Asiana Airlines made farewell flight with its last Boeing 747-400
Asiana Airlines completed its last Boeing 747-400 passenger flight on March 25. The famous ‘Queen of the Skies’ was no longer used on the South Korean carrier after landing from Taipei.
The four-engine registration number HL7428 was the last 747-400 configured for passenger flights at the airline and had been removed from storage last July.
The aircraft had taken over the flight between Seoul (Incheon) and Taipei, in Taiwan, on March 1st, replacing the 777-200.
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With 398 seats in three classes, the 747-400 must be returned to its lessor. He has flown Asiana since 1998.
The carrier, however, will continue to fly with the 747 but in cargo versions only.
Merger with Korean Air
Asiana is set to be acquired by Korean Air in a deal announced in 2020 that is still in the process of obtaining antitrust approvals.
The merger between the two South Korean carriers is expected to have some consequences such as the sale of Asiana’s cargo division, in addition to the transfer of slots for Barcelona, Paris, Rome and Frankfurt to the low-cost airline T’Way.
Korean Air announced a large order for A350s last week, an aircraft already operated by Asiana Airlines.
Few 747-400 passengers remaining
According to Planespotters, there are few passenger 747-400s in service with airlines such as Lufthansa, Air China and Saudia.
The 747-400 was introduced by Boeing in 1985 and entered service in 1989 with Northwest Airlines.
When production ended, the manufacturer had delivered 694 aircraft of the type.
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