Rise From Your Grave(yard) Part Deux - Part 2

Ok, they're both back at KPAE now. This means there are now no 747-8s left in desert storage.

Line 1479 (RC525) JA15KZ for NCA (pic by Matt Cawby)

 

Line 1482 (RC605) VQ-BRJ for AirBridgeCargo

Rise From Your Grave(yard) Part Deux

Matt Cawby tweeted that the last two frames in storage, line 1479 (RC525) JA15KZ for Nippon Cargo Airlines and line 1482 (RC605) VQ-BRJ for AirBridgeCargo, will head back to KPAE today. NCA 747-8s are all over KPAE right now!

 Update: Didn't happen. But line 1437 (RC573) went for a flight with the FAA on board. And she has blue engines now. What could this mean? If this were a good blog I could tell you :(

Pic by Matt Cawby.

There was an airworthiness directive issued today for 747-8s about a missing bushing that could lead to problems.

RIP 747-400 line 927 JA8957 for ANA. She goes to her doom at Tupelo, the saddest place in the world for a 747 fan. The locals must have gotten a kick seeing this colorful bird come in for a landing.

Line 1482 First Flight

Line 1482 (RC605) VQ-BRJ for AirBridgeCargo took off for a first flight today. 747-8 production activity has been slow recently, so here are a bunch of pictures of her returning to KPAE. I'm not sure when this frame will deliver. ABC has one in storage already, but they might be approaching the point of taking one for delivery, which could be this one. Or she might be destined for storage, we'll just have to wait and see. Big pic was taken by Vintage Racer.

The Last First Flight

For a frame in the overdue category at least. Line 1433 (RC553) B-LJC for Cathay Pacific took off today for the first time, well over two years after rolling off the assembly line and starting her long slumber, stored in various places around KPAE in an unflyable state. This marks the last "old frame" that needed refurbishment to take to the air; all of the old frames have now flown, and as such it's sort of a milestone for the program. Boeing can start focusing all resources on new build frames, shaving off weight and optimizing performance. B-LJC should deliver towards the middle of next month, after some more test flights and a fresh paint job. Thanks to Roy Yang for the pics (which show a very dirty airplane).

Also, line 1482 (RC605) VQ-BRJ for AirBridgeCargo rolled off the FAL, as you can see in the top picture. Judging by my rough rollout date records, they're likely already producing new frames at the adjusted 1.75 per month rate.