2009-06-23

Aviation Porn -- 747's first flight

I was looking forward to the first flight of Boeing's exciting new 787 this month. Unfortunately, that's not going to happen.

Apparently they wanted some extra time to slap some more duct tape on the wings so they don't fall off. You can read more about the latest 787 delay on the Seattle PI here. The plane is now more than 2 years late. I'm pretty sure it's missed its bus by now.

Since we won't get the first flight of the 787, I suppose we'll have to be happy with this video. It's the 1969 first flight of the iconic Boeing 747 -- the aircraft that ushered in the new era of the true jumbo jet. I believe you can still see this particular aircraft at the Museum of Flight.

3 comments:

brokenteepee said...

Hmmm, I remember flying first class to Hawaii in a 747 from O'Hare. Talk about heaven....that is the way to go. uh - huh

Not John Chow said...

Yep! The 747 used to be the modern marvel. I remember how huge it seemed at the time.

Cromely said...

@Pricilla: That's the way, I guess. In all my flights, though, I have never flown in a 747.

@Not John Chow: I'm still amazed at how big it is when I see one drive past a 737 at an airport. And yet, the 747 still looks so elegant taking off. I'm not an Airbus basher, but one thing Boeing has going for it is that their planes just look better taking off and in flight. The 777 and 767 look so much "cooler" than the A330 or A340. And, though I haven't seen one in real life yet, all the images of the A380 just make it look ungainly.