See 6 repurposed Boeing 747s with unusual second lives, from a Swedish hotel to a scuba site in Bahrain
A handful of retired Boeing 747 airliners have been given a second life.An ex-passenger 747 was turned into a hotel in Sweden, while another is a dive site in Bahrain.The superjumbo is a rarity these days as airlines replace them with newer twin-engine widebodies.You don't need a plane ticket to experience one of the most iconic — and quickly disappearing — passenger planes.From a Swedish hotel to a manmade scuba site in Bahrain, retired Boeing 747s have been given unique second lives around the world.The powerhouse quad-jet was introduced in the 1970s, with its double-decker cabin to accommodate booming demand for air travel and make fares more affordable for middle-class travelers.Aviation enthusiasts and historians have long hailed the plane as the catalyst for aircraft innovation and industry growth.However, newer twin-engine planes like the Boeing 787 and the Airbus A350 have since emerged with better economics, making the fan-favorite Queen of the Skies nearly obsolete for airline use.Most of the world's 747s have been scrapped for parts or left to rot in desert graveyards. Only a few carriers, like Lufthansa and Korean Air, still fly it, and the routes are limited to a few dozen worldwide.Some of the planes have been repurposed, though.
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A handful of retired Boeing 747 airliners have been given a second life.An ex-passenger 747 was turned into a hotel in Sweden, while another is a dive site in Bahrain.The superjumbo is a rarity these days as airlines replace them with newer twin-engine widebodies.You don't need a plane ticket to experience one of the most iconic — and quickly disappearing — passenger planes.From a Swedish hotel to a manmade scuba site in Bahrain, retired Boeing 747s have been given unique second lives around the world.The powerhouse quad-jet was introduced in the 1970s, with its double-decker cabin to accommodate booming demand for air travel and make fares more affordable for middle-class travelers.Aviation enthusiasts and historians have long hailed the plane as the catalyst for aircraft innovation and industry growth.However, newer twin-engine planes like the Boeing 787 and the Airbus A350 have since emerged with better economics, making the fan-favorite Queen of the Skies nearly obsolete for airline use.Most of the world's 747s have been scrapped for parts or left to rot in desert graveyards. Only a few carriers, like Lufthansa and Korean Air, still fly it, and the routes are limited to a few dozen worldwide.Some of the planes have been repurposed, though. Here are six different ways people still use the 747.There is a former British Airways "party plane" in England.British Airways retired its fleet of Boeing 747s in 2020 amid the COVID-19 pandemic, but one was preserved as a flightless "party plane" at England's Cotswold Airport.Airport CEO Suzannah Harvey bought one of the decades-old jumbos for just £1, around $1.35, and converted it into an event space for weddings and birthday parties. The venue opened in 2022 and cost about $675,000 to renovate.The rental rate is around $16,200 for 24 hours.
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- What's the story?
- A handful of retired Boeing 747 airliners have been given a second life.An ex-passenger 747 was turned into a hotel in Sweden, while another is a dive site in Bahrain.The superjumbo is a rarity these days as airlines replace them with newer twin-engine widebodies.You don't need a plane ticket to experience one of the most iconic — and quickly disappearing — passenger planes.From a Swedish hotel to a manmade scuba site in Bahrain, retired Boeing 747s have been given unique second lives around the world.The powerhouse quad-jet was introduced in the 1970s, with its double-decker cabin to accommodate booming demand for air travel and make fares more affordable for middle-class travelers.Aviation enthusiasts and historians have long hailed the plane as the catalyst for aircraft innovation and industry growth.However, newer twin-engine planes like the Boeing 787 and the Airbus A350 have since emerged with better economics, making the fan-favorite Queen of the Skies nearly obsolete for airline use.Most of the world's 747s have been scrapped for parts or left to rot in desert graveyards. Only a few carriers, like Lufthansa and Korean Air, still fly it, and the routes are limited to a few dozen worldwide.Some of the planes have been repurposed, though.
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See 6 repurposed Boeing 747s with unusual second lives, from a Swedish hotel to a scuba site in Bahrain
Sources1TypeCoverageBusiness Insider