On its final flight, the jumbo jet left a special message in the sky (Picture: AIRNAV)
Boeing bid farewell to its famous jumbo jet as it took a route that left a trail looking like a number 747 in the sky.
The iconic Boeing 747 plane first took flight 55 years ago and was delivered to its resting place in Kentucky this afternoon.
As it circled in the sky on its final journey from Paine Field, also known as Snohomish County Airport to Northern Kentucky International Airport the flightpath created a huge 747 in the sky.
Plane spotters were tracking the route and pointed out that it was paying tribute with its last flight.
Since its first flight in 1969, the giant jet has served as a cargo plane, a commercial aircraft capable of carrying nearly 500 passengers, a transport for NASA’s space shuttles, and the Air Force One presidential aircraft.
The final 747 airplane produced by Boeing, set off from Paine Field in Everett, Washington today (Picture: Getty)
It has been in flight for more than 50 years (Picture: Getty)
It revolutionized travel, connecting international cities that had never before had direct routes and helping democratize passenger flight.
But over the past 15 years, Boeing and its European rival Airbus have introduced more profitable and fuel efficient wide-body planes, with only two engines to maintain instead of the 747*s four.
The final plane is the 1,574th built by Boeing in the Puget Sound region of Washington state.
Thousands of workers joined Boeing and other industry executives from around the world — as well as actor and pilot John Travolta for a ceremony in the company’s massive factory north of Seattle, marking the delivery of the last one to cargo carrier Atlas Air.
Long time aviation analyst Richard Aboulafia said: ‘If you love this business, you’ve been dreading this moment.
‘Nobody wants a four-engine airliner anymore, but that doesn’t erase the tremendous contribution the aircraft made to the development of the industry or its remarkable legacy.’
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Boeing bid farewell to its famous jumbo jet as it took a route that left a trail looking like a number 747 in the sky.
