On February 9, 1969 at 11:00am PT, RA001 – The Spirit of Everett, changed the way the world travels with the first flight of the Boeing 747. The original -100 model, registered N7470, lifted off to the north from Runway 34L at Boeing’s Everett, Washington plant.
Forty years later, that first 747, first flown by Jack Wadell, Brien Wygle and Jesse Wallick would go on to serve as the basis for over a dozen different passenger, freighter and special mission variants, including a fire fighting supertanker, airliner supply chain hauler, airborne laser cannon and of course, Air Force One.
That original model -100 sold for $24 million in 1967, slightly less than the $285-300 million a 747-8 sells for today. Perhaps my favorite fact about the 747, is the idea that the Wright Brothers flight could take place in the wingspan of one of the orginal jumbojets.
The following program is a fitting tribute to the more than 1400 747s that have been built over the years. The documentary, which was made around the 20th anniversary of the 747’s first flight, has amazing archival footage and interviews from the 1960s during the development of the first Boeing 747s.
This post was originally published to the internet between 2007 and 2012. Links, images, and embedded media from that era may no longer function as intended.
This post originally appeared at Flightglobal.com from 2007 to 2012.