Delta says goodbye to iconic Queen of the Skies

David Casey December 18, 2017

Delta Air Lines' employees, customers and aviation enthusiasts are this week bidding a final goodbye to the carrier’s remaining Boeing 747-400s.

The airline’s history with the Queen of the Skies is unique in that it had acquired and retired its first fleet of 747s by 1977 only to acquire a new fleet of 747s from its merger with Northwest Airlines in 2008.

Delta's expected last scheduled flight of the 747 was cancelled on Sunday (17 December 2017) due to an inability to fully staff the flight with its required four pilots. However, customers were given hotel rooms, meals and were rebooked on an extra flight from Detroit to Seoul-Incheon today.

The 747 is also embarking on an employee farewell tour with flights today from Detroit to Seattle, including a stop at Paine Field in Everett, home of the final assembly production line that produced Delta's Boeing 747 fleet.

A flight from Seattle to Atlanta will then take place tomorrow (19 December) and Atlanta to Minneapolis-St. Paul on 20 December. Delta will also fly a handful of sports team and ad-hoc charter flights through to 31 December.

The retiring aircraft will be replaced by the Airbus A350, which will be Delta's flagship international aircraft and the first to feature the airline's all-new Delta One Suite, as well as Delta Premium Select, a new premium economy experience.

Earlier this month, the airline also ordered 100 Airbus A321neo aircraft for the next phase of its narrowbody fleet replacement programme.