Cathay’s cargo operation has 20, probably where it comes from

Two things strike me here - since the introduction of the 747 nearly 50 years ago airline speeds have got no faster and what progress there has been has revolved around fuel efficiency and passenger density.

You could argue that both result from the fuel crisis of the mid-70s which put fuel efficiency on the agenda.

However, it also seems to me that airline design must be a pretty larthegic business, if the current iteration of a 50 year old design really is not worse than any modern design and in many ways better.

To my mind much of this is down to how airlines fit out planes, but I personally really enjoy F and UD CW on BA’s 747s. I have absolutely no fondness for F or CW on 777s, A380, 757s, or 767s. I’ve not tried 787s, but I can’t imagine it is a better experience that a 747.

The shame about this are so many idiots crave the new for novelty’s sake that this skews business decisions and leads to the better option being discontinued. It’s a shame that the latest 747-900s (?) didn’t cut it in the market. Now we are doomed to an endless cycle of fashion chasing nonsense, like you get in the pub industry. This week XYZ’s business seat will be so good it bets anyone’s F; next week it will be passé. Meanwhile, perfectly good airframes will be sitting in deserts awaiting scrapage.

Airlines don’t buy new for novelty’s sake, they do it for sound economic reasons. A new interior can be put into an old plane but extensive maintenance checks are needed as the airframe ages so it becomes uneconomic to do so. I’m sure BA could keep the 747 flying for a lot longer, but the huge cost of airworthiness checks and their poorer fuel consumption means it just isn’t worth it.