Queen Of The Skies

"f86sabre" (f86sabre) 12/19/2017 at 20:00 • Filed to: Planelopnik

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They had one of the big girls in the hangar for a farewell event today. Sad to see the end of this legend with the company, but it is time. May she rest in peace. I will miss those upper deck rides.

Bonus 717 rear end shot.

Highlander-Datsuns are Forever > f86sabre 12/19/2017 at 20:13

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I like that 717, nice plane.

ttyymmnn > f86sabre 12/19/2017 at 20:13

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Bittersweet day to be sure. What will become of your 747s?

Chariotoflove > f86sabre 12/19/2017 at 20:15

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I always wanted to see that upper deck. I shall die unrequited.

Spanfeller is a twat > f86sabre 12/19/2017 at 20:25

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I really loved the 747 in paper; every time I had to fly in one I hated it! Its noisy, it takes ages to load, and even if its cool that it’s got two floors, unless you’re flying business class you aint seeing it!

The A380, is a much better jumbo jet, granted, I’ve only flown in the 744s, not the 748s

But then, I think that the boeing 787 is the best airplane on earth!

Ash78, voting early and often > Chariotoflove 12/19/2017 at 20:25

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Same here. For 20+ years, that was the stuff of legends. But I lived in a small town and never flew to Asia. By the time I got older, it was all 757 and 767 flights over the ocean.

That upper deck never should have existed. They just needed to get the flight deck high enough to clear the front cargo door, so when they converted it for passenger duty, it was like “sure, why not?”

f86sabre > ttyymmnn 12/19/2017 at 20:29

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We have 6301 at the museum. The rest will likely become beer cans.

ranwhenparked > f86sabre 12/19/2017 at 20:41

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Based on that logo, can I assume this plane is destined to have its interior gutted and spend the next 50 years rotting in Long Beach as a low rent tourist attraction/haunted house?

gmporschenut also a fan of hondas > f86sabre 12/19/2017 at 20:47

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Chariotoflove > Ash78, voting early and often 12/19/2017 at 20:48

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In my mind it’s like the treehouse for the coolest of the cool kids.

Ash78, voting early and often > Chariotoflove 12/19/2017 at 21:02

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Sipping on snifters of apple juice, eating candy cigarettes. The Golden Age of imaginary air travel.

shop-teacher > f86sabre 12/19/2017 at 21:07

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I’m genuinely sad that I never got to fly on one.

Highlander-Datsuns are Forever > f86sabre 12/19/2017 at 21:11

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I got to ride on a British Airways 747 in 1992. We were in the middle of the plane and teenagers. So we got a bunch of mini liquors and drank as much as possible.

Chariotoflove > Ash78, voting early and often 12/19/2017 at 21:18

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That is so weird that you say that. Apple juice is my traditional in-flight drink. I almost never drink it otherwise, but always when I fly. I’m not even kidding.

WilliamsSW > Chariotoflove 12/19/2017 at 21:44

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Still plenty of airlines flying them overseas from the US. They’re just foreign carriers.

Hard part is that the upper deck is business class or first so $$$.

ttyymmnn > f86sabre 12/19/2017 at 21:53

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All those 757s. :(

f86sabre > ttyymmnn 12/19/2017 at 22:11

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Still plenty out and about.

f86sabre > Ash78, voting early and often 12/19/2017 at 22:14

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Riding upstairs was magical. I did it 5 or 6 Times. Quiet, no wait for the lav, and good service. Seat 1A down below was also fun as you could kind of see forward.

f86sabre > gmporschenut also a fan of hondas 12/19/2017 at 22:18

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f86sabre > shop-teacher 12/19/2017 at 22:20

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Still a possibility, but not with a US carrier.

facw > WilliamsSW 12/19/2017 at 22:26

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Sadly I suspect the problem for Chariot has more to do with the stairs than the money. Unlike the A380, there’s never any jetway access to the upper deck of the 747.

shop-teacher > f86sabre 12/19/2017 at 22:46

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I need to get a passport one of these days. My application was denied 11 years ago.

Chariotoflove > facw 12/19/2017 at 22:59

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Alas, you’re correct. I do know how to get up a set of stairs. But I doubt any flight crew would let me do it for any amount of money I could cough up. It’s not very elegant.

Chariotoflove > WilliamsSW 12/19/2017 at 23:00

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Sigh. Like I said, that’s one item on my bucket list that’s not getting crossed off.

Chariotoflove > f86sabre 12/19/2017 at 23:02

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Lucky bastard.

WilliamsSW > facw 12/19/2017 at 23:04

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Hmm, you may be right but I would think there’s a way to access somehow. And I think the jetways could go up there but don’t because there is little need with so few seats.

But the stairway to the upper deck is pretty narrow so that wouldn’t work.

WilliamsSW > Chariotoflove 12/19/2017 at 23:29

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The upper deck is nice because it’s so quiet and the view is great.

But as f86sabre said, 1A is pretty cool too - no flight deck in front of you, and the curve of the fuselage is such that your window faces 10 o clock - so you can see forward to some extent.

Thomas Donohue > f86sabre 12/20/2017 at 08:39

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That would be some very expensive beer. But I like the idea...limited edition 747 India Pale Ale and other destination-themed cans!

f86sabre > Thomas Donohue 12/20/2017 at 12:08

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That’s basically what happens. The airframes are scavenged for useful components and then the hulls are broken down and recycled.

Thomas Donohue > ttyymmnn 12/20/2017 at 12:54

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Unfortunately United still flies the 757-200 from Newark to Shannon. The EWR-Dublin route was upgraded to a single 777, instead of two daily 757s.

mustangchris66 > f86sabre 12/21/2017 at 11:35

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I flew one from SFO to LHR in 2012. My wife and I were in the middle section of coach and somehow managed to get seats with a bulkhead in front of us. I could stretch my legs out straight. It was so nice to have all the room for the long flight.

Turbineguy: Nom de Zoom > f86sabre 12/21/2017 at 22:39

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Two years ago I went to London for a conference and flew British Airways out of JFK on a 747. Our seats sucked; literally two rows from the back of the plane where the heat was on full blast, but we did get kinda chummy with the cabin crew. After landing I went topside to see the upper level and the F/O showed me the flight deck. Not that impressive with the panel powered down, sadly.

Photo: Those Rolls engines look enormous on the 717