination aremade almost entirely under radarcontrol from the ground, with airtraffic controllers instructing pilotson headings, heights, and speeds.Usually, the letdown is routine. Inbad weather with traffic beingstacked, the captain and first officercan be exceedingly busy following

20 AIRLINERTECH..

Trailing edge flaps are in the full"down" position as this Japan

Airlines 747-400, the nose wheelis still extended, and the main

gear is coming up. There are noair speed restrictions for retractionof the nose wheel, which typically

is seen extended after the four­unit, 16-wheel main assembly is

near the end of its retractionsequence. (Andre Ran)

orders for S-turns, consulting stop­watches and instruments, and com­paring notes. Out back, it all feelssmooth and natural.

The captain lights the seatbeltsign for arrival. As the aircraftdescends, flaps are lowered to fivedegrees.

The pilots will use some radiofacility for guidance (such as ILS,when available) when making anapproach and landing visually. Thepilot making the landing may relyon an external visual cue providedat the airfield itself, such as theVASI (visual approach slope indica­tor) which consists of two coloredbars of light, one above the other,

marking the runway sides andtouchdown point. The aircraftmakes its final approach at 160miles per hour (260 kilometers perhour). .

For today's journey, the 747-400carried 57,000 U.s. gallons of fuel(215,745 liters) and landed with asignificant reserve: the fuel wouldhave made it possible to fly a muchlonger route, such as San Franciscoto Sydney, Australia. The aircraftconsumed this fuel at an average of5 U.S. gallons (19 liters) per mile.The builder says the 747-400 is up to13 percent more fuel efficient thanits predecessor, the 747-300, depend­ing on the engine.

The 747-400 is one of the largestobjects that must be moved with rea­sonable haste from one part of acrowded airport to another, and thisis never more apparent than whentaxiing in. The high perch enjoyedby the two pilots gives them excel­lent visibility, and the airport con­troller will keep them under positivecontrol when turning off,. taxiing,and maneuvering into the gate.When the jetbridge nudges upagainst the left side of the fuselage,the passengers will file out of the747-400, closely followed by thecrew-and a new set of airline per­sonnel will begin the job of readyingthe aircraft for its next trip.

It is not supposed to be done thisway. This aerial behemoth is

touching down initially on itsright landing gear, rather than on

both mainwheel groupssimultaneously. The result will be

something less than perfectsmoothness for the passengers.This mostly-white aircraft is a

747-428(M) (cln 25302, linenumber 884) belonging to Air

France and registered as F-GISB.This less-than-perfect landing is

at Miami International Airport onFebruary 1, 2001. (Joseph G.

Handelman)

BOEING

141-400 21

1 JEPPESON MANUAL2 FUGHT KIT3 OPS MANUAL4 WINDSHIELD WASHER I5 MANUALS6 VALUABLES STOWAGE (DOOR AFT)7 SUNVISOR STOWAGE8 SMOKE GOGGLES9 PORTABLE OXYGEN10 FIRST AID KIT (OPT)11 FIRE EXTINGUISHER12 CRASH AXE13 RAIN REPELLENT Q14 APPROACH CART HOLDERS15 WORK TABLE16 CUP HOLDERS17 ASHTRAY18 PENCIL HOLDER19 HAND HOLD20 SUN VISOR21 FOOT REST22 UTIUTY UGHT23 FOOT & SHOULDER

HEAT SWITCHES24QRH25 LAV OCCUPIED UGHT26 EROS OXYGEN27 AUDIO CONTROL PANEL28 JACK PANEL29 ROLLER SUNSHADES

1 MISCELLANEOUS STOWAGE CUP2 JEPPSON MANUAL3 FUGHTKIT40PS MANUAL5QRH6 MANUAL STOWAGE7 ROLLER SUNSHADES8 COAT/HAT9 SMOKE GOGGLES10 EMERGENCY ESCAPE DEVISES11 APPROACH CHART HOLDER12 SUNVISOR13 WORK TABLE14 CUPHOLDERS15 ASHTRAYS16 PENCIL HOLDERS17 SPARE BULB BOX18 UTlUY UGHT19 HANDGRIP20 FOOTREST21 MAP UGHT22 PULL-OUT TABLE23 EROS OXYGEN MASK/REG24 HEADSET/BOOM MIC STOWAGE25 HANDMIC STOWAGE26 MAP UGHT CONTROL27 JACK PANEL28 FOOT AND SHOULDER

SWITCHES29 DATA LOADER SWITCH30 MASTER DIM & TEST CARDS31 AIRBORNE DATA LOADER (OPTIONAL)

FUGHT DECK LEFT SIDE

A huge variety of portable and fixed equipment are located along the side walls of the flight deck of the 747-400. (Boeing)

22 AIRLIlVERTECH..l

WHYTH~

47-400?IMPROVING UPON AERIAL SUCCESS

y the time the first 747-400took to the air, earlier 747models, known as "classics,"

had carried 780 million passengersover 11 billion miles.

So why did the 747 need to beimproved?

It may not have been obvious tomost people. However, within theairline industry, everybody saw itcoming. This is not to say that airlineexperts were prescient. In the mid­1980s, it would have been impossi­ble to predict that in 2002 the "moststored" aircraft type would be theBoeing 747 "classic." Yes, thoseempty airliners, basking in the sun­shine of the American Southwest, inboneyards in places like Mojave,California -the very same aircraftthat had changed the world. "Theybecame an albatross around ournecks," one airline executive said,shortly after a slump in airline rev-

enues was worsened by the Septem­ber 11,2001 terror attacks on the U.S."They eat fuel, they need threepilots, and they have four engines.They also have antiquated systems.How else can I say that they cost toomuch to operate?"

That last point was obvious inthe mid-1980s. Robert L. Burns, aUnited Airlines captain who flewthe Boeing 747 "classic," was askedwhy the he thought Boeing went totremendous effort and expense to re­design his aircraft-one that alreadyseemed, to many, to be the perfectflying machine.

Didn't the 747 ignite a revolu­tion in air travel? If the 747 was sogreat, why was it necessary to do acomplete, nose-to-tail redesign ofthe aircraft? Why change virtuallyall of its key features from theinstruments in the flight deck to thesize and shape of the wing? Why,

after all, change the airplane thatchanged the world?

Burns responded with his rea­sons: "Two-man crew on many legs,such as Hong Kong-Singapore (sav­ing money); keeping up with thecompetition (Airbus); demand byairline marketing whiz kids; a glasscockpit which includes a Flight Man­agement System that can save fuelby optimizing flight planning (select­ing the best altitudes, routes etc.);eliminating the flight engineer (sav­ing more money), but still havingrelief pilots or supplemental! aug­mented crews on long hauls (whichin some cases costs more than havinga flight engineer on board). Aboveall, an overall more efficient aircraftdesign."

Another explanation exists forimproving on the original 747design-and the 747-400 is in manyways a new aircraft, not merely an

The first 747-400 began its flight test program with an April 29, 1988 sortie piloted by James Loesch. The aircraft in the series wasline number 696, constructor's number 23719, registered as N401PW. From this frontal view at Paine Field, Washington, we cansee the distinctive winglets and stretched upper deck. The leading-edge flaps, inboard of the engines, are deployed. (Boeing)

BOEING

141-400 23

improvement of an existing one­can be found in numbers. The origi­nal 747 had a range of 4,600 nauticalmiles; the 747-400 has a range of7,100 miles and is 25 percent morefuel-efficient. Extended range andfuel efficiency mean a better deal forairline operators, crews, and passen­gers. In realistic terms, this means aDash Four Hundred can fly directfrom London to Singapore, whereas,depending on winds and weather,the 747-200 model needs a stopoveren route, typically in New Delhi.

Although some people disputethe point, the 747-400 also benefits

24

airline operators by being the fastestcommercial aircraft today, with acruise speed of Mach .85. Pilotsoften fly a little faster in short bursts,at up to Mach .90 or more. On onelong-haul route, a four-engined Air­bus A340 actually departs 20 min­utes ahead of a 747-400 and arrivesat the same destination 10 minuteslater than the 747. Boeing's recently­announced plans for a entirely newMach 0.95 "sonic cruiser" airlinerdemonstrate that operators and trav­elers are more interested in speedand frequency than aircraft capacity.At least Boeing is betting on speed

AIRLIlVERTECH..

and frequency, although competitorAirbus is relentlessly sticking withthe idea that size matters.

There was an even more com­pelling and obvious reason for theinvestment in a new-generation 747.In the early to mid-1980s when mostof the design work was completed,production of "classic" 747s, thentotaling almost 700 aircraft, haddeclined to a trickle. Most new-build"classics" were being delivered toexisting customers as "top-ups" toexisting fleets. Within months of thelaunch of the 747-400, Boeing startedreceiving large orders for the new

An aircraft paint scheme that wassoon discarded in favor ofa moremodernistic look adorns thisCathay Pacific 747-400. As thefirst airline to operate the 747-400with GE engines, Cathay pavedthe way for BritishCommonwealth users to follow.This view emphasizes the complexleading- and trailing-edge flapconfiguration on the wing of theDash Four Hundred. (viaMichael Stroud)

Cathay Pacific was the launchcustomer for the Rolls­Royce-powered 747-400, with thefirst aircraft arriving at HongKong's Kaitak Airport on June 8.1989. Shown here at fondly­remembered Kaitak is a Cathay747-481, line number 811, cln24833, registered as VR-HOT.Since the takeover ofHong Kongby the Peoples Republic of China,all Cathay aircraft have acquired"B" civil registry numbers, so thisship is now registered as B-HOT.Today, Cathay operates at HongKong's new Chep Lap KokAirport. (Cathay Pacific)

KLM Royal Dutch Airlines was the launch customer for the General Electric

CF680C2 turbofan-powered Boeing 747-400. This ship, line number 732, cln

24000, registered as PH-BFB, was the second 747-406 delivered to the Netherlands'

airline. The GE engines became the most numerous power plants for the 747-400

series, and KLM returned to the manufacturer to purchase additional Dash FourHundreds, including those configured as Combi models (not shown here).(via Michael Stroud)

version. Northwest Airlines' orderfor 10 was followed by Cathay Pacif­ic (2, initially), KLM Royal DutchAirlines (6), Lufthansa (6), SingaporeAirlines (14), and British Airways(16). A second batch of purchasescame from United Airlines (IS), AirFrance (16), and Japan Air Lines (5).

Production of the first "classic"747 required 75,000 engineeringdrawings. It completed more than15,000 hours of wind-tunnel testing.The original 747 flight test program,which led to the airplane's certifica­tion for commercial service inDecember 1969, used five airframes,lasted 10 months and required morethan 1,500 hours of flying. In design­ing the Dash Four Hundred, Boeinghad the advantage of advances incomputer technology that enabledthe design process to move at anunprecedented pace. With the 747­400, half the number of engineeringdrawings were used and wind tun­nel testing was minimal. However,the flight test effort was almost assizeable, using three aircraft plus aback up instead of the five used withthe"classic" 747.

The public learned of the newaircraft when Boeing announced an"Advanced Series 300," otherwisecalled the 747-300A (Advanced), atBritain's Farnborough air show in1984. Boeing's decision to rejuvenatethe 747 was a brilliant marketingmove but it was less a luxury than anecessity. The latest version, the 747­300 that introduced the stretchedupper deck, had not won as manyorders as the manufacturer hoped.In 1984,747 production shrunk to anall-time low of between one and twoper month-a far cry from the peakof seven per month in 1979-1980.Now, Airbus and Douglas wereintroducing new widebody passen­ger jets, the A330, A340, and MD-ll.Boeing had to compete. Adopting anearly outlook that it would quickly

change, Boeing saw the new aircraftas retaining the stretched upper­deck configuration while having agreater wingspan, greater fuelcapacity, and mbre powerfulengines. Initially, the new designwas expected to have a three-pilotflight deck. It was, in effect, a "mini­mum change" upgrade of the 747"classic" design; it largely lacked inimagination or innovation.

In early 1985, a number of air­line carriers (British Airways,Cathay Pacific, KLM, Lufthansa,Northwest, Qantas, and SingaporeAirways) created a special 747 con­sultative group to compare notes oncommon operational requirementsand to combine forces in lobbyingBoeing for specific changes to thenew design. In the view of some, thegroup trod perilously close to theline between common sense andanti-trust issues, but it achieved ameasure of success. In part because

BOEING

141-400

of the persuading of this group, andin part due to pressure from otherpotential buyers, Boeing came to therealization that it would be insuffi­cient to go ahead with its minimalistapproach to improving the 747.Thus, the more dramatic changes tothe 747 design were wrought not byBoeing but by the purchasers, whosaw the need for the glass cockpit,two-pilot crew, digital avionics andsystems, and other improvements.Having begun its efforts in a conser­vative direction, Boeing saw theneed to become more revolutionary.

FIRST FLIGHT

At the Everett, Washington,plant where widebody jetliners areassembled, the builder made carefulpreparations to fly the first 747-400.The maiden flight was delayed byseveral weeks because of subcon­tractor difficulties in providing some

25

Another contrast between the early 747 configuration and the much-revised 747­

400 shape. Like groceries, automobiles, and airplane books, the price of an airliner

went up with inflation. In 1970/ an airline could purchase a "classic" 747 for about

$20 million. By 1990/ the sticker price on a shiny new 747-400 had risen to $125million. At the time these comparison photos made their appearance, both airframes

shown were owned and operated by Boeing. This Dash Four Hundred later went to

Northwest Airlines. (Boeing)

subcomponent items, and subse­quently by the integration ofelectronics system. However, thefundamental flight test plan wassound and it was soon possible toproceed. The first aircraft in theseries was line number 696/ con­structor's number 23719/ registeredas N401PW for operations with themanufacturer and later re-registeredas N661US for Northwest Airlines.

26

The aircraft had spent manymonths in the assembly shopmarked by a small sign denoting itsstatus as "No.1 for Northwest." Onrollout, it was attired in naturalmetal with the Boeing name on thefuselage and the emblems of 18 air­line customers arrayed in smallsquares along the forward fuse­lage-customers who had alreadyordered a total of 124 of the new air-

AIRLINERTECH

liners. After being delayed by supplyand systems integration issues, andafter a projected March 21 first-flightdate came and went, this prototypeof the Dash Four Hundred series lift­ed off for its maiden flight at PaineField on Friday, April 29/ 1988.

The polished-aluminum aircraftwent skyward from Paine Field at10:22 a.m. At the controls were thesole occupants of the 747-400/ pro­ject pilot James Loesch and co-pilotKenneth Higgins, director of flightoperations for Boeing CommercialAirplanes. Loesch was the son oftest pilot Dix Loesch, who pioneeredflying of earlier 747 models. A rela­tively small group of about a dozentechnicians monitored the eventfrom the ground.

The maiden flight culminated ina landing on Runway 13R at BoeingField south of Seattle. Boeing' schairman and chief executive officerFrank Shrontz greeted the pilots andcalled their craft the "flagship air­plane for the next century." PilotLoesch reported that the first flighthad gone "beautifully" and that thedistinctive winglets of the 747-400"had no effect on handling." Hig­gins offered his opinion that, "Thispromises to be a great ship and agreat project for all of us."

This maiden flight lasted 2hours 26 minutes. The jetlinerreached a speed of Mach 0.7 and analtitude of 20/000 feet (6/096 meters).

The first 747-400 was ready topress ahead with its flight develop­ment program but it was not yet acomplete airliner. When Loeschcame down the steps, reporters sawthrough the open door-the interiorwas unpaneled and unpainted.Some of the avionics for the firstDash Four Hundred had not yetbeen installed. Bill Shineman, vicepresident and general manager ofthe Everett Division commentedthat, "Such 'work-arounds' are not

... WI

DOORS

This view of the doors on the 747-400 provides an upward-looking perspective onr

Dash Four Hundred version of the airliner that changed the world, an angle thatemphasizes the different wing shape compared to the 747 "classic." This doorarrangement for access to various compartments and service areas includes only

minor changes from earlier versions and should be regarded as typical rather than

definitive. (Boeing)

unusual for the first flight of a newairplane model." The aircraft did notyet have an airliner-style interiorand some of the avionics and instru­ments were not yet installed.

TEST PROGRAM

Boeing officially launched the747-400 on October 22, 1985, whenNorthwest ordered ten of the newaircraft. The prototype was rolledout at Everett on January 26, 1988(Boeing rolled out the first 737-400 inRenton on the same day). Boeingalready had an ambitious plan for aflight development effort that wouldmake use of at least three aircraft,plus a back up. No smaller numberwas realistic, since the airliner wasbeing purchased with three differentpower plants. The manufacturernever intended to use any 747-400airframe solely for test work, howev­er. Every aircraft in the developmentprogram eventually was earmarkedfor an airline and would operate rev­enue flights. The aircraft were:

• c/n 23719, the first ship, whichwould prove out the Pratt &Whitney (P & W) power option.This aircraft was scheduled for453 hours of flight testing, 333hours of ground testing, and4,205 instrument measure­ments-checking aerodynamics,structures, flight controls, sys­tems (particularly, brakes) and,of course, the P & W engines.Afterward, the aircraft would goto Northwest as a 747-451, re­registered N661US.

• c/n 23817, line number 700,which would test the GeneralElectric engines. This aircraftwas slated to fly 407 hours offlight testing, 339 hours ofground testing, and 3,757 instru­ment measurements-checkingavionics, structures, and the GE

power plants. Afterward, itwould be delivered to Lufthansaas a 747-430, registered D-ABVB.

• c/n 23814, line number 705, totest the Rolls-Royce (R-R)engines. This aircraft was sched­uled for 229 hours of flight test­ing, 224 hours of ground testing,and 2,690 instrument measure­ments-covering avionics, struc­tures, aerodynamics, and the R­R engines. After testing, itwould be turned over to CathayPacific as a 747-467, registered B­HOO.

• c/n 23720, line number 708,with P & W engines, wouldreceive 100 hours of flight test­ing and 200 hours of groundtesting, but its primary purposewas to serve as a back-up--air­craft for the test program andfor training. It would later go toNorthwest as a 747-451, regis­tered N662US.

BOEING

141-400

These were the first four DashFour Hundreds. Their line numberswere not in sequence because earli­er-model 747s were still interspacedwith 747-400s at this juncture. Boe­ing flew the second 747-400 for thefirst time on June 27, 1988 for aduration just one minute short oftwo hours.

That day, the first 747-400 withits PW4056 engines set a worldrecord by taking off at a weight of892,450 pounds (404815 kilograms),compared with the airliner's project­ed weight of 850,000 pounds (385560kilograms). This aircraft climbed tothe admittedly modest altitude of6,562 feet (2000 meters) to establishthe record in accordance with Federa­tion Aeronautique International regu­lations, but the principal purpose forthe flight was to perform heavy­weight stalls and low-speed dragtests. The weight was remarkable for

MAIN ENTRY DOOR

27

gram was, for a temporary spell atleast, too ambitious. With threeengines being test-flown in the newDash Four Hundred, minor gremlinswere gnawing at the delivery calen­dar. Just as the first flight of the 747­400 had been delayed for weeks, thethreat now loomed of delayed air­line deliveries.

A relatively inexperienced workforce, increasing rapidly in size, raninto difficulties on the productionline. At the same time, the electricalsystem of the 747-400 initiallyrefused to work properly, and inte­grating systems on the flight decktook longer than planned. On Octo­ber 11, 1989, Boeing acknowledgedthat "limited delivery delays" wouldhold up the first 20 aircraft on theproduction line, although in no casefor longer than 30 days. The compa­ny did not have the means to imme­diately increase the production rateof the aircraft, and some officialsacknowledged that they had under­estimated interest in it and the fiercecompetition among airlines seekingearly slots on the production line.The first 747-438 for Qantas, forexample, was about four months latewhen delivered on August 11, 1989,and the first 747-B3 for UTA was fivemonths in arrears when the airlinereceived it on September 22,1989.

Production-line difficulties atEverett persisted. Boeing had gener­ously offered each airline a tailor­made internal configuration. It wasan age when every airline employedan interior designer and a work-effi­ciency expert, so the manufacturerquickly found itself obliged to re­locate galleys and toilets, and evento change the color shades of warn­ing labels on the inside of the cabin.Coupled with the added cost ofoffering this unusual degree of flexi­bility, the manufacturer found itselfcoping with quality control issues,and in many cases forced to order

late 1989 to raise that figure to five.Only then did Boeing finally decid­ed to drop the three-pilot "classic"747s from production, although theywould continue to roll off the linesfor three more years.

In 1988, with more than 100 firmairline orders on the accountants'ledgers, Boeing acknowledged thatits ambitious developmental pro-

1-211

•

(64.3m)

1------ 231'-4· ------'\.(70.5m)

......-3~.-'-l2:-ii::::~:jj'.?:::?_... 0/O-~I.~ml~ ~WL • . . . . GROUND UNE

0.0 2S-S. I I I1--78'-11.5·-j 1--10',1.

(7.7m) (24.0m) (3.Om)

PRINCIPAL DIMENSIONS

747-400

This three-view general arrangement drawing shows a generic 747-400 withdimensions that can vary slightly from one variant to another. (Boeing)

TEETHING TROUBLE

However, the production diffi­culties persisted. It took until 1988 toraise production of all 747 models tofour aircraft per month, and until

the era, and encouraged expectationsthat the Dash Four Hundred wouldbecome a big success.

28 AIRLINERTECH..

Not a real photo of an actual aircraft but, rather, the 1980s version of digital photographic manipulation, this marketingimage was created to show customers what the new 747-400 would look like, and was widely circulated while the firstflights were taking place. The snazzy, executive-style paint design is somewhat different from any that appeared on anactual airplane. (via Michael Stroud)

An important moment in the history of what may be the world's best-knownjetliner: The date is September 10, 1993, and the 1,000th Boeing 747 is emergingfrom the Everett production line. Line number 1,000 was a Boeing 747-412 model,cln 27068, registered as 9V-SMU. The aircraft made its first flight on September 24and soon afterward was delivered to Singapore Airlines. (via Michael Stroud)

re-work after an aircraft had beenregarded as finished.

Regardless of all the suddenchanges, Boeing ended up doing asuperb job of getting Dash FourHundreds to the airlines, nonedelayed by more than a few weeks.

INTO SERVICE

The Federal Aviation Adminis­tration (FAA) certificated (the cor­rect word, "certified," is not used)the first 747-400 on January 9, 1989,and it entered service with North­west. The airline took the ratherunusual step of introducing the air­craft on a flight between Minneapo­lis and Phoenix, on February 9,1989.Northwest began international ser­vices on June 1 with a flight fromNew York to Tokyo, although bythen Singapore Airlines had stolenthe show with an inaugural flightfrom Singapore to London­Heathrow the previous day.

Certification of the 747-400 inEurope foundered when civil avia­tion authorities insisted that the 747­400 was a new aircraft type. The

BOEING

141-400

structural clearances previouslygranted to the 747-300 "classic" wereheld not to apply to the new airliner.As a new type, the 747-400 failed to

29

UGHTlNGCONTROLS

DISPLAYSWITCHING

NO

FM

CAPTAIN'S PANEL

From the very first flight of the initial 747-400 until today's long-range airline

operations, the captain's yoke has gone largely unchanged. This drawing showsyoke, multifunctional displays, and lighting controls. (Boeing)

The flight deck of the 747-400, showingthe aircraft with observer seats and crew

rest compartment located behind the

second observer's seat. (Boeing)

meet updated requirements for toler­ance to structural damage. Specifical­ly, authorities decided that the upperdeck floor was not strong enough tomeet the requirement that the aircraftsurvive a sudden decompressioncaused by a 20-square-foot hole with­out potentially catastrophic damageto control cables and vital wiring.

Airlines and government regu­lators on the continent quickly cameto a compromise that enabled the747-400 to be issued a Joint Airwor­thiness Requirement (JAR) certifica­tion. The problem had been discov­ered only months before the firstdelivery to KLM Royal Dutch Air­lines and Lufthansa. Thanks to quickaction, the JAR gave KLM andLufthansa's first Dash Four Hun­dreds 90-day JAR-type certificates,and Boeing agreed to produce retro­fit kits to strengthen their floorbeams and separate their controlruns. The 747-400s were delivered tothe airlines on May 18 and 23,respectively. Subsequent new 747­400s emerged from the factory builtto the improved standard.

The first Rolls Royce-powered747-400 went to Cathay Pacific onJune 8, the same day that the BritishCivil Aviation Authority issued itstype certificate. It was the followingyear, 1990, when the RB.211-pow­ered version became generally avail­able to airlines.

PRODUCTION PROBLEMS

Between 1985 and 1990, themanufacturer received orders for 450airliners in the 747 series, of whichall but 100 were for the 747-400model. The number of orders leapedfrom seven in 1988 to 62 in 1990.

30 AIRLIlVERTECH...

The center panel located between the

captain and first officer contains two

EICAS (engine indicating and crew

alerting system) displays (upper andlower) and other instruments. (Boeing)

EFlS CONTROLPANEL

AFCS MODE EICAS DISPLAYCONTROL PANEL SELECT PANEL

EICASCONTROL FLAP PLACARDPANEL SPEEDS

This view of the first officer'S panel (not including the yoke) shows the principalmultifunctional displays and instruments used by the co-pilot. (Boeing)

'lltll

~~:~ ~

'~~

.~·i ~

INST1RUMENT SOURCESElECT SWITCHES

ALTERNATEGEAR CONTROLS

REGISTRATIONISELCALPLACARD

PFD

CENTER PANEL

•...1... •· "1.­. "",erf"'" -, ,or!",,," " ...... "

FIRST OFFICERS PANEL

E1CASDISPLAYS

DISPLAYNO SWITCHING

GROUND PROXIMITYSWITCHES

STANDBYINSTRUMENTS

In April 1993 the manufacturerannounced a Performance Improve­ment Package (PIP) for the basic747-400, to be incorporated on laterproduction aircraft, and provided aretrofit package for existing 747­400s. The PIP provided for increasedgross weight, included an improvedcomposite tailfin fairing and arevised fuel transfer system, anddrag improvements to the spoilers(which had tended to lift slightly incruising flight). This was one ofmany improvements to the basicdesign being studied by Boeing,although most never progressed fur­ther than the drawing board.

By the time the 1,000th Boeing747 was rolled out of the Everett fac­tory, fully 270 of the aircraft in thetotal were 747-400 models, whichquickly replaced the"classics" tobecome the only model in produc­tion. On September 10, 1993, shipnumber 1,000 made its appearance.It was a Boeing 747-412 model, c/n27068, registered as 9V-SMU. Theaircraft made its first flight on Sep­tember 24 and soon afterward wasdelivered to Singapore Airlines.

By the 1990s, Boeing was assem­bling Dash Four Hundred airlinersin four distinct versions (see chapterfour). These are the familiar passen­ger-carrying jetliner; the Combi,which carries both passengers andcargo; the 747-400D domestic ver­sion; and the 747-400F freighter. Thislast model appeared in 1993 andwas billed as being capable of haul­ing more cargo than any otherfreight aircraft built in the West. The747-400 was also directly responsiblefor the employment of 32,900 Boeingemployees, plus tens of thousands

BOEING

147-4~~31

\\\\,\\\\"~"~ttl'"~ "~"~It"~

- S\\\Gf>..?c:m.~ f>..\~=\';~\-:\\"'t:-S-\_------~-_...4

......." •••••••••..OIp.....".

...... ~,..-

_~... ",,__ .6~ -.

:}' . .._... - --~-

A Singapore Airlines 747-400 "Megatop" (the carrier's trade name) ready to touch down. The mainwheels do not need to beanything approaching level until contact is made. (via Robert Hewson)

Air Canada began flying its Boeing 747-400 jetliners in April 1992 from Toronto and Montreal, with destinations at LosAngeles, London, Paris, and Frankfurt. This example is still attached to the tow bar and won't be going anywhere until thetractor disconnects. (via Michael Stroud)

32 AIRLINERTECH..

of subcontractors in the UnitedStates and abroad.

There continued to be speedbumps as Boeing employees wenton strike for 90 days in 1995 and 60days in 1996. In 1997, Boeing had toshut down the Everett productionline for 20 days; they continued toaddress problems posed by integra­tion of new employees and tech­niques. Boeing sustained losses of$2.6 billion because of penalty claus­es for late deliveries.

NEW CENTURY

Today, the future of the Boeing747-400 is being defined. This is hap­pening at a time when most airlinecompanies are replacing four­engined aircraft with twin-enginemodels on many routes, especiallythose of medium length such asthe 2,556 miles (4,115 kilometers)between Los Angeles and Honolulu.

~#-. -~.._----"-/'

rrC , I

Viewed from below on the side opposite the jetbridge, United's Spirit of Seattle IItypifies the working 747-400 in its element. This angle gives us a good look at thevery strong and flexible nose wheel unit and at the access door for the forward

luggage pit. (Bill Crimmins)

'" .'.: ""'i' _\~\\'~ ~ ~)\ ~ '\) ~111111111111 II 1I1HUB' t I fI II 11l1l1l1lttll

The world's international airports have the taxiways and ramp space to handle the 84-foot 6-inch (25.06 meter) footprint of the

main landing gear trucks as well as the 211-foot (64.03-meter) span of the wing. However, from some angles (jor example here,

as Air Canada is taxiing at Washington Dulles) the 747-400 can appear cramped by its setting. Note that this aircraft is

moving into a sharp left turn with its nosewheel askance. (Bill Crimmins)

BOEING

741-400 33

The technical achievements that "sold" the 747-400 to the world's airline carriers were also powerful sales arguments when

Boeing sold a VIP transport to the Japanese government. As a result, Japan's prime minister is the only world leader who has a

newer, higher-tech aircraft than the U.S. president (who must be content with a Boeing 747-200 "classic"). Newly assigned theJapan Air Self-Defense Force serial 20-1102, this is the se~ond of two 747-47Cs in JASDF hands. It's line number 839, cln

24731,formerly registered as JA8092. (Bill Crimmins)

The nose cribbing and scaffolding used on the nose of the Boeing 747-400

production line. The aircraft shown here is a 747-400F freighter under construction

for Polar Air Cargo. Games c. Goodall)

Boeing is also confronting eco­nomic challenges as it has at severaljunctures in the history of the DashFour Hundred. Already battered bya sagging economy and aggressivecompetition from Airbus, the manu­facturer reacted to the September 11,2001 terrorist attacks on the U.S.(and the painful, subsequent loss ofthe Joint Strike Fighter contract)with massive layoffs and seriousbelt-tightening.

This is happening while hun­dreds of perfectly good 747 "classic"airliners have suddenly becomedead weight to the airlines that ownthem-their technology too outdat­ed for today's air traffic environ­ment and their operating costs toohigh. The Boeing 747-400 remains amoneymaker for most of its opera­tors, but some Dash Four Hundredsare being parked in the desert alongwith "classics." As airlines operatefewer flights, twin engines are

favored over four and even thenewest and shiniest 747-400s are

sometimes being replaced by 757s,767s, and 777s on many routes.

34 AIRLINERTECH-- ..

Once Boeing had resolved earlyproduction problems with the

Dash Four Hundred passengeraircraft, it proceeded with

longstanding plans to build afreighter version. This artist's

conception ofafuture747-400F freighter was released

in 1992, the year before a real­life aircraft appeared. The paint

design was altered somewhat,but the basic design had been

finalized by the time this imageappeared. (Boeing)

Long after it began assembling747-400 passenger airliners,Boeing began building 747­

400Ffreighters, which are builton the same Everett line but lackthe stretched upper deck (5UD)

of the people-hauling version.This look at the first 747-4R7F

for the Luxembourg-basedfreight hauler Cargolux shows a

worker (lower left) examiningthe leading-edge flaps and

highlights the complexscaffolding needed to work on a

modern airliner in a busyfactory. (via Michael Stroud)

BOEING

141-4~~

More than 50 percent ofafinished747-400 (as measured by cost) wasthe result ofwork performed off­site by subcontractors. However,final assembly of the 747-400 tookplace at the 7S0-acre site at PaineField, near Everett, Washington.The assembly site is reportedly theworld's largest building (asmeasured by volume), built at acost of$200 million. The shopfloor is pristine and, perhapssurprising to some, the noise levelquite low. (via Michael Stroud)

35

The $200 million Everett building is truly a place for "assembly" rather than "production," since aircraft are essentially

brought together, rather than created. Major structures, engine nacelles, and subassemblies come from Northrop, which in turn

receives upper-deck fuselage frames from Daewoo. The result is a "mating" as shown here on the pristine shop floor, with the747-400 being transformed into the sum of its parts. (via Michael Stroud)

36 AIRLINERTECH

This is a view of the upperfuselage ofa 747-400 being

assembled and looking into thepartially completed forwardsection from where the very

distinctive hump of the aircraftis flared into the fuselage.

(James C. Goodall)

This shot, taken at the Everettfactory during nose assemblybuild-up shows the right side

upper cabin door and assemblydetail. Games c. Goodall)

BOEING

141-4~~

The view from the assemblyscaffolding dubbed the "erectorset" by shop workers, lookingdown toward the right wingand engines ofa soon to becompleted 747-400.(James C. Goodall)

37

"""'" -

The ladder facing the numberfour engine nacelle and themaintenance worker atop theengine provide a sense for the sizeof this Air China Dash FourHundred, although the size of thewinglets is exaggerated by theirproximity to the camera.(via Michael Stroud)

A gathering of jetliners at Everett, where a state highway passes within a short distance of a flight line filled with sky giants.That's a Boeing 767 in the right center-a widebody used on some of the same routes as the Dash Four Hundred but with halfas many engines. The other aircraft are 747-400s, including examples from Cathay, Korean, Lufthansa, KLM, and BritishAirways. (via Robert F. Dorr)

38 AIRLINERTECH...

TECHNIC DETAILS

The flight deck of the 747-400, as seen here with backlighting inside a hangar in

April 2001. Flight, engine, and system information is displayed on six Collins8x8-inch cathode ray tube (CRT) displays, five on the main instrument panel and

the sixth at the center of the pedestal between the two flight management

computers (FMCs). The displays are a dramatic contrast to the round dials of

yesteryear and differ in size and shape from those on the 757 and 767 airliners.

The seats for the captain and first officer are reclinable, have adjustable lumbarsupports, and sheepskin seat covers, and are adjustable in the vertical andhorizontal directions with 3 inches of additional aft movement when compared to

previous 747 models. (Nate Leong)

T····· ihe maintenance manuals for• a 747-400 used by one airline

, fill the entire wall of a largehangar up to a height of six feet. Thenarrative which follows is anattempt to summarize key pointsabout the principal features of thisaircraft, including cockpit, engines,fuselage, landing gear, wing, andtail. Perhaps not surprisingly, manyof these features are significantlydifferent from those of the "classic"747-100 through -300 models. Notthe least of which, of course, is theflight deck, where reduced flightcrew size is an important considera­tion to airline operators in today'stight economic environment.

TWO-PILOT COCKPIT

Considering that the highest­densi ty version of the 747-400,employed on domestic routes inJapan, can haul a staggering total of624 passengers, it still seems remark­able to some observers that only twopilots fly this huge aircraft. Never­theless, the two-pilot cockpit hasbecome standard on nearly everylarge airliner now being manufac­tured. Technology replaced a humannavigator on most airliners as longago as the 1950s. An even faster paceof technology replaced the flightengineer in the 1980s. To be sure,replacement aviators are stillbrought along on extreme durationflights of more than 8 hours more,but at all times the fate of this hugeaircraft is in the hands of two people.

From the beginning, the 747-400was designed for an electronic flightinstrumentation system (EFIS) toreplace those clunky gauges that

WALK-AROUND CHECK

had remained little changed sincethe dawn of aviation. The key com­ponent of the EFIS cockpit is a digi­tal primary flight display (PFD) thatreplaces the round-dialed, analoginstruments of earlier airliners,including earlier 747s. A bit surpris­ingly, however, Boeing decided notto give the 747-400 the same flightdeck features as its three other pro­duction airliners (the 757 and 767,plus late-model 737s). While UnitedAirlines, for example, assigns pilotsinterchangeably to the 757 and 767,

BOEING

141-4~~

pilots current in the 747-400 holdqualifications unique to that aircraftalone. The 747-400, of course, is theonly one of the four current Boeingproduction airliners with fourengines, a factor in the decision toforego cockpit commonality.

In 1988 when the change to adigital-display cockpit was intro­duced, not all pilots were ready for aglass cockpit. Yet almost everythingin the 747-400 cockpit is, in fact, dig­ital. In all, the glass cockpit of the747-400 makes use of six 8x8-inch

39

The forward tip of the 747-400 contains what might be considered wasted space,since the relatively large radome covers a very small radar dish. The basic 747

design, dating to the original "classic" models, was deliberately arranged to keepthe flight deck high above the main fuselage. That way, the aircraft has the potential

to be converted for loading from the nose. In the three decfldes since the first 747

went aloft, miniaturization has made it possible to do a better job with a smaller,

lighter radar dish in the nose. (James C. Goodall)

Details of the nose wheel assembly of the 747-400 as viewed from the right side of

the aircraft-that is, the airliner is pointed from the viewer's left toward the

viewer's right. Games c. Goodall)

(200x200-millimeter) cathode-raydisplays to provide the two-pilotcrew with information on flight andsystems operation. United CaptainRobert Beavis points out that theonly old-fashioned instruments lefton the Dash Four Hundred panel arethe clock, "which is the most com­plex instrument to set correctly,"plus a standby gyro, air speed indi­cator, altimeter, and wet compass."Everything else is displays insteadof dials."

In the Dash Pour Hundred cock­pit, the captain's left-hand PPD pro­vides a cathode-ray tube presenta­tion of the basic performance of theaircraft (airspeed, altitude, attitude,and vertical speed), as well as itsheading (compass). Most prominentof these measurements is a rectangu­lar altitude display that shows air­craft attitude information gleanedfrom the inertial reference system.To the left of this box is the verticaltape airspeed indicator (to measureclimb or descent). The air data com­puter is the source of all airspeedinformation on the PFD.

The captain's right-hand naviga­tion display screen uses a silhouetteof the aircraft as a guiding symbol.This display has four modes, andprovides information on approach,very-high-frequency omnidirection­al range (VOR), map, and flightplan. The crew can superimposecolor weather-radar images to pro­vide information on potentially dan­gerous conditions.

PRIMARY FLIGHT DISPLAY

The primary flight display hadundergone periodic improvementssince the 747-400 was introduced.An important retrofit is the overlayof the traffic-alert and collisionavoidance system (T-CAS) pitchcommands and vertical speed cues.These are shown on the attitude

40 AIRLINERTECH

The inboard main landing gear assembly of the 747-400 as viewed from the left side

of the aircraft. Games c. Goodall)

indicator display and the verticalspeed display respectively, both inred. The system is designed to pre­vent mid-air collisions or traffic con­flicts. The PFD will show these dis­plays instantly when an intrudingaircraft (so long as it has a transpon-

der) comes too close. The symbolstell the Dash Four Hundred pilotwhere to fly to avoid a "mid-air."T-CAS also gives the captain andfirst officer voice prompts, rangingin urgency from the preliminary"Traffic, Traffic!" to "Climb, climb

now! Climb, climb now!" 747-400pilots can also use the navigationdisplay in some modes to call up aplan view of surrounding trafficequipped with T-CAS.

The aircraft also has a groundproximity warning system (GPWS),which provides a screen displayand, when necessary, a voiceprompt.

FLIGHT DECK

Of course, even the highest ofhigh-tech aircraft has the same basicflight controls found on a Cessna140 or a B-1B Lancer bomber. Thereare, after all, only so many varia­tions on yoke, rudder pedals, andthrottle. As 747 pilot Robert L. Burnsputs it, the jetliner "has a yoke likeold flying machines with rudderpedals that have brake pedals incor­porated in them, and a center con­sole with four thrust levers (throt­tles). The rudder pedals also havelimited nose wheel steering."

This view from the rear fuselage shows the wing, trailing-edge flaps, and winglet of the 747-400. Note that the variable-camber

flaps, which lie flat when retracted, assume their camber when extended as seen here. The 747-400 also has leading-edge flaps

that are not visible here. Games c. Goodall)

BOEING

141-400 41

The size and complexity of the 747-400 is symbolized by the number of hatchesfound on the aircraft, no fewer than 13 doors as shown in this side plan view.(United Airlines)

Although its purpose is to illustrate the location of panels on the flight deck, thisdiagram of the pilots' work area (with seats and some other items removed forsimplicity) also gives us a sense for the size and shape of this part of the aircraft.(United Airlines)

busy terminals while being so highup and so far forward. Yet in spite ofthe enormous size of the Dash FourHundred, the flight deck is essential­ly the same size as that of the earlierBoeing 707. That aircraft usually car­ried a crew of four (two pilots, navi­gator, flight engineer). The DashFour Hundred uses the extra seatspace for two"observer" seats,directly behind the two pilot seats,which are used when a second flightcrew is carried on long flights orwhen an FAA inspector is ridingalong. The flight deck area alsoincludes two 78 by 30-inch crew restbunks, also for use when a secondpair of pilots is aboard.

The pilot seats of the 747-400were designed for convenience andefficiency. All recline and haveadjustable lumbar supports andsheepskin seat covers. The captain'sand first officer's seats are adjustablevertically and horizontally and fea­ture 3 inches of additional aft move­ment from previous 747 models.

The first "observer" seat, on theright behind the first officer, ispedestal-mounted and features bothhorizontal and vertical adjustment.Manual stowage and a pullout work­table are located next to this seat.The second "observer" seat is on afixed base with stowage space in thebase. Optional features include head­rests for all seats and electricallyoperated pilot seat controls.

ENGINES

From the beginning, the planwas that the 747-400 would beoffered to airlines with engines fromthe world's three principal enginebuilders: General Electric, Pratt &

Whitney, and Rolls-Royce. All threecompanies manufacture turbofanengines of a new generation,referred to by some as third-genera­tion turbofans. These engines are

ST!2261

the main landing gear, and 12 feet infront of the nose gear. The pilotsmaneuver this large aircraft around

THIRC PASSENGERCABIN COOl!LEfT - 833,~IGHT - 8,3

FIfTH PASSENGERCABIN DOORLEfT - 855,RIGHT - S<'5

~--+-,~---+-,I--------1---,L-

UPPE~ CECKE"E~GENCI COo.lLEFT-UI,RIGHT - 847

fIRST PASSENGERICABIN DOOl!LEfT - 831,~IGHT - 841

ISECOND PASSENGER

(lEW ENERGENCY CABIN COOl!HIT HATCH LEfT - B32,I.EfT _ 839 lIGHT - 8,2

STA830

1I0EINC747

The two pilots sit on a flightdeck situated fully 29 feet above theground, roughly 100 feet in front of

42 AIRLINERTECH

British Commonwealth carriers operating the 747-400 prefer the Rolls-RoyceRB.211-524G and -524H high bypass ratio turbofan engines, which are derivedfrom the RB.211-524D4 but with a wide chord fan, full authority fuel control, lowemission combustor, and integrated exhaust nozzle assembly. (Boeing)

The General Electric CF6-80C2 turbofan engine became the most numerous powerplants used by the 747-400 series. (General Electric)

cumference and has a thrust ratingup to 62,000 pounds (275.8 kN). Ituses new-technology, single-crystalturbine blades and is controlled by afull-authority, engine digital control(FAEDC). It also has a larger fan andis credited with reducing fuel con­sumption by 7 percent as comparedto the same manufacturer's JT9Dengine, from which it is derived.

Users of the P&W enginesinclude Air Canada, Air China,China Airlines, Korean Air Lines,Northwest Airlines, Singapore Air­lines, and United Airlines.

General Electric manufacturesthe CF6-80C2, which became thesecond engine to be chosen for the747-400 and has subsequentlybecome the most popular. Its thrustrating is listed as 57,000 pounds(253.65 kN) although all thrust rat­ings are, of course, based on a vari­ety of factors induding temperatureand altitude.

The GE engine, whose first 747­400 customer was KLM Royal Dutch

EXHAUSTCONE

MIXERASSEMBLY

AIR SCOOP

current series of PW4000 turbofans.The PW4056, initially known as thePW4256 and tailored to the 747-400has a 7-foot lO-inch (2.4-meter) cir-

ROLLS-ROYCE RB211 ENGINE

DEDICATEDALTERNATOR

FULL AUTHORITYFUEL CONTROL

FUEL PUMPSI --e<~FMU

bigger and more powerful than theengines of even a decade or twoago. Indeed, the improvements inengine power and efficiency proba­bly mark the biggest change in air­line flying in recent years. Were itnot aerodynamically impossible­and distinctly uncomfortable for allon board-the engines on a DashFour Hundred would enable the air­craft to fly straight up. It should beadded that the Dash Four Hundredwas meant to use these engines totravel farther. As compared to the747-300 "classic," maximum fuelcapacity rose to 44,640 gallons(202,940 liters) from 43,640 gallons(190,380 liters). Depending on thepower plant chosen, the 747-400was designed to offer 7 to 11 percentgreater fuel efficiency than the -300.

After receiving the nod fromlaunch customer Northwest Air­lines, Pratt & Whitney drew the dis­tinction of supplying power plantsfor the first 747-400 airframe and,hence, the first flight. In the 1980sthe company began to develop its

BOEING

147-400 43

This view, emphasizing the easy accessibility of the huge Pratt & Whitney

4000-series engines to ground maintainers, was released to mark the delivery of the2,OOOth engine in the series in June 1999. The 94-inch diameter of the engine's fan

unit enables the power plant to fit inside a nacelle so large that a man or womancan stand fully erect inside the air intake. (Pratt & Whitney)

Airlines, was an improved version ofan earlier CF6 variant improved withthe addition of an extra low-pressurecompressor stage (to total four) andwas controlled with a FADEC. Likeits P & W competitor, the CF6-80C2used new, stronger materials in itsturbine blades and included an extra(fifth) turbine stage.

Carriers that chose the GeneralElectric power plant include AirFrance, All Nippon Airways, AsianaAirlines, Atlas Air, Cargolux (whichalso has Rolls-powered Dash FourHundreds) EVA Air, Garuda Indone­sian Airways, Japan Airlines, KLM,

44

Kuwait Airways, Lufthansa,Malaysia Airlines, Philippine Air­lines, Thai Airways International,and UTA. General Electric turbofansalso equip 747-400s operated by thegovernment of Brunei and by JapanAirlines for the government of Japan.

ROLLS POWER

Rolls-Royce (R-R) provides 747­400 airliners operated by BritishCommonwealth airlines with itsRB.211-524G and -524H turbofanengines. These engines are rated at58,000 pounds (258.1 kN) and 60,000

AIRLINERTECH--- ..

pounds (267 kN) thrust respectively.Because the engine is manufacturedat the former Rover Car Co. facilityat Barnoldswick, in northwest York­shire, England, the "RB" prefix sig­nifies Rolls Barnoldswick. Thelaunch customer for the R-R 747-400engine was Cathay Pacific Airways.

The RB.211 was, in manyrespects, a product of the reorgani­zation that followed Rolls-Royce'sdarkest hour- its bankruptcy in1971. The company recalled its for­mer whiz kid, Stanley Hooker, whomasterminded a complete redesignof the basic RB.211 design. Theresult is that by 2001, the builderhad manufactured at least 3,400RB.211 engines, including the no­frills -535 version selected by mostusers Of the Boeing 757.

With its RB211-624G/H models,R-R was last among the big threeengine makers to gain certificationfor the 747-400, in 1990. The R-Rengine for the 747-400, like previousRB.211s, is triple-shaft configured,but unlike any previous 747 engineprovides wide-chord fan blades,identical to those introduced on the ­535E4 for the 757 and regarded asespecially resistant to bird strikes.Since introducing its 747-400 powerplant, R-R has upgraded the enginewith the advanced Trent 700 (for­merly, the RB.211-700) high-pressurecore, making the RB.211-624G/Hpart of the maker's larger family ofTrent engines.

Operators of Rolls-powered 747­400s include Air New Zealand,British Airways, Cathay Pacific,Qantas, and South African Airways.

Commenting on the threeengine choices available to 747-400operators, a power plant expert said:

Typically an engine maker willboast when something is cheaper orhas higher performance comparedto earlier products. Getting morecompression or extracting more

I r WHrTE

c:===;~=?-f/ NAVIGATIONAND STROBE

UGHTS

RED ANTICOWSION LIGHT (BOTTOM)

121 different lavatory configura­tions! Similarly, the aircraft hadnumerous "utility hook-ups," offer-

RED NAVIGATION AND \

WHITE STROBE LIGHTS ----------

EXTERIOR LIGHTING

1WING SCANUGHTS-LEFTANDRIGoHT

RED ANTICOWSION UGHT (TOP)

RUNWAYTURNOFFL1GHT·LEFT AND RIGHT

The exterior lighting arrangement on the Boeing 747-400. The arrangementconforms to international agreements for the locations and colors of various lights.(Boeing)

for lavatories on the main deck, withsix more "upstairs" giving an airlinecustomer enormous flexibility, and

In "green" condition (unfin­ished, as it emerged from the facto­ry), the basic 747-400 airframe wasactually much lighter than the 747­300 "classic," but when the aircraftwas fitted out for revenue opera­tions it was heavier and morerobust. The certificated gross takeoffweight of the aircraft rose to 870,000pounds (384,630 kilograms) from833,000 pounds (377,850 kilograms).

The cabin interior was alsoextensively redesigned. The newvacuum sewer system provided twomassive 2-inch-diameter waste pipesrunning the length of the main cabinand the upper deck. These incorpo­rated 33 potential "plug-in" points Rolls-Royce RB.211 engines in final assembly. (Rolls-Royce)

FUSELAGE

power with fewer stages is some­thing to boast about, but the makerof the CF6 would might not takepride in, or publicize, the extra stubstage in the compressor and theextra turbine stage. That is an effec­tive way to increase thrust and/orreduce fuel consumption, but thetrade-off is cost (more parts) andmore maintenance (more parts). It ismore logical to feel good when youhave something that's logical, likeRolls-Royce boasting about birdresistant wide-chord blades.

The three engine choices avail­able on the Dash Four Hundred areidentical to those available on theBoeing 767, so the builder has beenable to design some commonalityinto engine pylons and nacelles. Thenacelles are identical for each of theengine choices. All have a cowlingdiameter of 8 feet 6 inches (2.6meters). All three engine choices arecompletely up-to-date on world­wide noise requirements, promptingthe manufacturer to claim thatengine noise from today's 747-400 ishalf of what it was on the original747s delivered in 1970.

BOEING

141-400 45

LANDING GEAR

The 747-400 landing gear wasextensively modified in contrast tothe earlier 747 "classics," resultingin a l,800-pound (844-kilogram)weight savings. The 747-400 has 16main landing-gear tires and 2 noselanding-gear tires. The twin-wheelnose unit retracts forward andapparently has no aerodynamicallylimiting speed at which retractioncan take place. The nosewheel issteerable up to 70 degrees left orright from tillers and up to 7 degreesat high speed by application of fullrudder pedal.

The main gear consists of four,four-wheel bogies; two, mountedside by side under the fuselage atthe wing's trailing edge, whichretract forward; two, mountedunder the wings, which retractinward. The two center main wheelssteer up to 13 degrees when the nosegear is steered more than 20 degreesso long as speed is less than 23 milesper hour (37 kilometers per hour). Inflight, the main wheels hang downat what one captain calls a "strangeangle," usually with the aft wheelslower on the bogy beam. On retrac­tion they are centered and straight­ened so that they fit into the wheelwell. The landing gear configurationis based on that of the "classic" 747models, but because the Dash FourHundred has a greater takeoffweight and makes greater use ofdigital systems, minor changes havebeen introduced. The most signifi-

which snared the 747-400 away fromthe world's largest APU supplier,Garrett. The power unit was derivedfrom the company's line of turbo­prop engines. A press release creditsthe PW901A with burning 40 percentless fuel than previous APUs, savingup to $125,000 (presumably, per air­craft) per year.

AUOIOEfUeftT.o.INllEMT __

0S

C.... ,NlIGHTING

B8B6

ATHNOA""CALL _

o

CABIN SYSTEM MODULE

CABIN SERYICES__

1~1

PW901AAPU (auxiliary power unit),different from the APU found on allearlier 747 models. This featuremarks a coup for its manufacturer,

ATTENDANTS PANEL

INDIRECTCEIUNG UGHTS-+-,--=__1Ci

ing a choice of 12 galley areas, with157 different locations.

At the end of the 747-400 fuse­lage is a Pratt & Whitney Canada

It's all taken for granted when we file aboard a 747-400 preparing for a flight, butthe passenger cabin lightning system was designed with a great deal of user­

friendly thinking directed toward both flight attendants and passengers. (Boeing)

Detail of the forward right side of the 747-400 fuselage, seen at Baltimore­Washington International Airport, Maryland, on March 31, 1991. We arescrutinizing Boeing 747-406 line number 732, with a nice even constructor's

number, cln 24000, registered as PH-BFB with KLM Royal Dutch Airlines andfirst flown on May 23, 1989. This was KLM's second Dash Four Hundred.

(Sunil Gupta)

46 AIRLINERTECH..

re

An overhead view of the flight deck with the nose of the aircraft to the viewer's left.This view encompasses the seats for captain and first officer, the two observer seatsfor relief crewmembers located immediately behind the pilots, and the crew restbunks. The ergonomic layout of the flight deck claims to reduce the workload of the747-400 flight crew during either normal or abnormal operations. (Boeing)

OPTIONAL SEATFOLDS UP

STA455

--t;"",,---,---p

STA456

CREW REST BUNKS:7B" x 30"

FUGHT DECK AND CREW RESTARRANGEMENT

2- STEPSFIRST OBSERVER

FLIGHT KIT STOWAGEFIRST OFFICER

MAIN PANEL

SECOND OBSERVER

WING

Quite remarkably, engineers hadredesigned the wing of the 747 jet­liner no fewer than 10 times by thetime the 747-400 wing was finalized,although most changes were inter­nal and therefore not visible to theeye. The wing of the 747-400 spans213 feet (64.92 meters) when the air­craft is fully fueled or 211 feet 5inches (64.6 meters) otherwise, isswept at 37.5 degrees at quarter­chord, and has an aspect ratio of 7.0.The wing is 17 feet (5.2 meters)greater in span than the wing of the747-300, but is lighter. The wing hasa surface of aluminum alloy, dual­path, fail-safe material and is distin-

cant change is the introduction ofcarbon disc brake units, replacingsteel disc brakes (this change wasalso introduced in the Boeing 757).

The 75th Boeing 747 for Japan Air Lines (of all models) is this 747-446 taking shape on the factory floor at Everett.(via Michael Stroud)

BOEING

141-400 47

guished (on most examples of theaircraft) by the ubiquitous, carbon­skinned winglets. The extension ofwingspan measures just 6 feet (1.83meters) while the angled wingletshave a maximum span of 2 feet 11inches (.9 meter). A 747-400 wingweighs 28,000 pounds (12,700 kilo­grams), and measures 5,600 squarefeet (524.9 square meters), an areabroad enough to hold 45 medium­sized automobiles or 8 World War 1­era Curtiss JN4-D Jenny biplanes.

The adoption of winglets wasessentially a compromise thatenables airline operators to conservefuel while keeping the span of thewing within reason for operation oncrowded airport hardstands. Itmight have been easier simply togive the Dash Four Hundred greaterspan and~ing area, but that wouldhave complicated operations near

Close-up of Rolls-Royce engines on a 747-400F freighter operated by Cargolux.

(Rolls-Royce).

TO AIR DRIVEN HYDRAULICPUMP ON ENGINES 1 AND 4

PRESSURE REGULATING ANDSHUTOFF VALVE

PRECOOLER EXHAUST

(COWL MOUNTED)

F~~~~~~~~~\-:EX~VHAUST PLUG

ACCESS NOZZLE EXHAUST SLEEVE

STARTER VALVE

OVERBOARD DRAINSTHRUST REVERSER COWL

P&WAPT2/TT2

PROBE

INLET PRECOOLERANTI-ICE DUCT (STRUT MOUNTED)

ELECTRICALDISCONNECT

PRATI AND WHITNEY PW4000 ENGINE

The Pratt & Whitney PW4256 high bypass ratio turbofan engine, the first 747-400 power plant to take to the air, is a

derivative of the JT9D-7R4G2 but with an extra 1.5 bearing, shorter combuster, advanced aerodynamic shape, and fullauthority electronic engine control (EEC). The engine is rated at 56,750 pounds static thrust at sea level for takeoff. (Boeing)

48 AIRLINERTECH_i ..

the gate and on the taxiway.(As anaside, some Classics are now beingfitted with winglets.)

According to the builder, theadditional 6-foot (1.8 meter) wingtipextension and winglet adds nothingto the weight of the 747-400 wing. Aweight savings of approximately5,000 pounds (2270 kilograms) wasachieved in the wing by using newaluminum alloys that offset theweight increase of the wingtipextension and winglet. The wing,nacelle pylons, and nacelles of theaircraft make extensive use ofKevlar and other graphite materials.

747-400 TAIL

In contrast to the 747 "classic"airliners that preceded it, the DashFour Hundred introduced extensivechanges to its tail section. The hori-

As seen from beneath the wingtip of a 747-400 being assembled in the Everettfactory, this is a detailed view of the outboard leading edge slats, showing the colorvariations in aircraft metals and composite materials prior to painting. Games c.Goodall)

PRESSURE REGULATING AND SHUTOFFVALVE

TO AIR DRIVEN HYDRAULIC PUMPON ENGINES 1 AND 4

STARTER DUCT

PNEUMATIC STARTER VALVE

PNEUMATIC STARTER

_ INTEGRATED DRIVE GENERATOR

IGNITION UNITSDRAIN MAST

HYDRAULIC PUMP -

GENERAL ELECTRIC CF6 ENGINE

TAl. SUPPLY DUCT

FULL AUTHORITY DIGITALELECTRONIC CONTROL(FADEC)

The Dash Four Hundred airliner's most widely-used power plant is the General Electric CF6-80C-BIF high bypass ratioturbofan engine, a derivative of the CF6-50E2 but with a shorter overall length, larger diameter fan, four-stage boostercompressor, shorter combuster, core-mounted accessory gear box and engine accessories, and relocated engine mounts. (Boeing)

BOEING

141-400 49

This three-quarter-rear view shows the right wingtip and winglet of a 747-400

nearing completion at the factory. (James C. Goodall)

zontal tail has a 3,300-gallon integralfuel tank between its front and rearspars. The fuel tank increases rangeby about 400 miles (644 kilometers).The horizontal tailplane has a spanof 72 feet 8 inches (22.10 meters) andit actually boasts more area than theentire wing of a 727 airliner.

The horizontal stabilizer con­sists of left and right outboard sec­tions attached to a center sectionwith close tolerance lockbolts. Thetotal travel of the stabilizer is 15degrees. A stabilizer position indica­tor system uses three transmitters toprovide the flight crew with infor­mation. The stabilizer control sys­tem trims the aircraft longitudinally(in pitch) by varying the horizontalstabilizer angle of attack.

The rear surface of the horizon­tal tailplane consists of a four-pieceelevator attached to the rear spar of

This view of a 747-400F freighter being assembled in the Everett factory illustrates the type of scaffolding employed on theproduction line and provides a revealing look at the tail structure. (James C. Goodall)

50 AIRLIlVERTECH

All that attention to the wing of the 747­400 produced a complex and magnificentwing structure, spanning 211 feet 5inches (64.44 meters), weighing 66,000pounds (29,980 kilograms) and withflight surfaces everywhere. In this frontview of a 747-400, we can see theinboard Kreuger leading-edge flaps, thesimpler leading-edge flaps betweenengines, and the four sets of trailing­edge flaps. The aircraft is extremelystable, just as its great size and bulksuggests, and the wing flight surfacesperform brilliantly. (Andre Ran)"

the horizontal stabilizer, with fourhydraulic actuators plus controlsand an elevator feel system. The ele­vator feel system prevents overcon­trol in pitch and causes an increas­ing artificial force to react againstcontrol inputs as speed increases.

The fin and the rudder of the747-400 also have been redesigned.The vertical stabilizer (fin) consistsof a front spar, rear spar, ribs,stringers, and skin, which togetherconstitute a beam. Two rudders(upper and lower) are used for con­trol, trim, and automatic rollout inthe yaw axis. The upper rudder hasincreased travel and three triple-

GlARESHIElD FLOODUGIfT

FLIGHT DECK LIGHTING

The lighting configuration of the pilots' flight deck was the result of considerablethought and effort and was completely reworked in contrast to 747-400 "classic"models. (Boeing)

BOEING

741-400 51

IDlING ?4?-4DDMAINTENANCE MANUAL UPPER RUDDER

OUTBOAROELEVATOR

The complexity of the flight surfaces onthe -400, especially the leading-edgeflaps, which have 14 distinct surfaces, isillustrated in this look from above andbelow. (United Airlines)

valve actuators. The aircraft heightof 65 feet 5 inches (19.94 meters) asmeasured from runway to fin tip isunchanged from the earliest 747model to the latest, as is the exteriorshape of the vertical fin. The verticalstabilizer is designed with a remov­able leading edge.

LIGHTING

Flight Control Surfac~s

The engineering team at Boeingdevoted considerable time andattention to lighting on the aircraft­from the illumination providedwithin the passenger cabin to thewhite strobe light at the very rear tipof the fuselage tail cone. The sys­tems manual for the aircraft tells usthat the flight deck includes floorlights, dome lights, map lights, utili­ty lights, indicator lights, and inte­gral instrument lights, eachdesigned and positioned with con­siderable care by ergonomic experts.

In the passenger cabin, lightingis controlled by the ACESS and iscompletely programmable. On theoutside of this big aircraft, the exteri­or light installation was configuredwith careful thought given to relia­bility and ease of maintenance. Mostlightning control switches are abovethe pilots in the forward edge of theforward overhead panel while insome cases there are switches in thecompartments being lighted.

This Singapore Airlines 747-400 isreceiving attention, apparently at thefactory at Everett. Yes, there is a mainentry door located on the right side of theforward fuselage, even though airlinersin service are almost always boardedfrom the left side. (via Michael Stroud)

5 4 3 2 1 1E

VARIABLE CAilliER FLAPS.LEAOING EDGE FLAPS.

10 9 a 7 6

KIlUEGERFLAPS~13 12 11

52 AIRLINERTECH-- --

747-400 '~"I-ARIANTS

From the beginning, the prima­

. ry object with the 747-400 wasto make the aircraft better.

That meant improved systems, sim­plicity of operation, and the flexibili­ty to develop various models forvarious applications. Increasing pas­senger capacity was never an impor­tant motive. After all, the SUD ofthe late "classic" 747-300 addeduseful capacity to the basic designand marginally reduced average

seat/mile costs. Nevertheless, with apassenger capacity of 374, even theearliest Boeing 747-100s held moretravelers than any of their competi­tors. Increasing the aircraft's capaci-

THE MAIN MODELS IN USE

ty did not provide much more of acompetitive edge. It was newness,not size, that counted-improvingupon a basic design that looked dis­tinctly old-fashioned when com­pared to aircraft such as the Boeing757 and 767, and the early Airbuses.New-technology power plants,advanced materials, new aerody­namics, and state of the art systemswere the key to the Dash Four Hun­dred and to the flexibility that madepossible the aircraft variantsdescribed in this chapter.

The following is an attempt toprovide the principal characteristicsof the different kinds of 747-400.

Included are some variants thatwere studied but not built, as Boeingshifted its perception of the marketover the years. It should be remem­bered that every airline carrier hasits own special needs; these needschange from time to time, and thesoftware beneath the skin of a mod­ern airliner is constantly beingupgraded.

747-300A

For a brief but intense period,Boeing devoted engineering effortsto a longer-range Boeing 747-300A"classic" with longer-span wings,

The first Boeing 747-400F freighter takes offfor its maiden flight at Everett, Washington, on May 4, 1993, wearing the U.S.civil registry N6005C that was assigned for test purposes. The aircraft, a 747-428F intended for Air France as F-GlUA, wasnot delivered to the French airline, which decided to purchase Combi models instead. The aircraft was placed in storage inArizona for a time before being delivered to Cargolux on September 13, 1995, with the registry LX-lCV (Boeing)

BOEING

141-4~~ 53

On September 4,1988, Boeing

arranged this photo

opportunity to compare the747-400 and the 737-400.

That month, the first exampleof the smaller aircraft was

delivered to Piedmont

Airlines, while the first 747­

400 went to Northwest

Airlines on January 26, 1989.The difference in size? The747 has a 232-foot (70.7­

meter) fuselage length; the

737's is just 119 feet 6 inches

(36.4 meters). The largerflying machine is, of course,

line number 696,

constructor's number 23719,

registered as N401PW-the

first ship in the series, and the

very same Dash Four

Hundred that first went toNorthwest. (Boeing)

increased fuel capacity, and new ever, it would have retained most of of a three-pilot aircraft. This modelengines. This aircraft would have the drawbacks of the "classics" in would have been old enough tobeen marginally more capable of the digital age-not in the least the have the drawbacks but new enoughhandling long-distance routes. How- administrative headaches and costs to need a lengthy period of develop-

The cargo-hauling freighter version of the famous Boeing jetliner has winglets but lacks the stretched upper deck found on mostpassenger models. "Mega Ark," Singapore Airlines' term for its 747-400 freighters, is a Singapore Airlines Boeing 747-412F

freighter, line no, 1036, cln 26563, registered as 9V-SFA. (Andre Ran)

54 AIRLINERTECH..

ment and testing, making it distinct­ly old-fashioned by the time itentered service. It seemed more acosmetic improvement than a realadvance, and was quickly shelved.

747-400 COMBl

"Two airplanes in one," Boeingcalls it. The 747-400 Combi derivesits name from offering a combina­tion of passenger and cargo loadson the same deck. A 10xll-foot(305x340-centimeter) cargo door dis­tinguishes the 747-400 Combi; thisdoor is arranged in upward-openingposition on the left side of the rearfuselage. The Combi has a strength­ened floor in the rear-deck cargo

Exhibiting the familiar lines of the basic

Dash Four Hundred design, this aircraftis the Pratt & Whitney engine-poweredBoeing 747-400 prototype (line number

696, cln 23719), alias N401PW.

(via Michael Stroud)

area and a roller-conveyor systemenabling cargo containers to be read­ily loaded and unloaded.

Since its introduction in 1975,the Boeing 747 Combi has helpedairlines around the world meet theirlong-range passenger and cargorequirements. The Combi has a largeside-cargo door behind the leftwing, plus equipment that removespassenger seats and installs cargotracks, giving airlines the option ofcarrying cargo in containers on themain deck behind passengers. Thisflexibility allows airlines to adaptthe interior configuration to meet

BOEING141-4@@

variations in seasonal markets andcharter demands.

Another reason for the Combi'spopularity is that it can be scheduledthrough an airport with the sameturnaround time as any passenger747. Cargo operations do not inter­fere with passenger service, becausemain-deck cargo loading occurs in anarea of the airplane where normallythere is no activity. This simultaneouspassenger-and-cargo-loading andunloading operation is possiblebecause of the stability allowed bythe fore and aft arrangement of thewing and body landing gear.

...

55

This is possibly thevery first airline colorscheme to undergo achange following itsearly appearance on a747-400. ManyUnited Airlinescustomers andemployees liked thesecolors better than thecolors that replacedthem (dominated bydark blues and grays).Their appearance in aDash Four Hundredphoto, however, isextremely rare.

The large side-cargo door on themain deck allows cargo loading inthe aft section at the same time pas­sengers are boarded in the forwardsection. A locked partition separatesthe passenger compartment from thecargo area, which is accessible onlyby the crew. Roller trays on the 747'saft floor facilitate loading of 8-foot­wide (2.4-meter) containers, or pal­lets, up to 20 feet long (6.1 meters).The airplane's main deck can accom­modate any container or pallet usedin the aviation industry today inlengths of up to 20 feet (6.1 meters).

The Combi can handle large volumeshipments such as automobiles,small boats, heavy machinery,drilling equipment, and even smallaircraft or hel~copters. Environmen­tal control in the cargo area allowstransportation of live animals, per­ishable foods, and cut flowers/veg­etables, while maintaining separateenvironmental control of the passen­ger cabin. The 747-400 Combi incor­porates additional fire protection, atwo-crew digital Hight deck,advanced engines, wingtip exten­sion with winglet, and new interiors.

The first Combi went into ser­vice with the now-defunct SabenaBelgian World Airlines in early 1974.This was a standard 747-100 passen­ger airplane, modified by installa­tion of a side cargo door. Boeingdelivered the first true 747-200Combi (with the side-cargo dooralready installed) to Air Canada inFebruary 1975.

Swissair was the first customerfor the 747-300 Combi, and KLMRoyal Dutch Airlines was first forthe 747-400 Combi. The stretchedupper deck of the 747-300 and 747-

There is no outwardclue that this is a"Combi," an aircraftconfigured for a mix ofpassengers and cargo.The location is Torontoand this beautifulaircraft is Boeing747-433 Combi linenumber 840, c/n24998, registered asC-CAGL. Themanufacturerdelivered this aircraftto Air Canada onFebruary 15, 1991.(Bill Crimmins)

56 AIRLINERTECH..

The famous "black box" (which in reality is red) is the voice recorder that records

the last thirty minutes offlight crew communications. (Boeing)

ao+

o

D

AFT EQUIPMENT CENTER• VOICE RECORDER (E-8)

VOICE RECORDER

AFT EQUIPMENT CENTER (E8)

o 1-1 --.JI 0

AREA MICROPHONE

ao+

FlO

FIRSTOBS

CAPT

ULB----t+ll

AREA MICROPHONE

AUDIOMANAGEMENT UNIT (AMU)MAIN EQUIPMENT CENTER (E2-5)

VOICE RECORDER

HEADSETS

HANDMICS

OXY MASK MICS

TEST ERASE

I",ICIiOPHO"lE MONITOR

Seen on aflight to Auckland, New Zealand, through the lens of New Zealander JimWinchester's camera, this Korean Airlines aircraft is ready to go in April 2000.HL7478 is the civil registration assigned to Boeing 747-4B5, line number 739, c/n24199, first flown on July 15, 1989 and operated in the Far East by Korea. aimWinchester)

747-400D

Boeing tailored several versionsof the 747-400D (for "domestic") forthe special needs of Japan's domes­tic air routes; Japanese airlines wereenabled to haul unusually highnumbers of passengers (up to 624)over comparatively short distances.The 747-400D combines the cockpit,fuselage, and undercarriage DashFour Hundred with a "classic"-look­ing short-span wing withoutwinglets. In fact, the 400D's wing isunique, since it is manufacturedfrom the new alloys and incorpo­rates fittings to allow the extendedwingtips and winglets to be retrofit-

400 Combis can accommodate 44more passengers than the standard747-200 Combi. The 747-400 Combiis currently the only Combi in pro­duction. More than 30 customersoperate a total of 144 747 Combis,including 58 747-400 Combis.

The convertible, mixed passen­ger/freight Boeing 747-400M Combihad the same modifications as "clas­sic" 747 Combis, with the sameremovable and moveable internalbulkhead to separate the passengersand freight and the same 120x134­inch cargo door on the port rearfuselage. The aircraft can carry 6 or12 pallets in the rear fuselage, withits strengthened floor, with some air­craft also equipped to be able tocarry a 7th (or 13th) pallet in thetapering part of the rear fuselage.With Extended Twin-Engine Operat­ing Procedures (ETOPS) allowingsmaller twins to be used on mostroutes, there is less need to fly "half­full" 747s, and less "spare capacity"to be filled by freight, so Combi ver­sions of the Dash Four Hundredhave been less popular. Despite this,Boeing sold 30-odd 747-400Ms. Thefirst entered service with KLM dur­ing September 1989.

BOEING

141-400 57

In May 2001, Emirates SkyCargo, actually operated by Atlas Air, performs747-400F freighter duty at the new Hong Kong airport. (Sunil Gupta)

ted by any carrier seeking to shiftfrom short-haul to overseas opera­tions. Unlike the standard DashFour Hundred, the -400D lacks thecrew rest facilities and the tailplanefuel tank, and has a very high-densi­ty cabin layout and seating.

Boeing delivered 6 747-400Ds toJapan Air Lines and 11 to All Nip­pon Airways. ANA recently con­verted one of the latter to full 747­400 standard for use on long-rangeroutes. The manufacturer has con­siderable interest in selling addi­tional short-range, high-capacity747-400s to China, India, or evenU.s. or European trunk carriers.

747-400F

The Boeing 747-400F freighterdiffers from other Dash Four Hun­dred models in not having theStretched Upper Deck. This givesthe 747-400F a resemblance to the

"classic" -200F model, which ceasedproduction in 1991. The newer air­craft does incorporate the new wingstructure, increased span, winglets,auxiliary power unit, carbon brakes,and glass cockpit. The upper deckwould be essentially wasted spaceon a freighter and its floor reduces

the ceiling height on the main deckby nearly 2 feet. This would restricta longer part of the forward fuselageto 8-foot high containers, while con­tainers loaded via the side cargodoor and accommodated behind the"hump" could be up to 10 feet high.Air France ordered 5 -400Fs in 1989,

The cargo 747-400F is especially well illustrated in this view at Taipei International Airport in October 2001. This shot showsus not only the aircraft but also examples of the palletized cargo it carries. Note: both Mainland China and Taiwan use the"B-1" civil registry assigned to China. (Sunil Gupta)

58 AIRLIlVERTECH"1M

but cancelled these in favor of Com­bis. The aircraft were completed,and the first was delivered to Car­golux in May 1993. About 15 havebeen delivered to a number of cus­tomers, including Asiana, Atlas Air,Cathay Pacific, Korean Air, and Sin­gapore Airlines.

Its proponents claim the 747­400F has the lowest operating costsper ton-mile of all commercial cargohaulers, with a 15 percent improve­ment over the 747-200F in fuel burnper pound of payload. Operatorsinclude Asiana, Atlas Air, British Air­ways, Cargolux, China Air Cargo,EVA, Korean, Singapore ("MegaArk"), and Polar (which has nowbeen subsumed by Atlas).

Philippine Airlines' future was unclear at the time this volume went to press, but

this Boeing "jumbo" was operating at Hong Kong as recently as May 2001.

N752PR is, of course, a u.s. registration, but appears routinely on 747-400sbelonging to the Philippine carrier. (Sunil Gupta)

Like its neighbor Malaysia Airlines, Thai International has a paint scheme on its

747-400s that might charitably be characterized as unimaginative. HS-TGH is thecivil registry assigned by Thai authorities to a ship that was relatively early on the

production line, namely Boeing 747-407, line number 769, constructor's number

24458, first flown on February 21, 1990. The location is Schipol Airport in theNetherlands. (Andre Ran)

747-500X/747-600X

These are among the aircraftthat might have been. In 1996, Boe­ing was studying projected 747­500X and 747-600X designs thatwould have increased the size ofthe Dash Four Hundred by length­ening the fuselage.

The 747-600X was a design for a548-passenger aircraft with a rangeof 8,900 statute miles or 7,750 nauti­cal miles (14350 kilometers). It wasexpected to introduce a new wingand two body plugs to lengthen thefuselage, one measuring 18 feet 4inches (5.58 meters) inches forwardof the wing and two others totaling10 feet 2 inches (3.09 meters) aftof the wing. The manufacturerplanned to strengthen the fuselagestructure to permit a maximumtakeoff weight of 1,030,000 pounds(467197 kilograms). The lengthenedfuselage would be 262 feet 6 inches(80 meters) from nose to tail. Thisvastly bigger "super jumbo" wouldhave required a new, four-truckmain landing gear with 16 wheelsand a newer, broader horizontalstabilizer.

The never-built 747-500X wasdescribed as a truncated -600X ratherthan a stretched Dash Four Hundred.It would have used fore and aft fuse­lage plugs to increase fuselage lengthby 10 feet 2 inches (3.09 meters),making it shorter than the -600X. The747-500X would have carried 462passengers up to 10,000 miles (16,093kilometers) with 10 U.S. tons of addi­tional cargo capacity. .

BOEING

141-4~~

Boeing never finalized a selec­tion of engine or flight deck for the747-500X and 747-600X, but wasunder pressure from airlines tointroduce a cockpit compatible withexisting 777 models to allow com­mon type ratings for pilots. In May1996, an agreement was announcedbetween Pratt & Whitney and Gen­eral Electric which would haveresulted in the competitors teaming

59

up to jointly develop an 84,000­pound-thrust (374-kN) turbofanengine for the new aircraft.

At the 1996 Farnborough airshow in Britain, some potential cus­tomers reportedly told Ron Wood­ward, president of Boeing Commer­cial Airplane Group, of their doubtsabout the economics of these"stretched" 747-400 aircraft designs.The reported sticker price of $230million (in adjusted 1996 dollars) fora 747-600 was about 40 percentgreater than the cost of a standardDash Four Hundred. Woodwardinsisted that a need for an even larg­er aircraft would become obvious inthe future-perhaps anticipating Air­bus's A380 concept, which evolvedat the turn of the century. For thetime being, however, the manufac­turer set aside the Dash Five Hun-

II/lfl/I/ 111"11111

!illlf/fl!lfll!4fS

Close-up of the forward left side of a taxiing British Airways craft in the twentieth­

century paint scheme that is fondly remembered today. This one is Boeing 747-436,

line number 1059, cln 25815, which completed its maiden flight on April 6, 1995and is registered G-CIVG. (Michael Shayler)

The "Utopia" paint schemes were introduced by British Airways to mark a new century and a new millennium although,

being unable to count, British introduced themat the start of 2000 (the final year of the twentieth century) rather than 2001.

Most of the unusual tail designs created by various artists have taken a verbal shellacking from passengers, employees, and

critics. This one, seen at London's Gatwick International Airport on April 7, 1999, has fared a little better. The aircraft is

Boeing 747-436 line no. 802, cln 24056, registered as G-BNLN. The aircraft had a relatively early slot on the assembly line,having completed its maiden flight on July 27, 1990. (Michael Shayler)

60 AIRLINERTECH..

This side view ofa generic DashFour Hundred

airliner shows thelocations of

principal items ofradio andelectronic

equipment, andantennas.(Boeing)

CENTEREQUIPMENT CENTER

(E6, E9)

WEATHER RADAR

I VHFRILS GIS TRACK

ILS GIS CAPTUREAND LOC

MAIN EQUIPMENTCENTER(E1. E2, E30, E31)

AFT EQUIPMENTCENTER (EB)

VOR

~

EQUIPMENT CENTERS AND ANTENNA LOCATIONS

ing claim that the 747-400 is theworld's fastest subsonic jetliner.

An auxiliary tank in the lowerlobe of the aircraft provides fuel foradditional range capability; anoptional second tank is available.Using both auxiliary tanks and fuelin the horizontal stabilizer (on thepassenger version), the Longer­Range 747-400 will be able to carryup to 63,765 U.s. gallons (241,370liters) of fuel. To support the grossweight increase, the aircraft hasstrengthened parts of its wing, fuse-

Longer-Range 747-400 aircraftare the same size as today's 747­400s, but they allow airlines andcargo carriers to fly longer routes, orcarry more cargo or passengers onexisting routes. To support thisenhanced capability, the Longer­Range freighter and passenger ver­sions have increased their grosstakeoff weight by 35,000 pounds(15,870 kilograms) to 910,000pounds (412,770 kilograms). Inannouncing progress with this vari­ant, Boeing reiterated its longstand-

At the beginning of 2002, Boeingwas using the term "Longer-Range747-400" (and, at times, simply"Long Range") for the newest ver­sion of the Dash Four Hundred. Thefirst example was slated to beginmajor assembly at Everett in Febru­ary 2002, to roll out in June, and tobe delivered in October to launchcustomer Qantas. Malaysia Airlines operating at Hong Kong. (Sunil Gupta)

LONGER-RANGE 747-400

Also in 1996, Boeing briefed air­line executives on a proposed 747­700X model that would have beenbigger and longer reaching than anyof its previous designs, although stillsmaller than the huge Airbus designthat evolved into the Airbus A380. Itwas, in effect, a lire-bodying" of the747-600X concept with a wider fuse­lage but retaining the wing, engines,and landing gear. The 747-700X wasmeant to carry about 650 passengersapproximately the distance coveredby the standard 747-400.

747-700X

dred and Dash Six hundred in orderto proceed with improvements to its757, 767, and 777 series.

BOEING

141-400 61

In July 2001, eight months after Singapore Airlines suffered its first ever aircraftloss, a 747-400, at this location, a dark sky gathers behind this Singapore DashFour Hundred flying over Taipei airport. 9V-SMF is the civil registry assigned toBoeing 747-412, line number 791, cln 24066, which made its first flight on June10, 1990 before delivery to the carrier. (Sunil Gupta)

lage, and landing gear, includingnew tires and wheels.

The manufacturer describes theLonger-Range variants thusly:

Passenger version: Blending thelatest in passenger amenities foundin the Boeing 777 with exceptional

performance to support long-range,non-stop, highcdemand routes, thepassenger version of the Longer­Range 747-400 can fly an additional435 nautical miles (805 kilometers).Or, it can carry an additional 15,000pounds (6,800 kilograms) of pay-

load, either in the form of extracargo or a full load of 416 passen­gers. Inside, it looks a lot like a 777interior and feels even more spa­cious because of the 747's unique,20-foot-wide cross section.

Freighter: The first Longer­Range 747-400 Freighter, also with anincreased takeoff weight of 910,000pounds (412,770 kilograms), will bedelivered in October 2002 to Interna­tional Lease Finance Corp., andoperated by Air France. The takeoffweight increase allows this airplaneto fly an additional 525 nauticalmiles (972 kilometers), or carry anadditional 21,000 pounds (9,525 kilo­grams) of payload on long-rangeflights at maximum takeoff weight.With the additional takeoff weightcapability, the Longer-Range 747-400Freighter will be able to carry 134tons (122,525 kilograms) of cargo.Both versions of the 747-400Freighter (875,000- and 910,000­pound takeoff weight) will continueto claim the industry's lowest operat­ing cost per ton-mile.

At Taipei in July 2001, Malaysia Airlines takes off, displaying a ho-hum paintscheme that causes few to regret this carrier not being depicted more often in print.Heading out is Boeing 747-4H6 line number 1130, cln 28426, first flown onOctober 5, 1997, and not likely to excite anyone much unless Malaysia hires a newartist and starts all over again. (Sunil Gupta)

u.s. AIR FORCE C-33A

In the early 1990s when Boeingwas competing with the manufactur­er of the Air Force's C-17 Globemas­ter III (before buying the company),business and legislative leaders inthe Pacific Northwest were interest­ed in seeing the 747-400 in U.S. AirForce colors. What they did not wantwas a repeat of the history of the1960s, 1970s, and 1980s when Boeingmade attempts to interest the AirForce in the 747 as a strategic trans­port aircraft but lost out when theservice chose, instead, to re-wing 70aging C-5A Galaxys and subsequent­ly to purchase 50 new C-5Bs. At onepoint, Boeing offered a minimumchange version of the 747-200F, butwith "kneeling" nose gear (usingjacks to lower the nose, after manual-

62 AIRLINERTECH..

ly retracting the nose wheels) toallow more direct ramp-loading intothe fuselage.

When an opportunity to sell theaircraft to the Air Force arose againin 1994, Boeing offered a minimum­change, PW4056-engined derivativeof the Boeing 747-400F to meet therequirement known in jargon asNDAA (Non Developmental Alter­native Airlifter). This aircraft wouldhave been designated C-33A in mili­tary service. It would have boasted anO,OOO-pound (417302-kilogram)maximum takeoff weight and arange of 7,800 nautical miles. Boe­ing's C-33A won the NDAA compe­tition, but was never procured,although it may have stimulated theC-17 team into solving their prob­lems and getting that aircraft back ontrack. Congressional pressure for theC-33A eased after Boeing acquiredMcDonnell Douglas to become themanufacturer of the C-17.

u.s. AIR FORCE YAL-l

YAL-IA is the U.S. Air Force'sdesignation for the laser-equipped,anti-ballistic-missile aircraft basedon the 747-400F airframe. A teamcomposed of Boeing, Lockheed Mar­tin, and TRW was awarded a $1.1billion program definition and risk­reduction contract for an airborneanti missile system in November1996. The YAL-IA prototype (mili­tary serial no. 00-0001) was orderedon November 12, 1996. TRW demon­strated successful missile trackingand laser firing in early 1998. OnJune 26, 1998 a formal authority wasreceived to proceed with construc­tion of the YAL-1.

Production of the 747-400F des­tined to become the YAL-IA beganin August 1999, and the aircraft (AirForce serial 00-0001) first flew onJanuary 6, 2000. It was delivered"green" to Wichita, Kansas, on Janu-

The location is Chicago's O'Hare International Airport. The date is December

1998. The aircraft is Boeing 747-422 line number 762, cln 24381, which completed

its initial flight at Everett on January 20, 1990, and operates as N174UA withUnited Airlines. (Tom Pesch)

ary 21, 2000 for fitting out. It is whether it will be added at Wichita.unclear whether titanium shielding The Air Force planned to beginintended to protect the undersides flight testing the airborne laser atfrom laser exhaust gases was incor- White Sands Proving Ground, Newpora ted during production, or Mexico, in 2001, leading to the first

When Air Canada swallowed up Canadian Airlines, the result, at least temporarily,

was a hybrid paint scheme with the emblem of the surviving company on the fin

and the name of the former company on the fuselage. The location is Hong Kong inMay 2001. (Sunil Gupta)

BOEING

141-400 63

Boeing is responsible for supplying the

747-400 Freighter for the YAL-l,developing crew safety and the Battle

Management system. Lockheed Martin

is responsible for the nose-mounted

turret, illuminator lasers and beam­

control system. TRW is responsible for

the system's high-energy laser.

(Boeing)

demonstration against a ballisticmissile during 2003. The prototypeis to be followed by one pre-produc­tion aircraft and five productionAL-1As. The prototype and EMDaircraft will then be brought up toproduction AL-1A standards. A fleetof seven aircraft would allow oneaircraft of those deployed to bemaintained on airborne alert aroundthe clock during a deployed opera­tion, with two aircraft beingretained in the continental UnitedStates for home defense.

The YAL-1A and AL-1A willcarry a huge TRW multi-hundredKilowatt chemical oxygen iodinelong-range laser (COIL) in an articu­lated nose-mounted turret. Thedevice is a powerful, nose-mountedlaser designed to shoot down

64

enemy missiles during their boostphase. It will have a range ofbetween 180 and 360 miles (290 and580 kilometers), with the YAL-1Aflying at 40,000 feet (12,192 meters).Optical-based sensors (the so­called Electron-bombarded Charge­Coupled Device cameras) and IR(infra-red) detectors provided byLockheed-Martin detect a missilelaunch, and cue the laser onto itstarget, achieving lock on between 30and 140 seconds after missilelaunch. The laser then fires a 5-sec­ond burst at the missile's vulnerablemid-section, igniting its propellanttanks and causing the debris to fallback onto the launch nation's terri­tory. This in itself is viewed by someasa deterrent against the use ofchemical or biological warheads.

AIRLINERTECH..

The aircraft would carry suffi­cient oxygen and iodine to allow thelaser to fire 30 5-second bursts dur­ing a mission, at an estimated cost of$1,000 per burst.

The AL-IA may also be assignedother roles, perhaps using its camerasystem and IR detectors for long­range standoff reconnaissance. Thelaser could be used for lethal SEAD(suppression of enemy air defenses),the defense of high value assets suchas JSTARS (Joint Surveillance Track­ing and Radar System) and AWACS(Airborne Warning and Control Sys­tem), against SAMs (surface-to-airmissiles) or AAMs (air-to-air mis­siles), and even the destruction oflow-flying cruise missiles. The lasermay even have a degree of capabili­ty against manned aircraft.

COLORFUL JUMBOSA 875,OOO-POUND FLYING CANVAS

Wr \' with its 231-ft., 10-in. fuse­), it \ 1 lage, its stretched upper,.7 rt deck, and a broad vertical

fin, the Boeing 747-400 offers a gen­erous canvas to any artist wieldingthe high-tech air brushes that havereplaced the paint brush. When the747-400 first appeared in the 1980s,the canvas and paint were on hand,but the artistry was missing. Neverin favor of brilliance when blandnesswill do the job, most carriers haveopted for color schemes that are sin­gularly devoid of imagination.

Qantas, Thai, Air India,Malaysian, and Japan Air Lines allbegan 747-400 operations with paintdesigns that enabled the viewer todetermine which carrier the aircraftbelongs to - just barely, sometimes.But like the original schemes used byBritish Air and United, these achievethe distinction of being colors with­out being colorful. A wag comment-

ed that one airline paints as if they'lltransport felons to the penitentiary.

There were exceptions. From themoment their 747-400s emergedfrom the paint shop at Everett, SaudiArabian Airlines, South African, andVirgin had catchy colors that cap­tured both the eye and the mind. Inthe 1990s, things changed for thebetter. Airlines were suddenly will­ing to spend more and think harderbefore wielding the figurative bush."Dreary" was out. "Dream schemes"were in. Many airliners revampedtheir standard company colors; evenstaid United, which de-emphasizedits identity as an American flag car­rier and adopted a blue-dominatedscheme in a heavily-marketed nodto globalism. Similarly shucking itsnationality in favor of an image as aglobal citizen, Northwest Airlinescame up with its "Worldplane" idea.All Nippon's dazzling theme, based

on the children's game Pokemon,appealed to children of all ages. Thesame is true of Japan Air Lines' bril­liant murals of children's themes.

British Airways, which lookednot merely staid but stodgy, acquireda new color scheme and begandevoting considerable attention-­and money--to individual aircrafttails, created by numerous artists. Itis always a challenge to capture anaircraft in color in an image thatworks for the viewer. Photos aresquare or rectangular, while air­craft--especially the 747-400--arelong and thin. On the pages that fol­low, some of the best shutterbugs ofthe airliner world give us a fewglimpses at the Boeing 747-400 infull, colorful glory. The photogra­phers, however, did not paint the air­craft. Any beholder in search of a dif­ferent definition of beauty will haveto contact the airlines.

Taken on July 5, 2001, this isa 20-second timed exposure

ofa soon to be deliveredCathay Pacific 747-400

cockpit with the power on.This view shows the six

multi-function displays (fiveon the main instrument

panel and one on the centerconsole), center console, and

protective coverings oncockpit seats. When entering

any new aircraft at theBoeing production facility,

everyone is required to wearcotton booties so as not to

mark or trace any of the floorcoverings or walkways.

Games c. Goodall)

BOEING

747-400 65

The low-slung engine nacelles andupturned winglets of the DashFour Hundred stand out in thisaerial view ofAll Nippon Airways'Boeing 747-481 line number 805,c/n 24801, registered as JA8094,which first flew on August 20,1990. (All Nippon Airways viaMichael Stroud)

The features of the 747-400series are displayed to good

advantage in this air-to-air viewofAir India's aircraft named the

Konark. The stretched upperdeck (SUD) and winglets are the

quickest identification features,although the SUD is not unique

to the Dash Four Hundred andthe winglets are not found on

all. The Konark is a Boeing 747­437 (line number 987, c/n

27078), registered as VT-ESM.Boeing delivered this aircraft to

Air India on August 4, 1993.(Air India)

On final approach at Chicago'sO'Hare International Airport inApril 1999, this massive jetlinerpasses by a little too close to becompletely captured by the lens ofTom Pesch, whose airlinephotography has providedenjoyment to many enthusiastsover the years. With nose wheelready and main wheel trucksdangling, this ship on the verge oflanding happens to be KoreanAirlines' Boeing 747-4B51inenumber lOB, c/n 27072, registeredas HL7489, which made its firstflight on January 7, 1994.(Tom Pesch)

66 AIRLINERTECH..==============~=~~ -----.JL

The location is London's

Heathrow International Airport

in the year 2000 and the aircraft

is one of the handful of DashFour Hundred widebodies in

South African's modest but

busy fleet. Specifically, this air­

craft is Boeing 747-444 line

number 1162/ c/n 28468/ regis­

tered as ZS-SAK, which first

took to the air on June 30/ 1998.

The South African carrieradopted its current paint scheme

right about the time the first

747-400s were acquiring their

livery. (Jim Winchester)

••••••••

This British Airways' cheery and

colorful fin-which, like the rest ofthe airline's color scheme, has not

won universal acclaim-was

designed by well-known

Australian design studio Balarinji.

The aircraft is Boeing 747-436 line

number 842/ c/n 24630/ registeredas G-BNLT, which made its initial

flight on February 26/1991. Thework of artist Danuta Wodja of

Poland's Lowicz region, this paint

scheme is known as the "KogutyLowickie" livery. A tribute to

Poland appears on about eight

aircraft, all of different types,

serving with British Airways.(Tom Pesch)

BOEING

747-400 67

Seen in print a little less often than the aircraftof many carriers, those serving with Saudi

Arabian Airlines cover the globe nonetheless.This look at the complete aircraft at the outerterminal at Washington Dulles, with its fin

shown in close-up, takes place near sunset on aFebruary 2000 evening but is, in fact, a daily

occurrence. The aircraft is Boeing 747-468 linenumber 1122, c/n 28339, registered as

HZ-AIV and flown for the first time onSeptember 14, 1997. (Alex Hrapunov)

This was dubbed the'freighter with a smile" inpromotional material for the1993 Paris InternationalAir Salon. It's actually thefirst 747-4R7F freighter forCargolux. The aircraft isnamed for the adjacent cityand duchy of Luxembourg.The ability to open the nosein this manner gives the747-400F some capability tohandle "roll-on" cargoes,but the relative difficulty ofloading the aircraft is themain reason it has notcompeted satisfactorily formilitary contracts againstroll-on, roll-off transportslike Boeing's own C-17Globemaster III.(via Michael Stroud)

68 AIRLINERTECH..

China Airlines operating at

Taipei in June 2001. This angle

illustrates how the heavy747-400 can be in the "rotate"

position and be nowhere near

any danger of brushing its

lower real fuselage against theconcrete. One separated from

the pavement, the 16 wheels on

4 main-wheel bogies simply

dangle at a downward angle/

controlled by nothing other

than gravity. (Sunil Gupta)

"Mega Ark" is

Singapore Airlines'

name for its freighter

versions of the Boeing

747-400/ including this

example visitingChicago O'Hare in

August 1998. This

aircraft is Boeing 747­

412F line number 1036.

cln 26563/ first flown

on July 8, 1994 and

registered as9V-SFA with Singapore.

(Nate Leong)

BOEING

747-400

The belly of the beast:Virgin Atlantic bares its

underside at Chicago

O'Hare in April 2000.This view accents the doors

that close over the twoinboard (fuselage) main

wheel units, seen almost

completely retracted afterthe two outboard (wing)

main wheel assemblies

have already been

completely closed up.(Tom Pesch)

69

All Nippon'scolorful aircraftnamed for thechildren's gamePokemon operates atWashington Dullesin June 2000. Thisaircraft is Boeing747-481, linenumber 979, c/n25645, registered asJA8962, first flownon May 19, 1993.(Alex Hrapunov)

Perhaps inspired by Japan Airlines'success with its aircraft dedicated to

the Pokemon comic strip andchildren's game, Cathay Pacific tried

its own version ofa kids' paintscheme with its "Same Team, Same

Dream" color design. This phraserefers, in part, to Hong Kong's

reversion to China in 1999.Apparently the most recent photos

appearing in this volume, theseDecember 16, 2001 portraits were

snapped at the new Hong Kongairport. The aircraft is Boeing

747-467, line number 877, c/n 24955,which has been flying since September

11, 1991 and bears civil registryVR-HOXfor Cathay. (Sunil Gupta)

1...AIRLINERTECH70

As if to competewith All Nippon'sPokemon scheme forthe claim to mostcolorful 747-400, thejetliner's launch

Ai customer,Northwest,celebrated 50 yearsof Pacific operationsby emblazoningchildren's art on thisship, known as the"Worldplane. " The

name is no accident, since Northwest is seeking a global image having long ago shed the name Northwest Orient. The aircraftactually is Northwest Airlines' Boeing 747-451 line number 802, c/n 24225, registered as N670US and first flown on August31, 1990. The location is the Netherlands' Schipol Airport. (Andre Ran)

With both leading- and trail­

ing-edge flaps extended as it

climbs in the early moments

following landing-gearretraction, a Qantas 747-438

lifts offfrom Farnborough,England, in September 1994.

(Dave Willis)

One ofsix aircraft with a Disney

theme, labeled "JAL Dream Express,"and painted to mark Japan Airlines'

50th anniversary in 2001, and seen

here at Haneda, the domestic airport

near Tokyo, in August of that year.

Note the tail markings, which include

a silhouette ofa twin-engined

Convair, JAL's first aircraft. JA8083is winglet-less Boeing 747-446D, line

number 844, c/n 25213, delivered to

the Japanese carrier for domestic

operations following its first flight onMarch 15, 1991. (Sunil Gupta)

"The Dream Express" is the name on the nose and the theme of the color scheme ofat least six domestic 747-400s painted with

Disney characters to mark Japan Airlines' 50th anniversary in 2001. Seen in August 2001 at Haneda Airport, the domesticairfield for Tokyo is the cartoon-festooned Boeing 747-446D line number 978, c/n 26352, which first flew on May 11,1993, and

is registered as JA8908. (Sunil Gupta)

BOEING

747-400 71

The first Dash FourHundred plies the skynear Seattle. Linenumber 696, cln 23719,registered as N401PW,began the flying career ofthe new airliner series.Powered by Pratt &Whitney PW4056turbofan engines, thefirst ship was destined forNorthwest Airlinesfollowing a rigorousflight test program.(Boeing)

Boeing 747-406 Combiline number 737, cln24001, registered as

PH-BFD, named "City ofDubai, " and operated by

KLM Airlines. Theaircraft is landing at

Baltimore-WashingtonInternational Airport,

Maryland, on May 12,1991. (Joseph G.

Handelman)

Seen on approach atLondon Heathrow, aBritish Airways Boeing747-400 displays onevariation of the so-called"Utopia" paint schemeintroduced a year early(at the start of2000) tomark the millennium. Itwas widely criticized byemployees andenthusiasts as notprojecting the best imagefor the United Kingdom'sflag carrier.(Michael Shayler)

72 AIRLINERTECH

747-400 IRLINES

When it came to casting its lot with the Dash Four Hundred, government­subsidized Air France voted early and often. F-GITB is a Boeing 747-428 Combi,

line number 843, c/n 24990 and is beginning to pull in its wheels during a

February 13, 1999 takeoff (Michael Shayler)

I·•...•...'.... n a time.o~ turmoil, the,makeup! of any aIrlme company s fleet-,"·jindeed, the very existence of

just about any airline-is subject tochange from one day to the next.The Boeing 747-400 population ismore stable than airline fleets gener­ally. Still, any description of theDash Four Hundred in airline ser­vice is going to be incomplete andsubject to change.

In the narrative that follows, abrief discussion is offered for mostairline companies that operate, oroperated, the 747-400. It must beemphasized that every sentence ofthis narrative is subject to change.

Since there are fine referenceworks which list airline fleets by car­rier (IP Airline Fleets, for one) andsince this volume includes a com­plete production list (see AppendixB), this chapter does not attempt tolist the individual airliners in everycarrier's livery. A few airline fleetlists are provided as illustrative.

AIR CANADA

Air Canada, the national carrierfor the Unites States' northern neigh­bor with headquarters in Montreal,initially operated three Boeing 747­400 Combi aircraft. Air Canada tookover the assets of Canadian Airlinesresulting from a buyout offer ofDecember 1999. The airline says theDash Four Hundred serves as "theanchor of the Air Canada widebodyfleet." Air Canada's Combi seatingaccommodates up to 296 passengersin a two-class-configuration as wellas seven pallets of cargo on the maindeck, so company policy is that theCombi "is utilized on routes that

TODAY AND TOMORROW

have [both] high passenger andcargo demand." Air Canada's initialPW4056-powered Dash Four Hun­dreds were early to enter service,beginning in June 1991.

Air Canada has numerous otheraircraft types, but has retired its three"classic" 747-100 and three 747-200Combi models. Its first example ofthe newer version was Boeing 747­433 Combi I line number 840, c/n24998, registered as C-GAGL, whichfirst flew on February 15, 1991 andwas delivered to the carrier in June.Air Canada's paint scheme includesan all-blue fin surrounding a promi­nent maple leap in red.

AIR CHINA

Air China, which is headquar­tered at Beijing Capital Airport, is theflag carrier for the Peoples Republicof China (PRC), and is also China's

BOEING

141-400

largest airline. Formerly known asCAAC (Civil Aviation Administra­tion of China), this world-classdomestic and international carrierhas a long history of close ties withBoeing, dating to before the Tianan­men Square incident of 1989, whichstrained ties between the UnitedStates and the PRe.

Air China operated a mixedassortment of "classic" 747 airlinersbefore September 10, 1989 when itsfirst aircraft (Boeing 747-4J6 Combi,line number 745, constructor's num­ber 24346) arrived to join the fleet.After three Combis were operatingon its routes, the carrier ordered fiveall-passenger models, and subse­quently two more, bringing its totalinventory of Dash Four Hundreds toten aircraft. Air China employs a rel­atively innocuous paint scheme thatincludes a white upper deck and astylized peacock image on the tail.

73

Air China has been the flag carrier of the Peoples Republic of China (PRC) since 1988. This aircraft, with the carrier's nameappearing in both romanized and Chinese characters, is typical of the fleet. This aircraft a 747-4J6, line number 904,constructor's number 25879, registered as B-2464. The "B-" prefix is also used by Taiwan and carriers based in Hong Kong,which, of course, includes Cathay Pacific. Airport vehicles give a good perspective of the size of the Dash Four Hundred withits fuselage length of231 feet 10 inches (70.66 meters). (via Michael Stroud)

AIR FRANCE

Air France's Boeing fleet, whichincludes 737s, 747s, 767s, and 777s,is one of the largest in Europe.Among its 38 in-service 747s are 11747-200 Freighters and 13 747-400s.In early 2001, the carrier, which callsitself the fourth largest freight haulerin the world, added 2 long-range747-400F freighters to its order book.Air France had been the launch cus­tomer for the freighter when it con­tracted for 5 in September 1989, butit later acquired Combis instead.

In December 1992, Air Franceabsorbed the French carrier UTA(Union de Transports Aeriens) thathad briefly operated a pair of 774-

74

400s in its own livery. The currentAir France paint scheme is a simplewhite design with a blue, white, andred tricolor fin flash.

One 747-428 built for Air Francewas stored in the Arizona desert forseveral months, then transferred toRoyal Air Maroc, the Moroccan car­rier with which Air France has closeeconomic links. Air France has expe­rienced just one fatality in 747-400operations: on September 5, 1996near Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso,severe turbulence associated with aweather front seriously injured threeof the 206 passengers. One of thethree passengers later died ofinjuries caused by an in-flight enter­tainment screen.

AIRLIlVERTECH..

AIR INDIA

Air India, with headquarters atNariman Point, Mumbai, hascemented its reputation as a world­class international carrier with itsfleet of six all-passenger 747-400s,the first of which entered service inJuly 1993. Air India officials saythey are often overlooked in theWest which seems not to notice, forexample, their claim to be theworld's first all-jet airline (as ofJune 1962). The first of their DashFour Hundreds, Boeing 747-437 linenumber 987, c/n 27078, registeredas VT-ESM, made its initial flighton July 2, 1993, and entered servicelater that month.

1

Air India's long-haul 747-400routes are flown with provision for435 passengers, including 16 in firstclass, 34 in business class ("execu­tive" class, including seating in thestretched upper deck), and 385 ineconomy.

AIR NAMIBIA

Air Namibia, located at Wind­hoek, operates a single Boeing 747­400M Combi aircraft (line numberc/n 28551 V5-NMA named Wel­witschia, the former Asiana HL7428)in addition to two 747SP models.

British Airways has a long tradition of satisfied service with Boeing products,and was an early purchaser of the 747-400. BA's aircraft were deliveredbeginning in mid-1989 in the carrier's pearl gray/blue color scheme, and began toreceive the current mix of "flag" and "world" color schemes a decade later. ThisDash Four Hundred is lifting offfrom London's Heathrow International Airportin 1998. (Jim Winchester)

AIR NEW ZEALAND

Air New Zealand, headquar­tered in Auckland, was an earlyDash Four Hundred user. After suc­cess with five 747-200 "classic"models dating to 1981, the airlinemade its initial 1993 purchase ofthree Rolls-Royce-powered airlin­ers. The airline began to utilize the

747-400 in 1995, with the newmodel being displayed in a new liv­ery, including a blue green fuselage

cheatline. The first aircraft was747-built for Varig. The second was747-475. Three more 747-419 models

Seen on a visit to Chicago's O'Hare International Airport, this aircraft typifies Air India's fleet. This is Boeing 747-437 linenumber 1009, c/n 27165, registered as VT-ESO, named Khajuraho, and operated on Air India's long-haul passenger routes.This airframe completed its initial flight on November 30, 1993. (Nate Leong)

BOEING

141-400 75

A recent portrait of an airborne Dash Four Hundred serving the largest cargo

carrier in the world. This is Boeing 747-48UF, line number 1240, c/n 29260,

registered as N499MC which made its first flight on February 17, 2000. Some

Atlas Air freightliners are leased to other carriers and carry the markings of those

airlines, but most are now attired in the paint scheme shown. (Atlas Air)

are currently in the fleet.In May 1998 Air New Zealand

announced the sale of its -200 "clas­sic" aircraft to Virgin Atlantic, withthe aircraft to be delivered between1999 and 2001. In 1998, the airlineleased a 747-4F6 (c/n 27602), whichhad once been intended for Philip­pine Airlines but could not be takenup by that carrier. This completedthe airline's second batch of threeDash Four Hundreds, all departingfrom Commonwealth practice byrelying on General Electric CF6­80C20B1F engines for power. Thisarrangement offers commonalitywith Air New Zealand's four leasedBoeing 767s. The airline added afourth GE-powered craft in 1999,bringing its Dash Four Hundredfleet to seven aircraft.

1

In February 200t a Malaysia Airlines 747-400 snuggles up to the jetbridge at gate D4 of Tullamarine International Airport,

Melbourne, Australia. Everything is hanging out here, the big jetliner in "down" configuration waiting to be stocked withfood, supplies, and people. (Jim Winchester)

76 AIRLIlVERTECH.. l

ALL NIPPON AIRWAYS

All Nippon Airways (ANA),headquartered in Tokyo, seemed fora time to be gaining internationalbusiness at the expense of rivalJapan Airlines (a move helped bypartial deregulation in 1997), and tobe giving ground on the domesticfront where it once dominated. ANAbegan Dash Four Hundred opera­tions in 1990, initially with the pas­senger and special domestic modelsbut with the option of convertingthe domestic aircraft to internationalduties. With the arrival of a newcentury, however, ANA's focusreturned to domestic operations.

In May 2001, ANA contractedwith Boeing to convert two DashFour Hundreds back from the inter­national configuration to the domes­tic configuration, converting the air­craft from a three-class, 367-seat con­figuration to a two-class, 569-seat lay­out. The reconfiguration primarilyinvolves removing the winglets andinstalling wingtips, as well as modi­fying the cabin interior with new pas­senger and attendant seats, in-flightentertainment systems, galleys, lava­tories, floor coverings, closets, andstowage units. With a new interiorlayout and modified wing structure,ANA's 747-400s will be ready forhigh-cycle, increased density, domes­tic routes in Japan. The first aircraftwas delivered to Boeing's Wichita,Kansas, facility for modification inSeptember and was re-delivered inDecember 2001. The second airplaneshould arrive in Wichita in January2002 and be re-delivered to ANA inApril 2002.

In total, All Nippon Airwayscurrently operates 111 Boeing jetlin­ers, including 37 747s, 21 777s and53 767s. Earlier this year, ANAordered an additional 9 767s fordelivery during the airline's fiscalyear 2002. ANA has come up with

Bangkok-based Thai International assigned the designation 747-407 to the Dash

Four Hundred models operating on its international routes. This aircraft is linenumber 769, c/n 24458, registered as HS- TGH, which made its first flight onFebruary 21, 1990

A pair of British Airways 747-436 passenger aircraft, parked nose to nose outside

the Museum of Flight in Boeing's home town of Seattle, Washington. Apparent

from this angle is the high incidence of the swept wing. (via Michael Stroud)

BOEING

141-40~77

The old and the new: United Airlines' old paint scheme (white top; red, white, and

blue cheatline; larger stylized "U" on the fin) went out only a couple of years after

the Boeing 747-400 came in, so very few Dash Four Hundreds have been portrayed

in print wearing these colors. The new scheme (blue bottom, fin, and nacelles, gray

top, red cheatline) was the original paint scheme for many of the Dash Four

Hundreds in the hard-working United fleet. (Tom Pesch)

one of the most colorful of DashFour Hundreds, honoring the chil­dren's game Pokemon.

ASIANA

Asiana, with its home in Seoul,is recovering from South Korea'seconomic downturn. At one point itboasted a fleet of about four dozenaircraft including three 747-400Combi, five 747-48E passenger, andthree 747-400F freighters, althoughthe prospects for pending orders fortwo more 747-400 passenger craftare unclear. One of this carrier's air­craft has changed owners andbelongs to Air Namibia.

ATLAS AIR

Atlas Air, founded in April 1992is the world's largest air cargo carri­er and specializes in the long-termcontract outsourcing of 747-400 and747-200 aircraft. Prior to acquiringPolar Air as announced on July 12,2001, the company had 26 "classic"

AIRLINERTECH78we; ...

_I

The following partial list gives themore popular names assigned tosome British Airways 747-436 air­liners:

747 models, plus 12 Dash Four Hun­dreds, known as 747-47UF models.

The company is in the process ofreplacing three-pilot 747-200s withnewer but smaller, two-pilot aircraftwhile continuing to acquire 747-400s.

A November 2000 contract withBoeing for four new 747-400Ffreighters, due for delivery in late2002, was expected to make AtlasAir the largest freighter operator inthe world even before the Polar Airmerger. At the start of 2001, the com­pany made arrangements to delaythe delivery of these four aircraft.

The carrier claims that the 747­400 offers the lowest ton-mile costsand longest range of any productionfreighter and is able to carry 124tons (113,000 kilograms) of cargo upto 4,455 miles (7,170 kilometers).

Atlas Air operates many of its747-400F freighters for other carriers

in their paint schemes, an examplebeing China Airlines Cargo.

BRITISH AIRWAYS

British Airways (BA), the succes­sor to BOAC (British Overseas Air­ways Corporation), which hangs itscorporate hat in London, BA was thesecond customer for the RB.211-pow­ered version, Cathay Pacific beingthe first. The airline committed itselfto purchase 57 747-400 passengerairliners and a single 747-400Ffreighter. The first two BA 747-436sto be delivered (line number 727, c/n23908, registered G-BNLA, and linenumber 734, c/n 23910, registered asG-BNLC) arrived simultaneously in1989 at London's Heathrow Interna­tional Airport on their deliveryflights, landing together on the air­port's parallel runways.

G-BNLB

G-BNLC

G-BNLE

G-BNLG

G-BNLH

G-BNLL

G-BNLN

G-BNLO

G-BNLP

G-BNLR

G-BNLT

G-BNLW

G-BNLZ

G-BYGA

G-CIVC

G-CIVG

23909239102404724049240502405424056240572405824447246302543227091288552581225815

City ofEdinburgh

City ofCardiff

City ofNewcastle

Whale Rider

City of Westminster

City of Leicester

Nalanji Dreaming

Emmy Masanabo

City ofAberdeen

City ofHull

City of Bangor

City ofNorwich

City ofPerth

Chelsea Rose

City of St. Andrews

City of Wells

The high perch of the 747-400's two pilots provides excellent forward vision but, as this angle illustrates, they do not have anall-around view, and must rely on familiar tools in airport traffic. This Cathay Pacific 747-467 is following the painted stripeon the pavement, as well as voice instructions, at London's Heathrow International Airport, heading out on August 16, 1997.Cathay has since adopted a different paint scheme. (Dave Willis)

BOEING

141-400 79

British Airways has a number ofDash Four Hundreds known as"lites" because they are certified fora lower maximum takeoff weight of840,000 pounds (381,015 kilograms).These lack the crew rest facilities ofother Dash Four Hundreds and soare limited to ll-hour sectors.

Great Britain was one of thethree European JAR nations thatrefused to certify the Dash FourHundred a week before the first air­craft was due to be delivered toDLH. In recent years, BA beganswapping its 747 options for 777s asthe -400s are just too big for its pro­jected markets.

To greet a new century and mil­lennium (beginning a year early onJanuary I, 2000), British Air intro­duced its "Utopia" paint schemewith new colors and, in many cases,individually decorated tails-a con­troversial move even among itsemployees.

BRUNEI GOVERNMENT

The Brunei government pur­chased its sole Boeing 747-430, pow­ered by GE CF6-80C2 engines, inApril 1992 (line number 910, c/n26426 ex-N6009F, ex-D-ABVM, reg­istered in Brunei as A8-ALl). Theaircraft was nominally built to thesame standard as Lufthansa DashFour Hundreds, but outsiders arerarely invited to view its interior.

CANADIAN

Canadian Airlines International,headquartered in Alberta, Calgary,received the first of its quartet ofGE-powered 747-475 models in late1990. The first ship was Boeing 747­475 line number 823, c/n 24883, reg­istered as C-GMWW, which madeits initial fligpt on November 6,1990. The carrier also operated 43Boeing 737-200s, 11 Boeing 767-

300Ers, and 10 Douglas DC-I0-30s.In December 1999, Air Canadaoffered to purchase Canadian; thefollowing year the merger was com­pleted and Canadian effectivelyceased to exist as a separate carrier.

CARGOLUX

Cargolux, the freight haulerheadquartered in Luxembourg, pur­chased 12 Boeing 747-400F freighters,beginning with a delivery in Novem­ber 1993. The fleet consists of a mixof GE- and Rolls-Royce-powered air­craft. More than four years after thefirst passenger-carrying 747-400 tookto the skies, the very first Dash FourHundred freighter model operatedby any carrier (although, in fact, thesecond built) was Cargolux's Boeing747-4R7 line number 1002, c/n25866, registered as LX-FCV, whichcompleted its first flight on October30,1993.

Malaysia wears its national flag on its forward fuselage, which, from a distance, could be mistaken for the U.S. flag.(via Michael Stroud)

80 AIRLINERTECH

-, CATHAY PACIFIC

CHINA

Cathay's 747-400 purchases:

were changed to B- registries whenHong Kong reverted to China.

China Airlines, the carrier forTaiwan, which calls itself NationalistChina, is headquartered in Taipei.The airline had the misfortune ofsuffering the first loss of a Dash

VR-HUB

VR-HUD

VR-HUE

VR-HUF

VR-HUG

VR-HUH

VR-HUI

VR-HU]

VR-HUK

VR-HUL

B-HUO

B-HUP

25873

25874

27117

25869

25870

27175

27230

27595

27503

30804

32571

30805

937

949

970

993

1007

1020

1033

1061

1065

1255

1271

1282

747-467

747-467

747-467

747-467

747-467

747-467

747-467

747-467

747-467F

747-467F

747-467F

747-467F

Four Hundred aircraft-the Novem­ber 4, 1993 crash at Hong Kong'sKaitak Airport of 747-409 line num­ber 977, c/n 24313, registered asB-165, which had made its first flightonly on May 6 of that year.

Although not all may be in usetoday, China Airlines has takenreceipt of 12 more P & W-powered747-409 passenger aircraft and 7 GE-

VR-HOO

VR-HOP

VR-HOR

VR-HOS

VR-HOT

VR-HOU

VR-HOV

VR-HOW

VR-HOX

VR-HOY

VR-HOZ

VR-HUA

705 23814

728 23815

771 24631

788 24850

813 24851

834 24925

849 25082

873 25211

877 24955

887 25351

925 25871

930 25872

747-467

747-467

747-467

747-467

747-467

747-467

747-467

747-467

747-467

747-467

747-467

747-467

Hong Kong-based Cathay Pacif­ic signed on early for the Rolls­Royce-powered 747-400 andreceived its first 747-436 (the secondship ordered) line number 728, c/n23815, registered as VR-HOP onJune 8. 1989. The airline discarded isstodgy green and white paintscheme soon afterward for its cur­rent subdued, blue-gray scheme.

Cathay has suffered a painfuldecline in traffic since the Britishcolonial authorities turned HongKong over to China in 1997. InDecember 2001, Cathay announcedplans to store an unspecific numberof 747-400s at Avalon Airfield nearMelbourne, Australia. It is unclearhow many of its 19 passenger 747­467s and 2 747-467F freighters (inher­ited from Air Hong Kong) they cancontinue to operate. The status of 2additional freighters is unclear. Rolls­Royce engines power the entire fleet.The VR- registrations of the aircraft

A superb portrait of a freighter: Seen during an August 20, 2001 visit to Chicago 0 'Hare is China Airlines Cargo Boeing

747-409F line number 1269, c/n 30764, registered as B-18707, which made its first flight only on April 11, 2001. Like all747-400 freighters, this one was built without the stretched upper deck found on passenger versions. (Nate Leong)

BOEING

141-400 81

powered 747-409F freighters, inaddition to freighters operated onthe carrier's behalf by Atlas Air. Twofurther 747-409F freighters wereonce on order but never delivered.

ELAt

El Al Israel Airlines, headquar­tered at Tel Aviv, has a diverse fleetof 32 airliners including 10 747 "clas­sics," but this national carrier initial­

ly ordered just 3 Pratt & Whitney­powered 747-400 models. The firstship was 747-458 line number 1027c/n 26055 registered as 4X-ELA, firstflown on April 11, 1994 and deliv­ered to the Israeli carrier at TelAviv's Ben Gurion Airport on April27. At the turn of the century, El Albelatedly added a fourth Dash FourHundred to its fleet. Like many car­riers, El Al appears to be bypassingthe 747-400 in its future plans forinternational operations, having

China's remaining fleet, including engine type, delivery dates, and reg-

istry at the time of delivery:

747-409 1114 28709 PW4056 OS/29/97 B-18201

747-409 1132 28710 PW4056 10/22/97 B-18202

747-409 1136 28711 PW4056 12/05/97 B-18302

747-409 1137 28712 PW4056 12/18/97 B-18205

747-409 1145 29030 PW4056 02/25/98 B-18206

747-409 1176 29219 PW4056 09/26/98 B-18207

747-409 1186 29031 PW4056 11/20/98 B-18208

747-409 1219 29906 PW4056 06/25/99 B-18209

747-409 1063 27965 PW4056 06/14/95 B-18251

747-409 766 24309 PW4056 02/08/90 B-18271

747-409 778 24310 PW4056 03/27/90 B-18272

747-409 869 24311 PW4056 08/14/91 B-18273

747-409 954 24312 PW4056 01/11/93 B-18275

747-409F 1249 30759 CF6-80C 07/06/00 B-18701

747-409F 1252 30760 CF6-80C 07/28/00 B-18702

747-409F 1254 30761 CF6-80C 08/19/00 B-18703

747-409F 1263 30762 CF-6-80C 02/09/01 B-18705

747-409F 1267 30763 CF-6-80C 03/02/01 B-18706

747-409F 1269 30764 CF-6-80C 04/11/01 B-18707

747-409F 1288 30765 CF-6-80C 11/16/01 B-18708

"Mega Ark" is Singapore Airlines' term for its freighter versions of the Boeing 747-400, including this example visitingChicago O'Hare on November 20,2001. This aircraft is Boeing 747-412F line number 1036. c/n 26563, first flown on July 8,1994 and registered as 9V-SFA with Singapore. (Nate Leong)

82 AIRLINERTECH

decided to introduce three long­range Boeing 777-200ER models intoits fleet.

EVA

A passenger and cargo carrierbased in Taiwan and endangeredmore than most by the worldwideairline slump, EVA Air operates 37aircraft, including 15 Boeing 747-400passenger aircraft, 12 MD-lls, 4B767-200s, 4 B767-300ERs, and 2B747-400 freighters. The carrier willadd its third B747-400 freighter in2002, followed in 2003 by the first of8 Airbus A330-200s, and in 2005 bythe first of as many as 15 advanced,long-range B777-200LR/-300ERs.

Typical of this carrier's opera­tions, EVA Air's Vancouver-Taipeiflights are operated using Boeing747-400 aircraft in an all-passenger

Virgin Atlantic has had several paint schemes on its Boeing 747-400s, two of whichare seen here at Washington D.C.'s Dulles International Airport in the year 2000.This pair of examples consists of G-VFAB, alias Lady Penelope and G-VHOT,dubbed Tubular Belle. (Alex Hrapunov)

BOEING

141-400 83

One of six aircraft with a Disney theme, labeled "JAL Dream Express, n and painted to mark Japan Airlines' 50th anniversaryin 2001, and seen here at Haneda, the domestic airport near Tokyo, in August of that year. Note the tail markings, whichinclude a silhouette of a twin-engined Convair, JACs first aircraft. Japan is the largest 747-400 operator and JA8904 is Boeing

747-4460 line number 941, c/n 26348, first flown on October I, 1992. (Sunil Gupta)

84 AIRLINERTECH

Not often seen in print because it operates solely on domestic routes within Japan, "Pocket Monsters" is All Nippon Airways'version of a 747-400 adorned with Pokemon cartoon characters for kids. The aircraft is winglet-less Boeing 747-4810 line

number 996, cln 27163, first flown on September 7, 1993. (Sunil Gupta)

BOEING

741-400 85

Malaysia Airlines operating at Hong Kong. (Sunil Gupta) .

configuration of 342 seats. EVA Airoffers four classes of service: SuperFirst (12 seats), Super Business (34seats), Economy (128 seats) andwhat it calls Evergreen Deluxe Class(168 seats) featuring a seating con­figuration usually found only inbusiness class: personal seat-backTV, satellite telephones, 38-inch seatpitch, and deeper, wider seats.

GARUDA

Headquartered in Jakarta, Garu­da Indonesia is the national airlineof Indonesia and owned by thatcountry's government. Garuda andits subsidiaries operate over 100 air­craft including 3 CF6-80C2B1F-pow­ered 747-400C airliners configuredfor 405 seats (32-inch pitch in econo­my class) on its longest-haul flightsand complementing the carrier's

-'

................... _." "1""}.......'t!.':9!'? ~f(,q,!!..~f~.......... III~••• II

~=..==~ .i..J • ~ -- .

The young lady on the nose of Tubular Belle is directing Virgin Atlantic's two pilots toward the gate at Washington D.C'sDulles International Airport in August 2000. Tubular Belle is Boeing 747-4Q8, line number 1043, c/n 26326, first flown onSeptember 26, 1994 and registered as G-VHOT. (Bill Crimmins)

86 AIRLINERTECH..

United Airlines Boeing 747-4225

operating at Chicago O'Hare.(Tom Pesch)

BOEING

1 -400 87

The rarely seen and now-defunct Ansett Australia, operating at Hong Kong.(Sunil Gupta)

Boeing 747-458, line number 1027, c/n 26055, first flown on November 4, 1994,and registered as 4X-ELA with Israel's EI Al Airlines operates at Newark, NewJersey, airport in October 1997. (Sunil Gupta)

KLM claims to be the world'soldest airline, and is still operatingunder its original name. The carrieroperates 10 aircraft types. The carri­er operates 21 Dash Four Hundreds,dating to 1989, including 5 747-406passenger aircraft configured for upto 436 passengers and 16 747-406CCombis. KLM is currently reconfig­uring many aircraft in its fleet toaccommodate more business classseats, each with a personal satellitetelephone. KLM's corporate officesare in Amsterdam.

Long before Kuwait was liberat­ed by U.S. troops and an internation­al coalition in 1991, Kuwait Airwayshad been a familiar operator of "clas­sic" variants of Boeing's best-knownjetliner, in addition to several othertypes. The carrier's home office is inKuwait City. Kuwait Airways hasjust one aircraft in the Dash FourHundred series, Boeing 747-469 linenumber 1046, c/n 27338, registered

KUWAIT

KLM

ment acquired two Boeing 747-47CVIP transports-newer and longer­legged than the pair of "classics"assigned to the U.S. president. Japantook delivery of the first aircraft inSeptember 1991 and the second inNovember of that year. The aircraftare mostly white with red cheatline,and carry the national insignia (hino­maru) on the fin. Line number 816,c/n 24730, registered as JA 8091 hasbeen assigned Japan Air DefenseForce serial 20-1101. Line number839, c/n 24731, registered as JA 8092,is JASDF serial number 20-1102. TheJASDF took over operation of Japan'sVIP flight on April 1, 1992. The air­craft are operated by No. 701 Hiko­tai (squadron) at Chitose on Japan'seasternmost island of Hokkaido.

Japan is the only nation in theworld with a more advanced aircraftfor its head of government than theUnited States. The Japanese govern-

JAPAN GOVERNMENT

38 747-400 and 400D (domestic) air­craft. After many years of beingknown primarily for its overseasroutes, JAL has grabbed a significantchunk of the r;lomestic air travelmarket in Japan.

Headquartered in Tokyo, JapanAirlines operates the world's largestfleet of 747s, including approximate­ly 40 "classics" of several types and

JAPAN AIRLINES

half-dozen 747 "classics." Althoughthe carrier had two additional DashFour Hundreds on order as recentlyas 2001, with economic woes settingin the delivery of these aircraft wasproblematical.

88 AIRLINERTECH..

as 9K-ADE, which made its firstflight on October 28, 1994. The air­craft wears a distinctive white colorscheme with blue trim and bears thecarrier's name in Arabic and Englishlettering.

KOREAN

Headquartered in Seoul and hitespecially hard by the world eco­nomic slump (and, unlike Asiana,possessing little clout with PresidentKim Tae-chung), Korean Airlines hasparked as many aircraft as it flies,yet remains one of the most visible

users of the Boeing 747-400, as wellas one of the earliest. Korean hasordered no fewer than 33 Dash FourHundreds, including a Combi andtwo freighters. The passenger air­craft are operated with at least twodistinctive seating configurations.

The first of the distinctive paleblue aircraft to reach Korean was the16th Dash Four Hundred off theEverett production line, this beingBoeing 747-4B5line number 729, c/n24198, registered as HL7477, whichwas first flown on May 13, 1989, andwas delivered to Korean on June 14of that year.

LUFTHANSA

With home offices in Cologneand a history that dates to 1917,Lufthansa was the lead customerfor General Electric engines on the747-400 and operates both passen­ger routes and the cargo and char­ter services of Condor Flugdienset,its subsidiary.

The first 747-400 to reach Europewas Lufthansa's 747-430 line num­ber 723, c/n 23816, registered asD-ANVA, which first flew on April21, 1989 and was delivered to theGerman carrier on May 23,1989

Pacific Northwest author, photographer, and historian Jim Goodall was granted unusual access to the Everett factory to trainhis camera on 747-400 airliners being assembled. In addition to Jim's shots seen earlier in this volume, these are additionalviews of the main landing gear units on the Dash Four Hundred. The aircraft has four main trucks offour wheels each, twolocated beneath the fuselage and two beneath the inner wing. (James C. Goodall)

BOEING

141-4~O89

The launch customer for the 747-400, Northwest Airlines has taken the aircraft all

over its route system. This is Boeing 747-451 line number 803/ cln 24224,

registered as N669US, which made its first flight on August 20,1990, and has been

serving with Northwest ever since. (Andre Ran)

A new livery for the 1990s the new livery emphasized this. Theappeared on Lufthansa's newly birdonthefinofLufthansa'saircraftdelivered Boeings. In keeping with is a stylized c~ane-a big/ elegantother airlines the new livery was a bird that flies great distances.minimalist white fuselage although Lufthansa was one of the very firstthe fin design remained much the 747-100 "classicI! customers and ansame. The circular fin logo had early Dash Four Hundred customer,always had an outer yellow ring and ordering 15 aircraft in May 1986.

This overall view is of the final assembly area in Bay 2 at Everett. This 747-400 is

receiving final attention that will bring it up to "green" condition, meaning that it

will be ready for painting. The Everett facility has no ceiling feature lower than 80

feet (24.38 meters), which makes the spacious assembly area easily able to handlethe 747-400's height of 64 feet 3 inches (19.06 meters). Games c. Goodall)

Lufthansa ultimately purchased 20passenger aircraft and 6 Combis/while Condor, which has separateoffices in Munich, operates at least 2747-430s of its own and frequentlyborrows the Lufthansa aircraft.

Although Lufthansa was thefirst customer for the CF6-poweredversion of the Dash Four Hundred(which made its first flight on June27, 1988) it was not, however, thefirst to take delivery of the GE-pow­ered version. That was KLM on May18, 1989, followed by Lufthansa fivedays later.

In November 2001 Lufthansaconfirmed that it intends to acquire15 Airbus A380 superjumbos-amajor blow to Boeing and to likelyfuture 747-400 sales.

MALAYSIA

Malaysia has offices in KualaLumpur and is yet another of themany national carriers pounded byworldwide economic problems. TheMalaysia Airlines System (MAS) hashad 21747-400 aircraft on order or inservice at one time or anotheralthough the maximum number inuse at anyone time appears to be 13.General Electric engines power 19 ofMalaysia's aircraft and Pratt & Whit­ney power the remaining 2.

Malaysia has stored or disposedof possibly as many as 8 747-400s,including 2 Combis that went to FijiInternational Airlines. Malaysia'sMASKargo freight-hauling sub­sidiary may no longer be operatingits sole, leased 747-400 freighter. Asof late 2001, among 97 aircraft of alltypes serving 100 destinations on sixcontinents, the airline said it was stillusing 13 747-4H6Ps with an averageage of 5.7 years and 2 747-4H6Cswith an average age of 11.6 years.

The airline has a straightforwardpaint scheme with a red and bluecheatline, white top, and stylized

90 AIRLIlVERTECH..

In the Everett assembly shop, this is a head-on study in contrast: although thehinged radome at the nose cone of the 747-400 is huge, the radar antenna housedinside (bottom center) is remarkably small. The extra, unused space within theconfines of the radome is the result of miniaturization. Barely visible in thebackground (right) is a poster based on a u.s. postage stamp devoted to "jumbojets." Games c. Goodall)

bird on the fin, and has set asideplans for a more elaborate fin designcelebrating the Malay god Sraimbon.

PHILIPPINE

The national carrier of thePhilippines, dating to 1941 with

offices, in Manila, Philippine Air­lines was facing a questionablefuture when this volume went topress. The carrier has four 747-400s.The first to be received by the carri­er, in 1995, was Boeing 747-4F6 linenumber 1,012, c/n 27262 registeredas N725PR, which had made its firstflight on December 14, 1993.

Philippine has 34 aircraft alto­gether, including the four Boeing747-400s, three 747-200s, and a mixof Airbus 340-300s, 330-300s, 737­400s, and 737-300s. Philippines' air­craft are all white with a four-colorsunburst design on the fin.

QANTAS

Qantas (the word comes fromQueensland and Northern TerritoryAerial Services) is Australia's nation­al carrier, headquartered at Mascot,New South Wales, and is a content­ed user of 21 Boeing 747-400s,viewed as ideal for the high-volume,long-distance routes into the land

NORTHWEST AIRLINES

Launch customer for the DashFour Hundred, Northwest Airlinesoperates from St. Paul, Minnesota, inthe United States, and has 14 747­400s in its large, diverse fleet, allwith a 418-seat configuration. Thefleet also includes 33 "classics,"including a dozen freighters. Withits familiar layered red, gray, andblue paint scheme, Northwest(which no longer calls itself North­west Orient) got into the Dash FourHundre<t~;:sinesswith an October1985 aircraft order.

The first aircraft received byNorthwest was actually the thirdordered by the carrier. This was 747­451 line number 715, c/n 23818, reg­istered as N663US, which made itsfirst flight at Renton, Washington,on December 8, 1988 and was deliv­ered on January 26,1989.

Lufthansa Airlines' flight to Munich is lifting offfrom Washington D.C's DullesInternational Airport, circa. 2001. The aircraft is no more than 50 feet (15.24meters) off the ground, yet the four mainwheel trucks are already far advanced inthe retraction sequence. Boeing 747-430 line number 1109, c/n 28286, aliasD-ABVS maintains a comfortable, nose-down attitude providing optimum comfortfor passengers, but with a combined thrust of over 220,000 pounds (99,800kilograms) emanating from its four GE turbofan engines, the aircraft is alreadyclimbing rapidly. (Bill Crimmins)

BOEING

141-400 91

A KLM aircraft at altitude, with the wings displaying medium to high dihedral,meaning there is plenty of fuel left of the airliner's total capacity of 58,768U.S. gallons (229,900 liters). Registered as PH-BFB, this is Boeing 747-406 linenumber 732, with the beautifully even constructor's number 24000; an early shipon the assembly line, this aircraft made its initial flight on May 23, 1989.(via Robert F. Dorr)

gapore operated for 28 years with­out an accident until October 31,2000 when flight 006, daily servicefrom Singapore to Los Angeles viaTaipei, crashed on takeoff fromTaipei's Chang Kai Shek Internation­al Airport in poor visibility.Approaching 140 knots, the747-400 impacted construction vehi­cles, breaking its fuselage into threeparts and igniting a large post-crashfire. Press reports indicated theflight crew had inadvertently beguntheir takeoff roll on the wrong run­way. The mishap aircraft was Boeing747-412 line number 1099, c/n28023, registered as 9V-SPK.

SOUTH AFRICAN

"down under." Qantas is now thelaunch customer for the "Longer­Range 747-400" slated fly in mid­2002 and to begin revenue flights bythe end of that year. Qantas aircraftare white with a red tail surround­ing the white outline of a hoppingkangaroo.

ROYAL AIR MAROC

Royal Air Maroc, the nationalcarrier for Morocco, with offices inCasablanca, had just one Dash FourHundred, purchased from AirFrance, plus several "Classics." Seenin at least two distinct paintschemes since its delivery to the

Saudi's fleet, with line number,c/n, and registry:

1122 28339 HZ-AN

(ex-N6005C)

1138 28340 HZ-AIW

1182 28341 HZ-AIX

1216 28342 HZ-AIY

1265 28343 HZ-AIZ

92

Moroccan carrier on October 4,1993, the aircrqft is Boeing 747-428line number 956, c/n 25629,registered as CN-RGA, formerlyF-OGTG. The aircraft had made itsfirst flight only on January 7, 1993,and thus never really performedrevenue service for Air France.

SAUDI

Saudi Arabian Airlines, withheadquarters in Jeddah, has gradu­ally built its fleet to five 747-468s, allpowered by General Electric CF6­80C2B5F engines, serving alongsideearlier "classic" models and smalleraircraft for use within the Kingdom

SINGAPORE

Singapore Airlines can lay claimto owning the 1,000th Boeing 747.The 1,000th aircraft was rolled offthe Everett production line on Sep­tember 10, 1993 and made its firstflight on September 24. Line number1,000 was a Boeing 747-412 model,c/n 27068, registered as 9V-SMU.

With a superb safety record, Sin-

AIRLINERTECH

With corporate offices in Johan­nesburg, South African has 22 Boe­ing 747s of all models including 6Rolls-Royce-powered 747-444 pas­senger haulers and 2 GE-powered747-4F6 freighters.

THAI

Headquartered in Bangkok, ThaiInternational boasts 14 Boeing 747-400s, plus a trio of "Classics." ThaiInternational was one of the earlyusers of the 747-400. The airline oper-

South African's fleet:

747-444 1152 28468 ZS-SAK

(ex-N60697)

747-444 827 24976 ZS-SAV

(ex-N6009F)

747-444 861 25152 ZS-SDW

(ex-N60668)

747-444 943 26637 ZS-SAX

747-444 995 26638 ZS-SAY

747-444 1187 29119 ZS-SAZ

747-444 1158 28959 ZS-SBK

(ex-N1785B)

747-444 1167 28960 ZS-SBS

ates the aircraft on long-haul routesto Europe and North America.

The carrier took delivery of itsfirst 747-4D7 in early 1990. One of itsDash Four Hundreds is attired in aspecial Viking ship livery.

UNITED

Headquartered in Chicago, Illi­nois, in the United States, and with agrowing fleet of 44 Boeing 747-400s,United is the world's second largestairline (behind American, followingits absorption of Trans-World) andhas enjoyed tremendous successwith the Dash Four Hundred onlong-haul international routes.

United has operated severalroutes in succession, each billed asthe world's longest. The currentrecord holder is United flight 821from New York to Hong Kong, 8,439miles (13,587 kilometers), the world'slongest daily scheduled flight.

United's first aircraft in thisseries was Boeing 747-422 line num­ber 733, c / n 24322, registered asN171 UA, which made its initialflight on May 25, 1989 and wasdelivered to the carrier that day.

VARIG million passengers a year and serv-ing 18 countries, as well as 36 cities

VARIG is the largest airline in within Brazil. The airline's offices areLatin America, with an average of in Rio de Janeiro. Of interest to this435 daily flights, transporting 11.4 topic, Varig operates three 747-400s.

Rolls-Royce RB.211 turbofan engine nacelles.protrude far forward of the sweptleading edge of a 747-400 at altitude. The amount of dihedral on the wing canvary as much as several feet depending on fuel load and temperature. Theleading-edge flaps are, of course, retracted, but their outline remains visible to theeye. (Jim Winchester)

Varig's trio of Dash Four Hundreds:

A look at the sequence of Unitedorders shows a consistent andcontinuing interest in the aircraftthrough spring 1998, all withPW4056 engines:

Model Order Date Total

747-422 November 07, 1985 4

747-422 May 12, 1987 11

747-422 October 15, 1990 7

747-422 February 01, 1994 2

747-422 April 20, 1995 2

747-422 January 09,1996 2

747-422 August 22,1996 12

747-422 July 07, 1997 3

747-422 April 14, 1998 1

747-475

747-441

747-441

855/24896

917/24956

971/24957

BOEING

141-4~O

91-05-08

92-05-05

93-04-01

PP-VPI

PP-VPG

PP-VPH

Varig

ILFC/Varig

IFLC/Varig

93

VIRGIN

Virgin's Dash Four Hundred fleet, with first-flight dates:

Altogether, the fleet totals 6 747­400s, 8 747 "classics," 10 Airbus 340­300s, 2 A320-200s, and 1 A321-200.

Virgin was the first operator tostart using the Boeing 747-400 withGE CF6-80C engines.

With home offices in Crawley,West Sussex, Great Britain, Virgin isalmost as big a name in the airlinebusiness as it is in the music world.The company's hip, cool image isenhanced by its sprightly, red-and­white logo and its nose-art carica­ture of a scarlet lady carrying theUnion Jack. The carrier boasts one ofthe youngest fleets in the air, withmost of its aircraft named forfamous women.

747-4Q8

747-4Q8

747-4Q8

747-4Q8

747-41R

747-41R

1043/26326

1028/24958

1081/26255

1100/28194

1117/28757

1177/29406

94-09-26

94-04-14

96-05-28

97-01-14

97-06-05

98-09-30

G-VI-IOT

G-VFAB

G-VBIG

G-VTOP

G-VAST

G-VXLG

Tubular Belle

Lady Penelope

Tinker Belle

Virginia Plain

Ladybird

Ruby Tuesday

r

A Qantas Dash Four Hundred from below front. The aircraft is in "clean" configuration so this is probably an air-to-air viewrather than a ground-to-air shot. (via Michael Stroud)

94

...........r;.......=:::==:=l~~~~J;AP;;A;N;.;A;I;R~L/~~)E.S.' J••_-:.__~,

AIRLINERTECH~ ..

Before a real 747-400 had been built forJapan Airlines, the manufacturer gavewide circulation to this artist'sconception ofwhat the future jetlinerwould look like. The picture was createdin the era before digital manipulation. Itis faithful to the physical appearance ofthe aircraft, although the paint schemewas destined to change. (via Robert F.Dorr)

FUGHT COMPARTMENT MAIN EQUIPMENT CENTER

APU GENERATORS

CENTER EQUIPMENT CENTER

• FUa QTY PROCESSOR• BRAKE TEMP. CARD ALE• P-54• BRAKE CONTROL

• LRRA• AOF

E8 AFT EQUIPMENT CENTER

• ELECTRICAL SYSTEM CONTROL PANaAUXlUARY ELECTRICAL SYSTEM CONTROL PANa

• MISCaLANEOUS SYSTEMS TEST PANa• SCAS DISPI.AY UNITS

• GENERATOR CONTROL UNITS• BUS POWER CONTROL UNITS

• POWER PANELS• MAIN BATTERY• BATTERY CHARGER• TRANSFORMER RECTIAER UNITS• STATIC INVERTER

• APU BATTERY CHARGER• APU BATTERY• APU CONTROL PANELS• APU CONTROLLER (APUC)• FUGHT RECORDER• VOICE RECORDER• FQIS FOR H.S. FUa

This chart shows the distribution of power sources, including integrated drive generators, throughout the 747-400 airliner.(Boeing)

The fuel system of theBoeing 747-400 is made

up ofseven fuel tanksplus pumps, sump

valves, shutoff valves,fuel lines, and other

components. (Boeing)

VENT SURGE TANK----+~

NO.3 RESERVE TANK---.....

NO.4 MAIN TANK --.....,~...

NO.3 MAIN TANK ---'::~.HI

NO. 2 MAINTANK

BOEING

141-400

VENT SURGE TANK --*i:-:l"\

NO.1 MAINTANK

HORIZONTAL STABIUZERFUEL TANK (OPTIONAL)

95

FRONT SPAR

3 KRUEGER FLAPS

FUa TANK ACCESS PANEL

ACCESS PANEL

TANK END

OUTBOARD FLAPS

WING

BODYBULKHEAD

A plan view of the left wing ofa 747-400 showing principalcomponents and features.(Boeing)

PILOTS' FLOORWL312

MAIN FLOORWL 199.8

UPPER DECK

CARGO COMPARTMENT­DOORS (RH)

TYPE 'A' DOOR EACH SIDE(EMERGENCY)

AIR CONDmONINGEQUIPMENT BAY

WING GEARWHEEL WELL

FUSELAGE BODY GEARWHEEL WELL

SEC 41 SEC 42 SEC 44 SEC 46 SEC 48

A side view of the 747-400 fuselage depicting the sections and stations used to identify locations within the aircraft from noseto tail. (Boeing)

96 AIRLINERTECH..

747-40.~ OSTERBy THE NUMBERS

/">

ThiS listing pwvides basic identity infonnation fm Type Line/msn Date Reg. Operator

•• .1 the 591 Boeing 747-400 aircraft built, delivered, or

747-4H6C745/24405,:. ordered, as of the beginning of 2002. These are 89-09-08 9M-MHM Malaysia

line numbers 696, 700, 705, 708, 711, 715, 719, 721/723, 747-438 746/24373 89-09-21 VH-OJB Qantas

725/1305; the line number 724 was assigned to the last 747-430C 747/24285 89-09-15 D-ABTA Lufthansa

747 aircraft which was not a 747-400. 747-485 748/24200 89-09-13 HL7479 Korean

In some cases, the operator did not take up the air- 747-430C 749/24406 89-12-22 D-ABTB Lufthansa

craft after ordering it, or the aircraft has since changed 747-438 751/24406 89-10-14 VH-OJC Qantas

operator or registration. A handful of 747-400s on this list 747-436 753/24047 89-10-15 G-BNLE British Air

have been lost in mishaps. 747-430C 754/24287 90-02-03 D-ABTC Lufthansa

747-412 755/24064 89-11-01 9V-SMD Singapore

Type Line/msn Date Reg. Operator 747-419 756/24386 89-12-14 ZK-NBS Air New Zealand

747-430 757/24288 89-10-26 D-ABVC Lufthansa

747-451 696/23719 88-04-29 N661US Northwest 747-446 758/24423 90-01-25 JA8071 Japan747-430 700/23817 88-06-27 D-ABVB Lufthansa 747-422 759/24380 89-12-08 N173UA United

747-467 705/23814 88-08-28 VR-HOO Cathay 747-446 760/24424 90-01-25 JA8072 Japan

747-451 708/23720 88-09-21 N662US Northwest 747-412 761/24065 89-12-13 9V-SME Singapore

747-437 711/24159 88-09-26 VT-EPW Air India 747-422 762/24381 90-01-20 N174UA United

747-451 715/23818 88-12-08 N663YS Northwest 747-406C 763/24201 90-01-24 PH-BFE KLM

747-412 717/24061 89-03-15 9V-SMA Singapore 747-438 764/24481 90-01-16 VH-OJD Qantas

747-437 719/24160 88-11-08 VT-EPX Air India 747-438 765/24482 90-01-31 VH-OJE Qantas

747-451 721/23819 89-04-04 N664US Northwest 747-409 766/24309 90-02-08 B-161 China

747-412 722/24062 89-02-06 9V-SMB Singapore 747-446 767/24425 90-02-19 JA8073 Japan

747-430 723/23816 89-04-21 D-ABVA Lufthansa 747-446 768/24426 90-02-26 JA8074 Japan747-406 725/23999 89-04-15 PH-BFA KLM 7:47-407 769/24458 90-02-21 HS-TGH Thai

747-451 726/23820 89-07-27 N665US Northwest 747-406C 770/24202 90-02-23 PH-BFF KLM

747-436 727/23908 89-06-03 . G-BNLA British Air 747-467 771/24631 90-02-09 B-HOR Cathay

747-467 728/23815 89-05-02 VR-HOP Cathay 747-436 773/24048 90-02-28 G-BNLF British Air

747-4B5 729/24198 89-05-13 HL7477 Korean 747-436 774/24049 90-02-27 G-BNLG British Air

747-436 730/23909 89-07-07 G-BNLB British Air 747-4J6C 775/24347 90-02-27 B-2458 Air China

747-438 731/24354 89-07-03 VH-OJA Qantas 747-407 777/24459 90-03-22 HS-TGJ Thai

747-406 732/24000 89-05-23 PH-BFB KLM 747-409 778/24310 90-03-27 B-162 China

747-422 733/24322 89-05-25 Nl71UA United 747-436 779/24050 90-03-28 G-BNLH British Air

747-436 734/23910 89-06-28 G-BNLC British Air 747-446 780/24427 90-03-90 JA8075 Japan

747-406C 735/23982 89-06-30 PH-BFC KLM 747-438 781/24483 90-04-08 VH-OJF Qantas

747-412 736/24063 89-06-21 9V-SMC Singapore 747-406 782/24517 90-04-11 PH-BFG KLM

747-406C 737/24001 89-04-24 PH-BFD KLM 747-406C 783/24518 90-04-26 PH-BFH KLM

747-4H6C738/24315 89-10-01 9M-MHL Malaysia 747-436 784/24051 90-04-21 G-BNIJ British Air

747-4B5 739/24199 89-07-15 HL7478 Korean 747-430 785/24715 90-04-27 D-ABTD Lufthansa

747-422 740/24363 89-07-20 Nl72UA United 747-430 786/24740 90-05-15 D-ABVD Condor

747-4B3 741/24154 89-08-01 F-GEXA UTA 747-430 787/24741 90-04-05 D-ABVE Lufthansa

747-451 742/23821 89-07-31 N666US Northwest 747-467 788/24850 90-05-11 B-HOS Cathay

747-4J6C 743/24346 89-09-10 B-2456 Air China 747-436 789/24052 90-05-23 G-BNLJ British Air

747-436 744/23911 89-08-16 G-BNLD British Air 747-436 790/24053 90-05-25 G-BNLK British Air

BOEING

141-400 97

Type Line/msn Date Reg. Operator Type Line/msn Date Reg. Operator

747-412 791/24066 90-06-10 9V-SMF Singapore 747-428C 843/24990 91-02-28 F-GITB Air France

747-4J6C 792/24348 90-06-21 B-2460 Air China 747-4460 844/25213 91-03-15 JA8083 Japan

747-485 793/24619 90-06-27 HL7480 Korean 747-430 845/25045 91-03-14 O-ABVH Lufthansa

747-436 794/24054 90-06-14 G-BNLL British Air 747-430C 846/24966 91-03-20 O-ABTE Lufthansa

747-436 795/24055 90-06-28 G-BNLM British Air 747-430 847/25046 91-03-26 O-ABVK Lufthansa

747-430 796/24761 90-07-06 O-ABVF Condor 747-430C 848/24967 91-03-29 O-ABTF Lufthansa

747-446 797/24777 90-07-10 JA8076 Japan 747-467 849/25082 91-04-05 VR-HOV Cathay

747-446 798/24784 90-07-10 JA8077 Japan 747-406 850/25086 91-04-11 PH-BPI KLM

747-451 799/24222 90-07-20 N667US Northwest 747-446 851/25064 91-04-17 JA8081 Japan

747-451 800/24223 90-07-26 N668US Northwest 747-412 852/25068 91-04-23 9V-SMJ Singapore

747-438 801/24779 90-08-18 VH-OJG Qantas 747-4B5 853/25205 91-04-29 HL7482 Korean

747-436 802/24056 90-07-27 G-BNLN British Air 747-406 854/25087 91-05-03 PH-BFK KLM

747-451 803/24224 90-08-20 N669US Northwest 747-475 855/24896 91-05-08 PP-VPI Varig

747-451 804/24225 90-08-31 N670US Northwest 747-430 856/25047 91-05-15 O-ABTH Lufthansa

747-481 805/24801 90-08-20 JA8094 All Nippon 747-438 857/25067 91-05-21 VH-OJK Qantas

747-422 806/24382 90-08-07 N175UA United 747-4H6 858/25126 91-05-29 9M-MHO Malaysia

747-422 807/24806 90-08-14 VH-OJN Qantas 747-412 859/25127 91-06-04 9V-SMK Singapore

747-4H6 808/24836 90-08-20 9M-MHN Malaysia 747-412 860/25128 91-06-06 9V-SML Singapore

747-412 809/24226 90-08-23 9V-SMG Singapore 747-444 861/25152 91-06-13 ZS-SAW South African

747-422 811/24383 90-08-31 N176UA United 747-433C 862/25074 91-06-19 C-GAGM Air Canada

747-481 812/24833 90-09-13 JA8095 All Nippon 747-481 863/25135 91-06-25 JA8097 All Nippon

747-467 813/24851 90-09-18 VR-HOT Cathay 747-4B3C 864/24155 91-06-28 F-GEXB UTA

747-419 815/24855 90-09-28 ZK-NBT Air New Zealand 747-438 865/25151 91-07-05 VH-OJL Qantas

747-47C 816/24730 90-10-90 JA8091 Japan Govt. 747-422 866/25158 91-07-11 N179UA United

747-436 817/24057 90-10-09 G-BNLO British Air 747-422 867/25224 91-07-11 N180UA United

747-422 819/24384 90-11-08 Nl77UA United 747-433C 868/25075 91-07-24 C-CAGN Air Canada

747-422 820/24385 90-11-08 N178UA United 747-409 869/24311 91-07-26 B-163 China

747-446 821/24870 90-11-19 JA8091 Japan 747-481 870/25207 91-08-02 JA8098 All Nippon

747-475 823/24883 90-12-11 C-GMWW Canadian 747-446 871/25212 91-08-08 JA8082 Japan

747-446 824/24885 90-11-13 JA8079 Japan 747-428C 872/25238 91-08-14 F-GISA Air France

747-446 825/24886 90-11-20 JA8080 Japan 747-467 873/25211 91-08-13 VR-HOW Cathay

747-438 826/24887 90-11-27 ZS-SAV Qantas 747-4B5 874/25725 91-08-26 HL7483 Korean

747-444 827/24976 90-11-27 VH-OJI South African 747-438 875/25245 91-08-30 VH-OJM Qantas

747-436 828/24058 90-12-04 G-BNLP British Air 747-446 876/25260 91-09-06 JA8085 Japan

747-436 829/24447 90-12-11 G-BNLR British Air 747-467 877/24955 91-09-11 VR-HOX Cathay

747-4B5 830/24621 90-12-14 HL7481 Korean 747-4460879/25214 91-09-25 JA8084 Japan

747-412 831/24227 90-01-03 9V-SMH Singapore 747-48E 880/25405 91-09-27 HL7413 Asiana

747-481 832/24910 90-01-04 JA8096 All Nippon 747-422 881/25278 91-10-03 N181UA United

747-407 833/24993 90-01-11 H5-TGK Thai 747-422 882/25279 91-10-08 N182UA United

747-467 834/24925 91-01-10 VR-HOU Cathay 747-438 883/25317 91-10-15 VH-oJN Qantas

747-438 835/24974 91-01-18 VH-OJJ Qantas 747-428C 884/25302 91-10-21 F-GISB Air France

747-428 836/24969 91-01-25 F-GITA Air France 747-446 885/25308 91-10-25 JA8086 Japan

747-475 837/24895 91-01-30 C-FCRA Canadian 747-467 887/25351 91-11-07 VR-HOY Cathay

747-412 838/24975 91-02-05 9V-SMI Singapore 747-406 888/25356 91-11-12 PH-BFL KLM

747-47C 839/24731 91-02-08 JA80n Japan Govt. 747-428 889/25344 91-11-15 F-GITC Air France

747-433C 840/24998 91-02-15 C-GAGL Air Canada 747-407 890/25366 91-11-22 HS-TGL Thai

747-436 841/24629 91-02-20 G-BNLS British Air 747-4810 891/25292 91-11-27 JA8099 All Nippon

747-436 842/24630 91-02-26 G-BNLT British Air 747-48E 892/25452 91-12-05 HL7414 Asiana

98 AIRLINERTECH--- ..

Type Line/msn Date Reg. Operator Type Line/msn Date Reg. Operator

747-4B5 893/26392 91-12-11 HL7484 Korean 747-45E 942/27062 92-10-08 Bl6401 EVA

747-436 895/25406 91-12-20 G-BNLU British Air 747-444 943/26637 92-10-27 ZS-SAX South African

747-406 896/26373 92-01-08 PH-BFN KLM 747-422 944/26877 92-10-03 N188UA United

747-446 897/26346 92-01-14 JA8087 Japan 747-4D7 945/27093 92-10-23 HS-TGM Thai

747-430 898/26425 92-01-20 D-ABVL Lufthansa 747-48E 946/25777 92-10-30 HL7415 Asiana

747-428C 899/25599 92-01-23 F-GISC Air France 747-45E 947/27063 92-11-01 B16402 EVA

747-436 900/25427 92-01-30 G-BNLV British Air 747-446D 948/26349 92-11-11 JA8905 Japan

747-428 901/25600 92-02-05 F-GITD Air France 747-467 949/25874 92-11-17 VR-HUD Cathay

747-446 902/26341 92-02-11 JA8088 Japan 747-4D7 950/26615 92-11-23 HS-TGN Thai

747-436 903/25432 92-02-17 G-BNLW British Air 747-4B5 951/26396 92-12-02 HL7486 Korean

747-4J6 904/25879 92-02-01 B-2464 Air China 747-481D 952/25646 92-12-18 JA8959 All Nippon

747-446 905/26342 92-02-07 JA8089 Japan 747-412 953/27067 92-12-12 9V-SMP Singapore

747-428 906/25601 92-03-04 F-GITE Air France 747-409 954/24312 92-12-17 B-164 China

747-446D 907/26347 92-03-06 JA8090 Japan 747-412 955/27132 92-12-22 9V-SMQ Singapore

747-436 908/25435 92-03-16 G-BNLX British Air 747-428 956/25629 92-01-93 F-OGTG Air France

747-428 909/25602 92-11-20 F-GITF Air France 747-4J6 957/25881 93-01-15 B-2443 Air China

747-430 910/26426 92-03-25 A8-ALl Brunei Govt. 747-4B5 958/26393 93-01-20 HL7487 Korean

747-422 911/25379 92-04-01 N183UA United 747-436 959/27090 93-01-25 G-BNLY British Air

747-475 912/25422 92-04-07 C-FBCA Canadian 747-428C 960/25630 93-01-29 F-GISE Air France

747-422 913/25380 92-04-13 N184UA United 747-446 961/26350 93-02-05 J8906 Japan

747-481D 914/25639 92-04-14 JA8955 All Nippon 747-412 962/27133 93-02-12 9V-SMR Singapore

747-430 915/26427 92-04-23 D-ABVN Lufthansa 747-446D 963/26351 93-02-16 JA8907 Japan

747-438 916/25545 92-04-29 VH-OJP Qantas 747-436 964/27091 93-02-22 G-BNLZ British Air

747-441 917/24956 92-05-05 PP-VPG ILFC/Varig 747-4H6 965/25699 93-02-26 9M-MPB Malaysia

747-446 918/26343 92-05-11 JA8901 Japan 747-422 966/26878 93-03-05 N189UA United

747-422 919/25395 92-05-15 N185UA United 747-436 967/27092 93-03-10 G-CIVA British Air

747-481D 920/25640 92-05-21 JA8955 All Nippon 747-428F 968/25632 93-05-04 N6005C Boeing

747-412 921/26547 92-05-22 9V-SMM Singapore 747-406 969/26373 93-03-23 PH-BFN KLM

747-4B5 922/26395 92-05-03 HL7485 Korean 747-467 970/27117 93-03-30 VR-HUE Cathay

747-412 923/26548 92-06-05 9V-SMN Singapore 747-441 971/24957 93-04-01 PP-VPH IFLC/Varig

747-438 924/25546 92-06-15· VH-OJQ Qantas 747-481D 972/25643 93-04-08 JA8960 All Nippon

747-467 925/25871 92-06-12 VR-HOZ Cathay 747-422 973/26879 93-04-12 N190UA United

747-4J6 926/25880 92-06-25 B-2466 Air China 747-4H6 974/25700 93-04-19 9M-MPC Malaysia

747-481D 927/25642 92-07-01 JA8957 All Nippon 747-481D 975/25644 93-04-27 JA8961 All Nippon

747-481 928/25641 92-07-21 JA8958 All Nippon 747-45E 976/27141 93-04-25 N430EV EVA

747-446 929/26344 92-07-23 JA8902 Japan 747-409 977/24313 93-05-06 B-165 China

747-467 930/25872 92-07-16 VR-HUA Cathay 747-446D 978/26352 93-05-11 JA8908 Japan

747-422 931/26875 92-08-06 N186UA United 747-481 979/25645 93-05-19 JA8962 All Nippon

747-4H6 932/27042 92-08-11 9M-MPA Malaysia 747-446 980/26353 93-05-21 JA8909 Japan

747-419 933/25605 92-08-17 ZK-NBU Air New Zealand 747-412 981/27134 93-05-25 9V-SMS Singapore

747-428 934/25628 92-08-24 F-GISD Air France 747-45E 982/27142 93-06-03 N405EV EVA

747-446D 935/26345 92-08-28 JA8903 Japan 747-48E 983/25778 93-06-09 HL7416 Asiana

747-438 936/25547 92-09-03 VH-OJR Qantas 747-422 984/26880 93-06-14 N19IUA United

747-467 937/25873 92-09-10 VR-HUB Cathay 747-451 985/26473 93-06-25 N105UA United

747-406C 938/25413 92-09-16 PH-BFO KLM 747-4B5 986/26394 93-07-08 HL7488 Korean

747-422 939/26876 92-09-18 N187UA United 747-437 987/27078 93-07-02 VT-ESM Air India

747-412 940/27066 92-09-28 9V-SMO Singapore 747-451 988/26474 93-08-16 N106UA United

747-446D 941/26348 92-10-01 JA8904 Japan 747-422 989/26881 93-07-14 N192UA United

BOEING

1 -400 99

Type Line/msn Date Reg. Operator Type Line/msn Date Reg. Operator .'

747-412 '990/27137 93-08-04 9V-SMT Singapore 747-4F6 1038/27827 94-07-27 C-FGHZ Canadian747-4810 991/25647 93-07-29 JA8963 All Nippon 747-4F6 1039/27828 94-08-18 N753PR Philippine747-406 992/26374 93-08-13 PH-BFP KLM 747-412 1040/26550 94-08-31 9V-SPA Singapore747-467 993/25869 93-08-05 VR-HUF Cathay 747-4H6 1041/27044 94-09-08 9M-MPH Malaysia747-45E 994/27154 93-08-25 B-16461 EVA 747-412F 1042/26561 94-09-17 9V-SFB Singapore747-444 995/26638 93-09-01 ZS-SAY South African 747-4Q8 1043/26326 94-09-26 G-VHOT Virgin747-4810 996/27163 93-09-07 JA8964 All Nippon 747-48E 1044/27551 94-10-13 HL7419 Asian747-4H6 997/25701 93-09-10 9M-MPD Malaysia 747-412 1045/26551 94-10-12 9V-SPB Singapore747-45E 998/27173 93-09-20 B-16462 EVA 747-469 1046/27338 94-10-28 9K-ADE Kuwait747-4H6 999/25702 93-09-24 9M-MPE Malaysia 747-407 1047/26610 94-11-11 HS-TGP Thai747-412 1000/27068 93-09-29 9V-SMU Singapore 747-436 1048/27349 94-11-23 G-CIVD British Air747-4D7 1001/26609 93-10-07 HS-TGO Thai 747-412 1049/27070 94-12-08 9V-SPC Singapore747-4R7F 1002/25866 93-10-30 LX-FCV Cargolux 747-436 1050/27350 94-12-08 G-CIVE British Air747-437 1003/27164 93-10-21 VT-ESN Air India 747-45EC 1051/27898 94-12-28 N406EV EVA747-45E 1004/27174 93-10-25 B-16463 EVA 747-412F 1052/26350 95-02-02 9V-SFC Singapore747-4F6 1005/27261 93-10-31 N751PR Philippine 747-45EC 1053/27899 95-01-26 N407EV EVA747-48E 1006/25779 93-11-08 HL7417 Asiana 747-4J6 1054/25883 95-01-25 B-2447 Air China747-467 1007/25870 93-11-08 VR-HUG Cathay 747-4B5 1055/26397 95-02-16 HL7492 Korean747-4R7F 1008/25867 93-11-24 LX-GCV Cargolux 747-412 1056/26552 95-03-06 9V-SPD Singapore747-437 1009/27165 93-11-30 VT-ESO Air India 747-4B5 1057/26398 95-03-11 HL7493 Korean747-412 1010/27069 93-12-06 9V-SMV Singapore 747-436 1058/25814 95-03-22 G-CIVF British Air747-4U3 1011/25704 93-12-13 PK-GSG Garuda 747-436 1059/25815 95-04-06 G-CIVG British Air747-4F6 1012/27262 93-12-14 N725PR Philippine 747-4810 1060/27436 95-04-16 JA8965 All Nippon747-4B5 1013/27072 94-01-07 HL7489 Korean 747-467 1061/27595 95-05-14 VR-HUJ Cathay747-406C 1014/27202 94-01-06 PH-BFR KLM 747-458 1062/27915 95-05-15 4X-ELC ElAl747-412 1015/27178 94-01-17 9V-SMW Singapore 747-409 1063/27965 95-05-16 B-16801 Mandarin747-45E 1016/26062 94-01-18 B-16465 EVA 747-48E 1064/25783 95-06-14 HL7420 Asiana747-4H6 1017/27043 94-01-22 9M-MPF Malaysia 747-467 1065/27503 95-06-29 VR-HUK Cathay747-436 1018/25811 94-02-03 G-CIVB British Air 747-4810 1066/27442 95-07-18 JA8966 All Nippon747-4B5 1019/27177 94-02-07 HL7490 Korean 747-4B5 1067/27662 95-07-31 HL7494 Korean747-467F 1020/27175 94-02-21 VR-HUH Cathay 747-469 1068/27663 95-08-28 N754PR Philippine747-4J6 1021/25882 94-02-18 B-2443 Air China 747-412F 1069/26553 95-08-20 9V-SFD Singapore747-436 1022/25812 94-02-21 G-CIVC British Air 747-412 1070/26554 95-09-28 9V-SPE Singapore747-412 1023/27217 94-03-08 9V-SMY Singapore 747-407 1071/27723 95-10-23 HS-TGR Thai747-446 1024/26355 94-03-07 JA8910 Japan 747-412 1072/27071 95-11-09 9V-SPF Singapore747-4H6 1025/25703 94-03-16 9M-MPF Malaysia 747-4B5 1073/28096 95-12-17 HL7495 Korean747-446 1026/26356 94-03-23 JA8911 Japan 747-412 1074/26562 96-02-09 9V-SPG Singapore747-458 1027/26055 94-11-04 4X-ELA ElAl 747-412 1075/26555 96-03-01 9V-SPH Singapore747-4Q8 1028/24958 94-04-14 G-VFAB Virgin 747-45EC 1076/28092 96-03-14 N408EV EVA747-4U3 1029/25705 94-04-27 PK-GSH Garuda 747-45EC 1077/29093 96-03-29 N409EV EVA747-412 1030/26549 94-05-04 9V-SMZ Singapore 747-436 1078/25809 96-04-11 G-CIVH British Air747-446 1031/27099 94-05-16 JA8912 Japan 747-436 1079/25814 96-04-22 G-CIVI British Air747-458 1032/26056 94-05-18 4X-ELB ElAl 747-430 1080/28086 96-05-05 D-ABVO Lufthansa747-467 1033/27230 94-06-03 VR-HUI Cathay 747-4Q8 1081/26255 96-05-28 G-VBIG Virgin747-437 1034/27214 94-06-15 VT-ESP Air India 747-412 1082/28022 96-06-09 9V-SPI Singapore747-48E 1035/25780 94-06-23 HL7418 Asiana 747-4B5 1083/26400 96-06-18 HL7496 Korean747-412F 1036/26563 94-07-09 9V-SFA Singapore 747-412 1084/26556 96-07-09 9V-SPJ Singapore747-4B5 1037/27341 94-07-18 HL7491 Korean 747-422 1085/26890 96-07-20 N193UA United

100 AIRLINERTECH

-)Type Line/msn Date Reg. Operator Type Line/msn Date Reg. Operator

747-48E 1086/25784 96-08-07 HL7421 Asiana 747-407 1134/27725 97-10-30 HS-TGX Thai

747-4B5F 1087/26401 96-08-23 HL7497 Korean 747-436 1135/28849 97-11-18 G-CIVO British Air

747-422 1088/26892 96-09-06 N194UA United 747-409 1136/28711 97-11-17 B-18203 China

747-437 1089/28094 96-09-21 VT-EVA Air India 747-409 1137/28712 97-12-07 B-18205 China

747-406 1090/28195 96-10-03 PH-BFS KLM 747-468 1138/28340 97-12-17 HZ-AIW Saudi

747-4H6 1091/27672 96-10-16 9M-MPI Malaysia 747-4R7F 1139/29053 98-01-17 LX-LCW Cargolux

747-4B5 1092/26402 96-10-20 HL7498 Korean 747-45E 1140/29061 98-01-16 B-l64lO EVA

747-437 1093/28095 96-11-04 VT-EVB Air India 747-422 1141/26902 98-01-19 N104UA United

747-412F 1094/28263 96-11-15 9V-SFE Singapore 747-481 1142/28283 98-01-29 JA402A All Nippon

747-4B5 1095/26403 96-11-18 HL7472 Korean 747-430 1143/29101 98-02-07 D-ABVM Lufthansa

747-48EF 1096/28367 96-12-12 HL7422 Asiana 747-436 1144/28850 98-02-17 G-CIVP British Air

747-407 1097/26616 96-12-10 HS-TGT Thai 747-409 1145/29030 98-02-25 B-18206 China

747-4B5 1098/28335 96-12-14 HL7473 Korean 747-436 1146/25820 98-03-02 G-CIVR British Air

747-412 1099/28023 97-01-12 9V-SPK Singapore 747-4H6 1147/28427 98-03-20 9M-MPK Malaysia

747-4Q8 1100/28194 97-01-14 G-VTOP Virgin 747-436 1148/28851 98-03-13 G-CIVS British Air

747-412 1101/26557 97-01-21 9V-SPL Singapore 747-436 1149/25821 98-03-20 G-CIVT British Air

747-436 1102/25817 97-01-31 G-CIVJ British Air 747-4H6 1150/28428 98-03-30 9M-MPL Malaysia

747-430 1103/28284 97-02-10 D-ABVP Lufthansa 747-45E 1151/29111 98-04-27 B-16111 EVA

747-436 1104/25818 97-02-22 G-CIVK British Air 747-4H6 1152/28435 98-04-14 9M-MPM Malaysia

747-412F 1105/28026 97-02-28 9V-SFF Singapore 747-445 1153/26359 98-04-30 JA8913 Japan

747-430 1106/28285 97-03-04 D-ABVR Lufthansa 747-436 1154/25810 98-04-24 G-CIVU British Air

747-4B5 1107/26404 97-03-13 HL7460 Korean 747-485 1155/26407 98-12-30 HL7402 Korean

747-436 1108/27478 97-03-23 G-CIVL British Air 747-436 1156/25819 98-05-22 G-CIVV British Air

747-430 1109/28286 97-04-04 D-ABVS Lufthansa 747-436 1157/25822 98-05-15 G-CIVW British Air

747-430 1110/28287 97-04-14 D-ABVT Lufthansa 747-4F6 1158/28959 98-12-30 ZS-SBK South African

747-4D7 1111/27724 97-04-19 HS-TGW Thai 747-45E 1159/29112 98-05-28 B-16412 EVA

747-406 1112/28459 97-05-01 PH-BFT KLM 747-48E 1160/28552 98-06-18 HL7428 Asiana

747-422 1113/26899 97-05-08 N195UA United 747-4F6 1161/27602 98-10-07 ZK-SUJ Air New Zealand

747-409 1114/28709 97-05-17 B-18201 China 747-444 1162/28468 98-06-30 ZS-SAK South African

747-48E 1115/25782 97-05-22 HL7423 Asiana 747-4B5F 1163/26408 98-12-30 HL7403 Korean

747-436 1116/28700 97-05 G-CIVM British Air 747-407 1164/28705 98-12-22 HS-TGY Thai

747-41R 1117/28757 97-06-05 G-VAST Virgin 747-47UF 1165/29252 98-07-29 N491MC Atlas

747-4B5 1118/26405 97-06-12 HL7461 Korean 747-446 1166/26360 98-07-23 JA8914 Japan

747-4J6C 1119/28754 97-06-23 B-2467 Air China 747-4F6 1167/28960 98-12-30 ZS-SBS South African

747-422 1120/28715 97-06-23 NI97UA United 747-422 1168/26900 98-08-20 NlO7UA United

747-422 1121/26901 97-07-09 N197UA United 747-470F 1169/29253 98-08-12 N492MC Atlas

747-468 1122/28339 97-09-14 HZ-AN Saudi 747-485 1170/26409 98-12-30 HL7404 Korean

747-4B5F 1123/26406 97-07-23 HL7462 Korean 747-422 1171/26903 98-08-28 N108UA United

747-422 1124/28716 97-08-05 N198UA United 747-436 1172/28852 98-09-03 G-CIVX British Air

747-4R7F 1125/25868 97-08-13 LX-KeV Cargolux 747-412F 1173/26558 98-09-03 9V-SFG Singapore

747-422 1126/28717 97-09-08 199UA United 747-4F6 1174/28961 - A6-YAS Abu Dhabi

747-406C 1127/28196 97-08-28 PH-BFU KLM 747-4J6 1175/28756 98-09-28 B-2469 Air China

747-4J6 1128/28755 97-09-06 B-2468 Air China 747-409 1176/29219 98-09-28 B-18207 China

747-436 1129/28848 97-09-18 G-CIVN British Air 747-41R 1177/29406 98-09-30 G-VXLG Virgin

747-4H6 1130/28426 97-10-05 9M-MPJ Malaysia 747-436 1178/28853 98-09-29 G-CIVY British Air

747-48E 1131/28551 - HL7424 Asiana 747-47UF 1179/29254 98-10-21 N493MC Atlas

747-409 1132/28710 97-10-12 B-18202 China 747-419 1180/26910 98-10-31 ZK-NBV Air New Zealand

747-481 1133/28282 97-10-29 JA401A All Nippon 747-4J6 1181/29070 98-10-28 B-2470 Air China

BOEING

141-4~O101

Type Line/msn Date Reg. Operator Type Line I msn Date Reg. Operator

747-468 1182/28341 98-11-18 HZ-AIX Saudi 747-438 1230/25564 99-09-30 VH-OJS Qantas

747-436 1183/28854 98-10-31 G-CIVZ British Air 747-4R7F 1231/29732 99-09-29 LX-PCV Cargolux

747-47UF 1184/29255 98-12-04 N494MC Atlas 747-451 1232/30269 99-10-18 N674US Northwest

747-422 1185/26906 98-11-16 N109UA United 747-438 1233/25565 99-09-30 VH-OJT Qantas

747-409 1186/29031 98-11-20 B-18208 China 747-446 1234/27650 99-11-21 JA8918 Japan747-444 1187/29119 98-11-30 ZS-SAZ South African 747-4R7F 1235/30400 99-11-23 LX-RCV Cargolux

747-446 1188/26361 98-11-30 JA8915 Japan 747-446 1236/27100 99-12-16 JA8919 Japan747-4R7F 1189/29729 98-08-12 LX-MCV Cargolux 747-430 1237/29858 99-12-22 D-ABVX Lufthansa

747-436 1190/28555 98-12-14 G-BYGA British Air YAL-l 1238/30201 00-01-21 00-0001 USAF

747-430 1191/29492 98-12-21 D-ABVU Lufthansa 747-438 1239/25566 00-01-24 VH-OJU Qantas

747-47UF 1192/29261 98-12-15 N408MC Atlas 747-47UF 1240/29260 00-02-17 N499MC Atlas747-422 1193/26908 98-12-29 N116UA United 747-412 1241/29950 00-03-30 9V-SPM Singapore747-436 1194/28856 99-01-17 G-BYGB British Air 747-47UF 1242/30558 00-04-05 N409MC GTI747-436 1195/25823 99-01-19 G-BYGC British Air 747-4J6 1243/30158 00-05-02 B-2472 Air China

747-436 1196/28857 99-01-26 G-BYGD British Air 747-47UF 1244/30559 00-04-25 N412MC Atlas747-422 1197/28810 99-01-29 N117UA United 747-422 1245/30023 00-05-12 N128UA United

747-436 1198/28858 99-02-05 G-BYGE British Air 747B5F 1246/26416 00-05-25 HL7448 Korean747-481 1199/29262 99-02-25 JA403A All Nippon 747-4H6 1247/28432 00-05-31 9M-MPN Malaysia747-436 1200/25824 99-02-17 G-BYGF British Air 747-4B5F 1248/26411 00-06-08 HL7449 Korean747-422 1201/28811 99-02-24 N118UA United 747-409F 1249/30759 00-07-06 B-18701 China Cargo747-446 1202/26362 99-03-18 JA8916 Japan 747-481 1250/30322 00-06-28 JA405A All Nippon

747-4R7F 1203/29730 99-03-03 LX-NCV Cargolux 747-45EF 1251/30607 00-07-20 B-15481 EVA

747-481 1204/29263 99-03-30 JA404A All Nippon 747-409F 1252/30760 00-07-28 B-18702 China Cargo747-430 1205/29493 99-03-13 D-ABVW Lufthansa 747-446 1253/27648 00-08-17 JA8920 Japan747-451 1206/26477 99-03-29 N67IUS Northwest 747-409F 1254/30761 00-08-19 B-18703 China Cargo747-422 1207/28812 99-03-29 N119UA United 747-467F 1255/30804 00-09-12 B-HUL Cathay747-446 1208/29899 99-04-20 JA8917 Japan 747-412F 1256/28027 00-09-28 9V-SFI Singapore747-422 1209/29166 99-04-12 N120UA United 747-409F 1257/30753 01-03-02 B-18706 China Cargo747-48EF 1210/27603 99-04-14 HL7426 Asiana 747-406MI258/30454 00-10-24 PH-BFW KLM747-422 1211/29167 99-04-22 N12IUA United 747-46NF 1259/30809 00-11-13 N451PA Polar747-436 1212/28859 99-04-29 G-BYGG British Air 747-46NF 1260/30809 00-11-16 N452PA Polar747-47UF 1213/29256 99-05-26 G-GSSA Global 747-430 1261/29859 00-12-11 D-ABVY Lufthansa747-4D7 1214/28706 99-05-11 HS-TGZ Thai 747-446 1262/27645 00-12-19 JA8921 Japan747-458 1215/29328 99-05-24 4X-ELD ElAl 747-409F 1263/30762 01-02-09 B-18705 China Cargo747-468 1216/28342 99-12-09 HZ-AIY Saudi 747-430 1264/29870 - D-ABVZ Lufthansa

747-47UF 1217/29257 99-06-30 N496MC Atlas 747-468 1265/28343 01-01-26 HZ-AIZ Saudi747-422 1218/29168 99-06-14 N122UA United 747-412 1266/28031 01-02-08 9V-SPN Singapore747-409 1219/29906 99-06-25 B-18209 China 747-409F 1267/30763 01-02-20 B-18706 China Cargo747-47UF 1220/29258 99-07-15 N497MC Atlas 747-443 1268/30885 01-02-22 G-VROS Virgin747-422 1221/28813 99-08-02 NI27UA United 747-409F 1269/30764 01-04-11 B-18707 China Cargo747-4R7F 1222/29731 99-07-12 LX-OCV Cargolux 747-412 1270/28028 01-03-29 9V-SPO Singapore747-451 1223/30267 99-07-19 N672US Northwest 747-467F 1271/32571 01-04-18 B-HUO Cathay747-412F 1224/28032 99-08-05 9V-SFH Singapore 747-443 1272/32337 - B-VGAL Virgin747-406M 1225/28460 99-08-16 PH-BFV KLM 747-467F 1282/30805 01-08-22 B-HUP Cathay747-451 1226/30268 99-08-24 N673US Northwest 747-6NF 1283/30811 01-09-26 N453PA Polar747-47UF 1227/29259 99-08-26 N498MC Atlas 747-4B5 1284/26412 01-09-28 HL7465 Korean747-419 1228/29375 99-09-08 ZK-NBW Air New Zealand 747-412F 1285/26559 01-09-17 9V-SFJ Singapore747-4J6 1229/29071 99-09-22 B-2471 Air China 747-B5F 1286/26413 01-09-28 HL7466 Korean

102 AIRLINERTECH..

-,> Type Line/msn Date Reg. Operator Type Line/msn Date Reg. Operator

747-41R 1287/32745 01-10-31 G-VWOW Virgin 747-451 1297/33001 - N675US Northwest

747-409F 1288/30765 - B-18708 China Cargo 747-412 1298/28030 - 9V-SFK Singapore

747-412 1289/28025 01-10-31 9V-SPQ Singapore 747-430 1299/29872 - D-ABTL Lufthansa

"'747-4H6 1290/28433 - 9M-MPO Malaysia 747-409F 1300/30767 - B-18710 China Cargo

747-4B5F 1291/27073 01-11-30 HL7467 Korean 747-4H6 1301/29901 - 9M-MPQ Malaysia

747-430 1292/32445 - Lufthansa 737-406M 1302/30455 - PH-BFY KLM

747-430 1293/29871 - D-ABTK Lufthansa 747-451 1303/33002 - N676US Northwest

747-409F 1294/30766 - B-18709 China Cargo 747-47UF 1304/32837 - N415MC Atlas

747-4B5F 1295/26414 - HL7400 Korean 747-48EF 1305/29170 - HL7426 Asiana

747-4H6 1296/29900 - 9M-MPP Malaysia

At the start of 2002, with the airline industry reeling from economic setbacks, terror attacks, and the deterrent to travel posedby inconsistent security measures, some analysts were saying that twilight has come for the era of the four-engined jetliner,even one that saves money for its operators by having just two pilots. Nevertheless, even though older 747 "classics" wereclearly a liability to most airlines, the jury was still out on the impact of the economy on the 747-400. Boeing, even aftersetbacks and layoffs, has a healthy order book for the 747-400 and no one is ready to say, so far, that this great aircraft doesn'thave a bright future ahead. (Tom Pesch)

BOEING

141-400 103

SIGNIFIC T DATESKEY DATES IN THE HISTORY OF THE BOEING 747-400

February 9, 1969First flight of a Boeing 747

May 1985Boeing announcement of 747-400program launch

October 22, 1985Launch customer Northwest Air­lines orders 10 747-400s

April 29, 1988Pilot James Loesch and co-pilotKenneth Higgins complete the firstflight of a 747-400, powered byPratt & Whitney engines, at Everett

June 27, 1988First 747-400 sets a weight recordtaking off from Moses Lake, Wash­ington, at 892,450 pounds (404,994kilograms)

August 28, 1988First flight of a Rolls-Royce-pow­ered 747-400, for Cathay Pacific

April 15, 1989First flight of a General Electric­powered 747-400, for KLM

September 1989First 747-400 Combi enters servicewithKLM

January 1990Boeing announces plans for a 747­400F freighter to replace 747-200Fon Everett production line

104

1990Boeing offers US. Air Force a 747­400 model dubbed the C-33; USAFdoesn't buy

1991747s participate in OperationDesert Storm, carrying 644,000troops and 220,000 tons of equip­ment to and from the Middle East

May 7, 1993First flight of a 747-400F freighter,for Cargolux

September. 10, 19931,00Oth Boeing 747 rolls out

November 4,1993First loss of a 747-400: a new ChinaAirlines 747-400 makes a bad land­ing and comes to rest off runway'send at Kaitak harbor, Hong Kong;all 269 on board survive.

1994Boeing offers the US. Air Force aderivative of the 747-400F dubbedthe NDAA (Non DevelopmentalAlternative Airlifter); USAF buysC-17 transports instead

1995Boeing acquires McDonnell Dou­glas, leaving the United States withjust one manufacturer of long­range airliners

1996Boeing studies 747-500X and 747­600X designs, which are subse­quently cancelled

AIRLINERTECH..

1996Boeing briefs airline executives ona larger 747-700X model, which isstudied but eventually also can­celled

October 1, 1998U.S. Air Force announces plannedpurchase of YAL-l airborne laseraircraft, based on 747-400

November 1, 2000First Singapore Airlines aircraftloss, ever; 78 killed in 747-00 crashat Taipei

April 10, 2001United Airlines announces 747-400operations on the world's longestair route, flight 821 from New Yorkto Hong Kong, 8,439 miles (13587kilometers)

September 11,2001Terrorist attacks on the UnitedStates exacerbate airline industry'seconomic slump, causing some747-400s to be stored

February 2002Boeing scheduled to begin assem­bly of "Longer Range 747" for far­reaching overseas routes; launchcustomer: Qantas

June 2002Scheduled rollout of "Longer­Range 747"

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The Boeing 747-400 is the transformed ver-

sion of the airliner that changed the world.

In many ways, it is a new aircraft rather

than a development of the wide body

"jumbo jet" that brought air travel to the

everyday citizen. With an outer shell that

dates to the mid-1980s and an interior that

reflects a digital revolution and a new cen­

tury, the 747-400 is a complex and smooth­

ly functioning thing of beauty. Many

regard the 747-400 as the most majestic flying machine plying the world's revenue routes.

II

Author Robert F. Dorr takes us through this modern jumbo jet, giving us a look at details

both obvious and obscure, many of them never seen by the flying public. Also included is

a complete list of airlines flying the 747-400, a description of each major variant, a list of

each aircraft produced so far, and a look into possible future

versions of this fascinating aircraft - the Boeing 747-400.

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