Coronavirus impact: British Airways bids farewell to Boeing 747s

The “queen of the skies” will no longer don the red, white and blue of the Union Jack after British Airways (BA) retired its fleet of Boeing 747s on Friday as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic.

The airline, which was the world’s biggest operator of the 747-400 model, had already planned to ground its fleet of 31 of the iconic wide-bodied jets in 2024. But the pandemic, which has seen most of the world’s planes grounded for the best part of three months, hastened its journey into retirement.

BA’s predecessor, British Overseas Airways Corporation , first used the 747 in 1971. The plane  — affectionately referred to as either the “jumbo jet” or the “queen of the skies” — became a symbol of the new age of mass travel. Its days had been numbered, though, in light of  modern fuel-efficient aircraft, such as Airbus’ A350 and Boeing’s 787.