747 at 40

40 years on, 747-8 to prove worth the wait?

As Boeing struggles to get the latest version of the 747 – the dash 8 – to first flight there is more than a touch of deja vu to events exactly 40 years ago when the first 747 took to the air with Boeing struggling with strained engineering resources to get around problems that almost bankrupted the aerospace giant.

The first 747 first flew on February 9 1969 (pictured above), at a time when Boeing’s resources were stretched to the absolute limit as its engineers grappled with the complexities of its 2707 supersonic transport, which was eventually scrapped by Congress on May 20 1971 (despite commitments for 115 from 25 airlines).