United gave its final 747 aircraft a 1970s sendoff
United flight 747 made history Tuesday morning.
The flight from San Francisco to Honolulu was the final flight on the airline's last Boeing 747 aircraft. It all came fill circle after the first commercial flight departed on the same route on June 23, 1970 -- 47 years ago.
This wasn't just any old takeoff -- it was an homage to the '70s with the flight crew decked out in original uniforms and even the ticket jackets throwing it back a few decades.
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Known as the "Queen of the Skies," the 747 passenger jet is slowing down -- a lot. In the U.S., United and Delta have retired the last of the 747-400s this year, marking the end of an era.
The newer version of the 747, known as the 747-800, failed to attract any U.S. passenger airlines, and is mainly being sold to freight carriers.
United is auctioning off parts of the historic plane in honor of the retirement. Bids using United frequent flyer miles are still open for the altimeter, tail number, an oxygen pressure indicator, and other plane hardware.
The final flight is in the air after departing at 11 a.m. and expected to make it to Hawaii this afternoon where the farewell festivities will continue.
Farewell, Queen of the Skies.
UPDATE Nov. 7, 6:19 p.m. PT: When United flight 747 arrived in Honolulu the aircraft got lei'd, in a true Hawaii welcome.
Sasha is a news writer at Mashable's San Francisco office. She's an SF native who went to UC Davis and later received her master's from the UC Berkeley Graduate School of Journalism. She's been reporting out of her hometown over the years at Bay City News (news wire), SFGate (the San Francisco Chronicle website), and even made it out of California to write for the Chicago Tribune. She's been described as a bookworm and a gym rat.
