In Australian Service – Boeing 747

The revenue generating capacity of the 747 is quite remarkable compared with earlier equipment. Qantas estimates that one 747 can do the work of three 707s, but even more sobering is that one 747 is the equivalent of 16 Lockheed Constellations. This means that over 400 Constellations would be required to shoulder the workload of the current Qantas fleet of 24 747s and 7 767s. Imagine the staff and maintenance support which would have been required to maintain such a huge array of aircraft if the jet airliner had never come into being!

The marketing initiatives taken, in the early 1970s gradually bore fruit and by 1972/73 Qantas was able to record a substantial profit. The original order for 747s was added to over the years and by the end of 1975, 11 aircraft had been received. Commencing with the delivery of the 10th aircraft, the improved Pratt & Whitney JT90-7F was installed and previous powerplants delivered with earlier aircraft upgraded to the new standard. A major change came about with the delivery of Qantas’ 18th 747, the 747-238B Combi VH-ECB which was powered by Rolls-Royce RB211-524B2 engines in lieu of the Pratt & Whitney powerplants previously fitted to all the earlier Qantas jet airliners. It was a major change prompted by the greater fuel efficiency of the Rolls-Royce product which offered an 8% specific fuel consumption improvement. Since then further improvements have seen the RB211-52404 offer an additional 4% fuel saving and the RB211-52404 Upgrade a further 1½%. The beneficial impact on Qantas’ fuel bill with these power plants will be considerable in the years ahead. Qantas 747’s VH-ECB/C, VH-EBQ/R, VH-EAA/B were originally delivered with the B2 version which have since been modified progressively to 04 and 04 Upgrade standard. Apart from the superior fuel consumption, the 04 family offers an additional 3000Ib st over the earlier version.

Of the 30 Boeing 747s so far delivered to Qantas, 19 have been the 747-2388 model, three the 747-2388 Combi, two the 747SP-38 and six the 747-338 version. Passenger accommodation varies from 220 on the 747SP-38 to 451 on the Air Pacific 747-238Bs. It may come as a surprise that the newer extended upper deck 747-338s are currently configured to carry 392 passengers, less than any of the 747-238Bs. However, Qantas have gone to great pains on this version to establish a high level of passenger comfort and the popularity of business class sales in particular for this version confirm their thinking on what the passenger wants on long flights. Anyone who has been spoiled in the Qantas business class of the 747-338 which occupies the entire extended upper deck would certainly find it very appealing.

Two 747 versions delivered to Qantas are probably of greatest interest because of their rarity in the overall fleet and also in the manner in which they are employed. These types are the 747-2388 Combi and the 747SP-38, aircraft which are so different in their designated areas of use that they emphasise the great diversity of the different members of the 747 family.

Qantas received three 7 47-2388 Combi aircraft during 1977/ 1980. The first was VH-ECA accepted on 27 October 1977 and it was the only Qantas Combi powered by Pratt & Whitney JT90-7F(W) engines whereas VH-ECB and VH-ECC were both initially powered by Rolls-Royce RB211-524B2s and were accepted on 14 November 1979 and 15 October 1980 respectively. The first aircraft has since been sold to Air Canada and Qantas undoubtedly received a good price for it, earmarking the sale revenue towards future ileet purchases. The remaining two Combis are kept very busy carrying a combination of passengers and freight on selected routes. Combis were initially operated to San Francisco and they currently operate weekly services from Australia to San Francisco, Frankfurt, Port Moresby, Hong Kong and Tokyo while two flights a week are made to Los Angeles and Auckland.

With a 77 tonne payload, the Combi carries a generous cargo load in addition to passengers. On the main deck, up to 40 tonnes of cargo on 7 pallets is carried while passenger accommodation is up to 278 with their luggage and other cargo in the lower hold. The type of main cargo tends to vary depending on the route. Northbound to Tokyo, loads consist primarily of fruit and meat, varying with seasonal factors. At times a Combi will fly to Auckland during the day, collect 40 tonnes of Kiwi Fruit, return to Sydney and retain the load until it is flown to Tokyo that evening. Return loads from Tokyo typically comprise high value electronic cargo, computers and automotive parts. The loads to Europe are similar with fruit, meat and vegetables carried northwards while high value electronics and machinery is transported to Australia.

An interesting inclusion in the US bound loads has been a steady stream of DC-9 and MD-80 elevator kits from Hawker de Havilland in addition to exotic items such as lobster tails. The Combi duo continues to make a major contribution on the Qantas network. Because of the potential for further growth in the carriage of freight, it would not be surprising to see Qantas acquire an all freight aircraft in the future.

The elite group of the Qantas 747 fraternity are their two 747SPs, which in turn are themselves members of a fairly select club. Boeing built 46 of this Special Performance version by the time production terminated in July 1982. The uniqueness of the Qantas version is that they are two of only five 747SPs powered by Rolls-Royce RB211s while the other 41 aircraft are equipped with Pratt & Whitney JT9Ds. Two of the other three RB211 powered 747SPs are operated by Saudia while the other is an elaborately equipped personal aircraft operated by the Saudi Royal Flight for the use of King Khaled.

Qantas received both their 747SPs during 1981 and they were originally delivered powered by Rolls-Royce RB211-524B2s. In common with other Qantas aircraft similarly equipped, they have since been re-engined with the RB211-524D4 and VH-EAA is now powered by Upgrade versions originally delivered with one of the 747-300 aircraft. The RB211-524D4 is derated from 53,110lb st to 51,600lb st when installed on the 747SP. The D4 powered version has a 700km greater range than the B2 equipped aircraft and VH-EAA improves on that with an additional 1-1½% fuel saving. Both of the Qantas 747SPs are certified to a 702,000 MBRW, the highest of any of the SP family. Both aircraft are probably the top ranking long-range aircraft currently in commercial operation. Although the 747-400 will carry greater loads over longer distances, the unique short field/long range performance of the 747SP will possibly never be equalled or surpassed.

The route application has changed somewhat over the years since they were first delivered. When Qantas ceased Lockheed L. 188C E’lectra flights to Wellington during June 1972, their interests were looked after by Air New Zealand DC-8s operating to that destination on a charter basis. However the steadily declining economics of the DC-8 started to cost Qantas and Air New Zealand significant amounts to the point where losses of several millions of dollars a year were being incurred. Enter the Boeing 747SP, an aircraft which could service Wellington with its short runway, and in addition would also be suitable for regional services from other small airports, within Australia.

There were some stringent conditions imposed by the New Zealand Authorities for operations by the 747SP into Wellington for safety reasons. The 6,350ft available for takeoff and 5,950ft for landing was further reduced by a factor of 1. 20 for payload planning purposes. During landings a maximum touch down limit point located 1,968ft from the landing threshold was permitted which resulted in about 4,112ft of runway remaining to the nosewheel before the end of the runway was reached. A total of 450ft overrun was also available for emergency stopping. Weight limitations a full 307 passenger load with 3½ tonnes of cargo at 15°C reducing to nil cargo at 21°C. In addition if any rainfall was above Imm per 1 0 minutes prior to landing, the landing was not permitted. In the event of predicted adverse wind conditions the payload was further restricted to 225 passengers (20. 5 tonnes). Initial tests and training were carried out at Wellington on 31 January 1981 prior to the introduction of the regular service soon after. As things turned out the service was a great success with comparatively few diversions necessary to either Auckland or Christchurch because of the weather. The more suitable Boeing 767-238ER was placed on the route some years later freeing the 747SPs for other services.

Both 747SPs are currently used exclusively for non-stop services to the US with three flights a week each being flown to Los Angeles and San Francisco. The flight times for these journeys, which are at present the longest non stop commercial airline services in the world, vary depending on the direction and the time of year. The prevailing westerly winds are at their strongest during the winter months with flight times up to 15 hours being general for US/Australia flights with some payload adjustments being necessary. To get above these winds a climb to 45,000ft is sometimes made for the last two hours of the flight. Some Sydney/Los Angeles flights are accomplished in just under 13 hours but most are in the 13¼-13½ hour region. In times of particularly strong westerlies, refuelling stops are made at Nadi, Noumea or Brisbane. To cope with these long flights, the current crewing agreement is for a ‘heavy’ technical crew consisting of a Captain, First Officer, two Second Officers and two Flight Engineers. They divide into two teams with the Captain, a Second Officer and a Flight Engineer in the A team with the remaining crew in the B team. The teams fly for two hours about and this method has proven extremely effective in reducing fatigue. The duration of these flights although unique today will probably become more commonplace when the 747-438s are delivered. With the ability of the 747-438 to operate Australia/US non-stop with a full load, and the 767s flying to previous ‘difficult’ locations like Wellington, the need for the SPs will diminish and their disposal seems probable as the 747-438 fleet builds up over the years ahead.

Apart from routine ‘bread and butter’ roles, the 747 fleet has operated into some unusual environments and has also carried some quite mammoth loads. During the evacuation of Darwin after Cyclone Tracy struck, several Qantas 747 flights were made carrying in excess of 600 passengers. A world record for a passenger load was set by VH-EBB on 29 December 1974 when it departed from Darwin with 674 passengers and 23 crew. The passenger load comprised 306 adults, 328 children and 40 babies. They were all accommodated, with any of the adults who were uninjured, being asked to nurse children and babies. It certainly illustrated the important national asset available in the 747, when an unfortunate and unexpected natural disaster like a cyclone strikes.

During the late 1970s several charter flights were made to Antarctica organised by Dick Smith. The passenger loads were restricted to 300 to allow comfortable access for viewing and photography of the magnificent panorama. During a chat with long time Australian Aviation contributor and Qantas Captain, Toby Gursanscky, about 747 operations in general, which provided much useful information for this article, Toby was able to thumb through one of his log books and identify an Antarctic flight which he helped crew on 13 February 1978. The 12 hour flight took the 747 on a track past Tasmania to Cape Washington in the Ross Sea and one hour was spent on scenic flights before returning past Coulman Island, Cape Adare (near Scott’s northern base), Macquarie Island then home to Sydney. Another flight Toby participated in was the celebrated Oshkosh Express in 1981 in which the Combi VH-ECA carried a contingent of aviation enthusiasts and several aircraft to that aviation Mecca.

Another task sometimes performed is the ferrying of engines in the fifth pod position from Sydney after overhaul for other operators, such as to Beijing for CAAC and Bahrain for Saudia. The performance penalty imposed by the attachment of the fifth engine means a maximum BRW reduction for a 747-238B powered by RB211-524D4 from 372,000kg to 353,800kg. Other performance changes are an 8-10% increase in fuel consumption, the need to cruise at a lower altitude and reduced cruising speed.

From the crew’s view point the 747 is a more pleasant aircraft to fly than its predecessor the 707. Toby Gursanscky has notched up several thousand hours in both types and he said that as one would expect with technological progress, the 747 embodies many improvements to increase reliability and make life easier. The 707 had only one powered control, the rudder, which made it a heavier aircraft to fly. It also had only one autopilot, which in the event of a failure early in a flight, imposed a fair amount of additional workload on the crew. The 747 with two or three autopilots, improved hydraulics, enhanced pressurization and many other systems, which in most cases are tripled or quadrupled, is a major step forward. The list of enhancements on the 747-400 series will further add to the steady stream of improvements.

What benefits has Qantas derived from its substantial investment in its 747 fleet over the past 17 years? Perhaps the following table of passengers carried over a 30 year period will shed some light on the impact this aircraft has made. The passenger numbers are expressed in rounded 1,000s. Years 1958/1960 end on 30 June, after that they are based on a financial year ending on 31 March.

Years 1958 and 1959 mark the end of the Super Constellation era with the impact of the Boeing 707 becoming increasingly evident in the 1960s. Following the introduction of the 747 fleet and the economic upturn of the early 1970s, a healthy rate of increase began in 1973 and apart from a few minor downturns, has continued this trend to the present day. Particularly noticeable is the substantial surge in recent years brought in part by the drop in the value of the Australian dollar and the resultant jump in tourism into Australia. In recent months the pressure on the Qantas fleet was so intense that the airline resorted to the short term charter of two 747s and a DC-10 to tide them over the Christmas/New year peak. The final passenger figures for the year ended 31 March should be interesting when they are available. The important role the 7 4 7 has played over the last 17 years in which Qantas’ passenger load has more than tripled is obvious.

One of the reasons the 747 has presided over such an impressive passenger growth is the durability of the aircraft itself. The average daily utilisation of the Qantas 747 fleet is 12. 2 hours per day, slightly ahead of the 767 figure of 11. 8 hours a day. The recently returned VH-EBA has accumulated in excess of 52,000 hours while several other Qantas 747 have notched up well over 40,000 hours each. As noteworthy as these figures are, some of the fleet are working even harder with some of the 7 47-338 fleet approaching 5,000 hours per year. These utilisation rates must be close to the industry peak for aircraft of this type.

The future of the Boeing 747 in the Qantas fleet looks impregnable for many decades ahead. Particularly as the 747-438 series seems set to become the definitive long distance aircraft in the Qantas fleet until well into the 1990s. As older 747s are retired they are sure to be replaced by additional 747-438s with further 767s being obtained for shorter, thinner routes. This era of Qantas 747 operations will not be concluded until well into the 21st century. The period of service of the 747 could ultimately well establish a new record for front line airliners in Australian service.