Boeing's 747, the "queen of the skies"
A TWA 747, Boeing's first jumbo jet.
Introduced in the late 1960s, it was the largest civilian airplane in the world, and set a new standard for glamour in the skies.
Father of the 747
Under Boeing engineer Joe Sutter's leadership, a team of 50,000 employees known as "The Incredibles" took the 747 from the drawing board to production in 18 months.
Prototype 747
Flight attendants representing global airlines pose with the Boeing 747 jumbo jet in 1969.
First 747
The prototype Boeing 747 is rolled out. Constructed at Boeing's Seattle assembly plant - the largest building in the world - the 747 was designed in passenger, cargo and hybrid passenger/cargo configurations.
First 747
The prototype Boeing 747 takes off.
First 747
The prototype Boeing 747 in flight.
Pan Am
A Pan Am 747, pictured next to a Boeing 707. The 747 measured 70.6 meters in length, with a wingspan of 59.6 meters, compared to the 707's 39-meter length and 39.6-meter wingspan.
Welcome Aboard!
A Boeing advertisement for the 747 jumbo jet, announcing the arrival of the "Spacious Age." Airlines from around the world (including Air Canada, Air France, Air India, Alitalia, America, BOAC, Braniff, Continental, Delta, Eastern, El Al, Iberia, Irish, JAL, KLM, Lufthansa, National, Northwest, Pan Am, Qantas, SAS, Sabena, South African, Swissair, TWA, United and World) lined up to buy their very own jumbo.
"Your airline wasn't an airline unless you had a 747," Boeing historian Michael Lombardi told CBS News.
Schematic
This illustration from the July 1970 edition of United's in-house Shield Magazine shows the layout and features of the carrier's Boeing 747, including the upper-deck "Red Carpet Room," swivel chairs, extra-large movie screens, and 14 baby bassinets.
Pan Am
A Pan Am 747.
The first commercial flight for a 747 was made by a Pan Am jumbo jet, from New York to London's Heathrow, on January 21, 1970.
First 747
The delivery of United's first 747, at Everett, Wash., June 30, 1970.
United
A United Airlines 747.
Lounge
And how did airlines make use all that extra space in a 747? By trying to outdo each other to build the best lounge. Yesterday's 747s were often equipped with standup bars, cocktail tables, even pianos.
Pictured: The upper deck lounge of a United 747.
Lounge
The upper deck lounge of a United 747.
Lounge
The upper deck lounge of a United 747.
Lounge
The lounge area of a United Airlines 747.
After airlines were deregulated in the late 1970s, the lounge cocktail bars gave way to more seats.
Continental
The upper deck lounge of a Continental Airlines 747.
Qantas
The upper deck lounge of a Qantas 747.
Avianca
The lounge of an Avianca 747.
Braniff
The interior of Braniff's 747.
First Class
The first class section of a United Airlines 747.
TWA
The interior of TWA's 747.
Galley
A view of the lower level galley of United 747. Kitchen galleys were moved to the lower level to accommodate more "living room" space on the passenger deck.
Galley
A view of the lower level galley of the 747, with an elevator for transport to the passenger deck.
Engine
Posing inside one of the 747's four high bypass ratio turbofan jet engines from Pratt & Whitney.
Nose
The 747's design allowed for cargo to be loaded through the hinged nose of the jet, beneath the flight deck.
In the 1960s, Boeing thought supersonic jets like the Concorde would soon be the norm … and once they were, the company figured airlines would want to refit their 747s for a second life carrying freight.
Freighter
The nose cone opening of a Boeing 747-8F freighter.
BOAC
A BOAC 747.
BOAC
A BOAC 747.
Delta
A Delta 747.
National
A National Airlines 747.
Lufthansa
A Lufthansa 747.
TWA
A TWA 747.
United
A United Airlines 747.
United
A United Airlines 747.
SAS
A closeup of the nose cone of a Scandinavian Airlines 747.
Air France
An Air France Boeing 747 and a Concorde are seen, prior to the Concorde's removal to a permanent installation at a Hilton hotel, at the Roissy-en-France airport near Paris, October 19, 2005. A fatal July 2000 crash of a Concorde jetliner outside Charles-de-Gaulle Airport ended the supersonic jet's career.
Moon Shot
A Boeing 747 takes off from Hong Kong International Airport at the start of Asian Aerospace International Expo and Congress in Hong Kong, September 3, 2007.
747-8
Boeing VP Pat Shanahan speaks during an unveiling ceremony of the 747-8 Intercontinental, Feb. 13, 2011. The 747-8, the third generation of 747s, features a longer fuselage (250 feet), making it the largest commercial aircraft built in the U.S.
Nose
A look at the nose section of a 747-8 freighter under assembly at Boeing's Seattle plant.
Under Construction
A look inside the top section of a 747-8 Intercontinental under assembly. This plane is being built for a private Boeing customer.
Space Shuttle Atlantis
The Space Shuttle Atlantis takes off from Edwards Air Force Base, Calif., atop its modified Boeing 747 carrier aircraft, on the first leg of its ferry flight back to the Kennedy Space Center, July 1, 2007.
Space Shuttle Enterprise
New York City witnesses the Shuttle Enterprise (atop a 747 plane) flying over the city's landmarks en route to its final destination: the Intrepid Air and Space Museum.
Firefighter
The SuperTanker, a converted 747-400 passenger jet, can drop more than 19,000 gallons of water or retardant at a time.
Air Force One
Air Force One is seen on the tarmac on December 6, 2016 at Joint Base Andrews, Maryland. 747s were first brought into service as the president's plane in 1990.
The latest generation 747, Boeing's 747-8, will replace the 747s in the Air Force One fleet.
Cathay Pacific
A Cathay Pacific Boeing 747-400 aircraft, operating as flight CX8747, flies over Hong Kong's former Kai Tak airport on its final flight over Victoria Harbor on October 8, 2016. The airline retired its fleet of 747s.
United
United Airlines captain Tom Spratt sits in the cockpit of United Airlines flight 747 before it takes off on its final flight from San Francisco International Airport to Honolulu, Hawaii on November 7, 2017 in San Francisco.
United Airlines is retiring its fleet of Boeing 747 aircraft that are affectionately known as the "Queen of the Skies," and marked the occassion with a final flight to Hawaii.
United
United Airlines workers look on as United Airlines flight 747 prepares to take off from San Francisco International Airport for its final flight to Honolulu, November 7, 2017.
United
United's final 747 flight takes off from San Francisco International Airport on November 7, 2017.
747-8
An interior view of the third-generation 747-8. The passenger plane is currently in the fleets of Air China, Cathay Pacific, Korean, Lufthansa, and Qatar.
747-8
Interior view of a Boeing 747-8 passenger jumbo jet.
747-8
Interior view of a Boeing 747-8 passenger jumbo jet.
Although U.S. airlines will cease using 747 jets for passenger flights by the end of 2017, the plane will still be in service with some international carriers through at least 2020.
For more info:
boeing-747.com
747 Historical Snapshot (Boeing)
By CBS News.com senior producer David Morgan