Issue 368: To The Moon And Back

50 years on – how the 747 made aviation history

There are few sets of numbers that immediately bring to mind a picture, but 747 is one of them, all thanks to Boeing’s iconic aircraft, the original “jumbo jet”, which made its first flight on February 9, 1969.

Of all the aircraft ever produced, the 747 is the most famous – but that also means that part of its story has a tendency to drift from fact to folklore.