N747PA dies.

I know that this might seem to be controversial, but I think there are a fair few 747s that have been set aside for preservation, but only a few of them seem to me to have secure futures. Most of them seem to be outside and those which are in Europe, at least, seem to be at risk of much the same fate as N747PA.

Preserved aeroplanes need to be indoors, but the cost of having a 747 indoors seems to me to be prohibitive. Although N747PA has gone, it won’t be the last.

Regards

Thanks everyone, quite the list.

You’d think it’s a bit big to overlook, too. 😀 I’ve even seen the le Bouget one, but forgotten it!

Still, I agree with John Boyle’s remarks, that the NASM should have one (the Science Museum, London has a ‘cross section’ on a wall) but the desired preservation needed to have kicked in before the Trippe was turned into a chunky puzzle.

Regards,

Thanks PM, saw it just after I posted! I do like the dumpy look of the SP.

Personally I would love to see an SP preserved somewhere.

Nice one Versuch:D

pagen01 Check this out……http://www.saamuseum.co.za/ What do you see?!!!

Planemike

I can think of the Seattle machine and Qantas’ example – what others?

Others have beaten me to it, but just to show I wasn’t being flippent,

US, 747-100 proto N7470 ‘City of Everett’, Seattle
747-132 N481SV Evergreen Aviation & Space Museum, Oregan, high level water attraction!
747-100 ? National Air and Space Museum, Washington, forward section only
Holland, 747-200 PH-BUK, Lelystad
France, 747-100 F-BPVJ , Le Bourget
Germany, 747-200 D-ABYM, Speyer
Sweden, 747-200 Stokholm as a Jumbohostel hotel! http://www.jumbostay.com/
Australia, 747-200 VH-EBQ, Longreach Queensland
South Africa, 747-244 ZS-SAN & 747SP-44 ZS-SPC, Rand Johannesburg
South Korea, 747 ?? Korean Airlines, Jeju airport
Iran, 747-228 F-GCBD, Terhan Aerospace Exhibition

Not too bad a list when you consider how many older ones are also sitting around in storage and used for other ground training roles, not to mention the newer generations still plying their trade.
The only thing that worries me is that they are all currently on outside display, and this won’t bode well for their very long term survival.

Personally I would love to see an SP preserved somewhere.

Nice one Versuch:D

Edit, just seen Planemike’s link to SAAF Museum and 747 SP, now added to list

Had Pan Am survived, it might’ve ensured it ushered one of its most important aircraft into preservation, just like British Airways did with it’s 707.

Oh, wait…

I can think of the Seattle machine and Qantas’ example – what others?

[ATTACH]190803[/ATTACH]
KLM 747 at Aviodrome, the Netherlands

[ATTACH]190804[/ATTACH]
Lufthansa 747 at technik museum Speyer, Germany.

Had Pan Am survived, it might’ve ensured it ushered one of its most important aircraft into preservation, just like British Airways did with it’s 707.

Oh, wait…

I can think of the Seattle machine and Qantas’ example – what others?

How about this pair http://www.saamuseum.co.za/ ???? Looks like they are keeping good company !!!

I think this one is still here: http://gizmodo.com/5043984/jumbo-airplane-hotel-allows-mile-high-club-experience-on-the-ground. As with 747PA it is likely to have been severely “modified”.

Planemike

Had Pan Am survived, it might’ve ensured it ushered one of its most important aircraft into preservation, just like British Airways did with it’s 707.

Oh, wait…

There are plenty of 747s preserved around the world, including the most important one of them all, the prototype which is at the Museum of Flight, Seattle

I can think of the Seattle machine and Qantas’ example – what others?

Regardless of its current condition, it should have been set aside years ago and never let to deteriorate to that point. The NASM has the money (or can offer a nice tax savings for a company’s donation) and the place to store the thing (MASDC) until it needs it.

Hasn’t anyone learned anything from the failure to save a BOAC Comet 1 or even the sole remaining BOAC/BA 707-400…or perhaps the “Big Orange” the Braniff 747 that built up flight time faster than any other plane is history by doing a DFW-Honolulu round trip every day for years until Braniff got another 747?

oh my…

..on its Juan Way Trippe…

Yes she was only a shell of a 747…

It’s not a big loss. Whatever was historic about that one was long gone. It was cut into transportable sections to get it to Korea and then crudely welded together again. Inside it was an empty shell. Even the cockpit was completely gone.
http://www.darkroastedblend.com/2009/04/abandoned-boeing-747-restaurant.html

Agreed, it was no longer a 747, just looked like one.

Although I agree with the sentiments in the earlier posts, Fouga is right. This aircraft looked a mess pre scrapping and you can see that large internal tubular steel construction revealed, which had to be used to brace and keep the whole airframe together.

There are plenty of 747s preserved around the world, including the most important one of them all, the prototype which is at the Museum of Flight, Seattle

It’s not a big loss. Whatever was historic about that one was long gone. It was cut into transportable sections to get it to Korea and then crudely welded together again. Inside it was an empty shell. Even the cockpit was completely gone.
http://www.darkroastedblend.com/2009/04/abandoned-boeing-747-restaurant.html

The end of a Queen.

http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/world/la-fgw-korea-plane-20101213,0,7814977.story

Good grief! There’s got to be a better end. Talk about lack of foresight or imagination rather than destruction!

The NASM should be ashamed.

They seem to put more stock into restoring the weird and obscure (not that they don’t derserve preservation) than the historic.

They have huge holes in their airliner collection.
I’d argue that in terms of the history of air transport (not technology) the 747 is a more important aircraft than the Concorde.
And while many special purpose jets are preserved (nemely the USAF “Air Force Ones”), I don’t know of a single 707 or DC-8 preserved with original style airline interiors.

I couldn’t agree more.

The NASM should be ashamed.

They seem to put more stock into restoring the weird and obscure (not that they don’t derserve preservation) than the historic.

They have huge holes in their airliner collection.
I’d argue that in terms of the history of air transport (not technology) the 747 is a more important aircraft than the Concorde.
And while many special purpose jets are preserved (nemely the USAF “Air Force Ones”), I don’t know of a single 707 or DC-8 preserved with original style airline interiors in the USA.

Hope someone notices at the FAA 🙂