For Sale: 747-400 for a measly $10 million!!!

This had been predicted in the early 80s by a certain manufacturer. And I referenced to that prediction a few times here.

I think it’s the beginning of the end for the behemoths of the sky…airlines are leaning more toward the fuel efficient twins with the current price of fuel and the economic downturn!!!

Actually, the prospects of selling it aren’t good… There are a number of 747-400s already sitting in storage, and there’s pretty much no airline looking for passenger 747-400s right now. There are also some 747-400Fs sitting in storage and slots for pax-to-freighter job are booked up for quite some time into the future, so a conversion is unlikely in the near term. In today’s business climate, I suspect the realistic options are to park it or part it out.

Andy

Recycle them:cool:

Is the price good??
We do not know if the engines are included in the price and if they are, how much live they have left. A PW/GE or what ever is on the wing is not cheap and you are going to need four of them! What is the lifetime left on various other lifed items? Does the aircraft need an extended C or even D check?

Aircraft shopping is serious buisness as some airlines have found out in the past. I can remember one european airline which bought three A-300B4´s in the american desert about 10 years ago. The price was unbelievable, they just could not pass this deal!! The aircraft are then ferried to Hamburg for freight conversion, when there it was found out that they were due for an a D check (OK it was in for heavy maintainance anyway!). One day the companies rep walked onto the shop floor to find the mechanic hoisting the engines off the wings of all three aircraft. He was, understandibly, a bit cross. Only to be told that the engines had not been included in the sale:eek: Yes, some heads were left rolling within the company after that Airbus incident.

I can think of many more instances where airlines have swallowed a “too good to be true” deals, and in some instances they have been left bankrupt for not reading the small print.

I never said the prospects were good for selling, I just said the price was good for this aircraft.

I wasn’t particularly commenting on your comment – I was merely reflecting on the fact that ANZ will be quite challenged finding a buyer at any sensible price in the near term. SAA were “lucky” shifting some of their 744s fairly recently to Transaero – I don’t see the prospects for pax 744s being very good now, unless they get lucky with an airline like thatlooking to pick up one or two used examples for, what you say, is quite a cheap rate.

A

Actually, the prospects of selling it aren’t good… There are a number of 747-400s already sitting in storage, and there’s pretty much no airline looking for passenger 747-400s right now. There are also some 747-400Fs sitting in storage and slots for pax-to-freighter job are booked up for quite some time into the future, so a conversion is unlikely in the near term. In today’s business climate, I suspect the realistic options are to park it or part it out.

Andy

I never said the prospects were good for selling, I just said the price was good for this aircraft.

Actually, the prospects of selling it aren’t good… There are a number of 747-400s already sitting in storage, and there’s pretty much no airline looking for passenger 747-400s right now. There are also some 747-400Fs sitting in storage and slots for pax-to-freighter job are booked up for quite some time into the future, so a conversion is unlikely in the near term. In today’s business climate, I suspect the realistic options are to park it or part it out.

Andy

I’d say at $10m it is priced to sell, probably a reflection of the current market conditions as its not long ago that the price of some of the oldest 747-400s was substantially higher than this. I think it’s a bargain for someone, even accepting the need to put an interior in it!

Well as it looks as it is not going anywhere, I have a few more centuries to save up the cash 🙂

the 747 hotel at Arlanda in Stockholm. 😀

Why dont they consider stripping out the interior and converting it into a hotel like someone (can’t remember who it was now?) recently announced…would use the aircraft and help to generate additional income in order to survive the economic downturn.;)