Qantas Boeing 747 aircraft takes farewell tour over Canberra, Brisbane and Sydney
The plane that made air travel accessible for many Australians for the first time is heading into retirement, flying one last victory lap before it goes.
Qantas's last Boeing 747 took wing from Canberra on Friday giving admirers one more view from above over the national capital.
The "queen of the skies" was the flagship of the national carrier's fleet since the first jumbo jet was bought in 1971, but the planes were grounded in the wake of COVID-19, and then decommissioned.
Former pilot Philip Beard, who flew for Qantas for 35 years, said it was emotional to farewell the jumbo jet.
"To think it's the last time we'll see a 747 in Australian skies, just about, it's a very sad day," he said.
"It is fairly emotional, having so many years on the plane, and memories of so many wonderful trips."
For generations the silhouette famous red-tailed plane has inspired flights of fancy among Australians.
Its massive capacity enabled the carrier to offer cheaper seats that opened the skies to a new population.
Young plane-watcher Eli Sutherland was among the crowd of enthusiasts who came to Canberra Airport excited to see it take off one last time.
"It's really awesome, you don't see many big planes here, and it's really historic," he said.
His younger brother Miles agreed.
"It's a massive plane … I know there's a lot of big planes that come here, but never ever that big," he said.
"It's really special, mostly because a lot airlines have had a 747, I think it's sad that Qantas is retiring it."
Attendee Tracy Rudd said her husband and son were the "plane nuts" in the family, but she had fond memories of her own.
"I went on one 747 to New Zealand, many years ago, and it was a time when you could actually go into the cockpit, so it was really good sitting in the cockpit with the captain, watching nothing but blue sky," Ms Rudd said.
"It's the plane of Qantas really, to see them disappear, it's going to be sad."
The jumbo jet made its farewells in Sydney and Brisbane on Monday and Wednesday — a similar joy ride planned for Melbourne had to be cancelled due to COVID-19.
Next Wednesday QF7474 will fly out from Sydney, headed for storage in California's Mojave desert before being handed over to a new, unknown owner.
Kathryn Ling, a flight attendant who has spent her whole career on Qantas 747s, said she would shed a tear watching it take wing that final time.
"It's a bittersweet feeling, because this is my home," Ms Ling said.
"But I know she is going off to better pastures."
The farewell flight over Canberra came on the same day that British Airways made the decision to retire its fleet of jumbo jets.