Article: 747 Is Going Extinct...
 

Not specifically Delta and we know most of it, but interesting nonetheless.

http://qz.com/217727/boeing-747-airp...going-extinct/

I expect it to follow the DC-3 into oblivion.

I hadn't realized the fuel efficiency was as poor as they hint. Though that plot is difficult to decipher.

The plot is fairly clear. The "key" dimension if vertical. That is the cost per ASM. The horizontal is meaningless.

I like the old pics, 3-4-3 in Y would be nice (that being PE in today's world).

Still love flying upstairs on it, and perhaps the most iconic plane of the era.

Years to go, but if I was ever to try and book a "last flight", it would be on this.

I absolutely have to fly on one of these babies before they go out of service.

Actually, it was 3-4-2, and it was pretty sweet (my first 747 flight was JFK-FRA on LH in 71 with the high school German club. On the way back, the plane probably was only 30% full, so I found an empty middle section, folded up the armrests, pulled down a couple of blankets, and had a 76" or so fully flat bed :p

Once I was flying TPAC regularly (almost always in NW 744s in J, for my company or on my own dime plus miles), I always looked forward to my seat on the upper deck.

The 747 has had a good run (45 years so far), but all the favorites of our younger days must fade away someday.

The UD of DL's 744 is a pretty good J hard product. It was very comfortable on my NRT-SEA flight.

Like any airplane it just becomes obsolete as more efficient and flexible aircraft are developed. They will still fly in more limited numbers for some time to come, but the trend is most definitely they are being phased out.

what is going to replace the mighty DL 747? Looks like Amadeo seems to have plenty of confidence that it could sell RA some of the 20 A380 leases they have no customers for...

http://www.flightglobal.com/news/art...nomics-400373/

If i had to guess it would be some 777W's on the cheap as Boeing's order book for the model has a gap from 2017 to 2020 and the 777X rolls out. I don't see the 380 in DL's future.

Neither do I and neither does RA. However, this guy from Amadeo seems to think he can convince the Delta CEO to buy some of his leased 380's.

I have to agree about the upstairs... the ultimate flying experience.

I have done that on Korean, AF, JAL, Singapore. Any one of them better than the next.

The 773 seems a moderately popular replacement for some airlines. I don't know if DL would have operating constraints related to its length though.

Given the 744's are paid for, and DL seems to move them around routes to keep their load factors up, It's going to be a while before they go.

Has Boeing thrown in the towel on the 748 for passenger service yet?

That guy is nuts. He'll sooner sell ice machines to Eskimos. Just because the economics are competitive (based on a standard load factor), doesn't mean it will fit DLs network. If you take the AF 380 as a base, it has ~ 150 more seats than DLs current 747 layout. You have to fill those for every flt. Are there routes in DLs system that could do that? I'm sure there are but they aren't many.

Based on DLs past actions, they would rather up gauge a plane and if needed a frequency on routes where yields justify it. This allows for right sizing much better than having to fill a 525 seat behemoth on a Wednesday in October.

Once the 747 are done it will be the end of 4 engine planes at delta.

Soon I'll fly the 380 for the first time upstairs in KE J with their lie-flats. I'm curious to see if it's comparable, though 2-2-2 in J isn't all that promising.