For those who miss the Boeing 747-400 from the British Airways fleet, there is some good news as a total of four aircraft will be preserved, with British Airways announcing two more aircraft have found new homes.
G-BNLY and G-BYGC will be preserved and have new homes to go to, rather than meet the fate of the crusher.
So, which ones are being preserved?
G-BNLY
The classic “Landor” Retro livery to be preserved and will be sent to Dunsfold Aerodrome in Surrey. It will join its sister aircraft G-CIVW which was retired in late October and features the current Chatham Dockyard livery.
Landor Boeing 747-400 – Image, Economy Class and Beyond.
G-BYGC
This aircraft will be preserved, painted in the BOAC ‘Gold Speedbird’ livery used between 1963 and 1974, will make the short journey from Cardiff Airport to the Bro Tathan business park in the Vale of Glamorgan. It will be maintained as a heritage piece by aviation specialists eCube Solutions to showcase the pre-eminent contribution British Airways’ 747 fleet made to UK aviation.
BOAC Golden Speedbird Boeing 747-400 – Image, Economy Class and Beyond.
And don’t forget…
G-CIVB
The Negus-liveried 747. This was one of the last two 747s to depart Heathrow Airport in October and has also been found a permanent home at Cotswold Airport in Gloucestershire.
The classic Negus Boing 747-400 – Image, Economy Class and Beyond.
The two aircraft are this month due to depart from British Airways’ engineering base in Cardiff, where they will be waved off by the British Airways engineers who for many years have proudly maintained the 747 fleet. The pair were among several aircraft painted in heritage liveries to mark the airline’s centenary last year.
G-BNLY and G-BYGC are the last two British Airways 747s to be retired, with G-BYGC being the final 747 to leave the British Airways fleet.
In Quotes
Sean Doyle, CEO of British Airways, said:
“While we will miss seeing them grace our skies, we are delighted to have found permanent homes for our remaining centenary 747 aircraft.
“We think they have great historical importance, not only to British Airways but to the entire aviation industry, and we are pleased they will be preserved for future generations in locations in the UK.
“As the final 747s to leave our fleet, their departure will be an emotional moment for former and current British Airways staff, including our engineering team in Cardiff who have lovingly looked after our jumbo jets for decades.”
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