Elephants (Jumbo) Graveyard

A nice line for the eye to follow down
Pity the nose is clipped on the front one.
There's some mileage in those old girls.
 
reheat module said:
A nice line for the eye to follow down
Pity the nose is clipped on the front one.
There's some mileage in those old girls.
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Thank you
Cropped the nose of the first one because the tail of the plane in front impinged on it.
Hard to get any other angle because I was shooting through a metal fence.
 
If they're all at Kemble, then most likely being dismantled for parts to get decent money back. Probably worth more in parts than as a whole aeroplane, sadly.
 
Lindsay56 said:
If they're all at Kemble, then most likely being dismantled for parts to get decent money back. Probably worth more in parts than as a whole aeroplane, sadly.
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Most are for part out and scrap but at least 2 are for freighter conversion.

GC
 
Lindsay56 said:
If they're all at Kemble, then most likely being dismantled for parts to get decent money back. Probably worth more in parts than as a whole aeroplane, sadly.
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They were at Kemble, we were staying just up the road in Poole Keynes
 
Lindsay56 said:
If they're all at Kemble, then most likely being dismantled for parts to get decent money back. Probably worth more in parts than as a whole aeroplane, sadly.
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I drove pass in August and had to research it because there are so many and a sight I wasn’t expecting. It seems BA used Kemble as a parking ground when COVID first started to restrict air travel in April. I guess it was the cheapest place to park them up. BA have since decided to scrap their entire 747 fleet. I guess they are now in the right place!

www.gloucestershirelive.co.uk

Cotswold Airport becomes 'plane park' for British Airways

The former RAF Kemble site has taken delivering of several of the British Airways fleet this week for storage
www.gloucestershirelive.co.uk www.gloucestershirelive.co.uk

www.bbc.co.uk

British Airways retires entire 747 fleet after travel downturn

British Airways is permanently grounding its jumbo jets which are nicknamed "the queen of the skies".
www.bbc.co.uk
 
Do you drive a 50 year old car?
Doesn't make much sense to fly in a 50 year old design of aircraft.
 
Brian G said:
Do you drive a 50 year old car?
Doesn't make much sense to fly in a 50 year old design of aircraft.
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There is a difference between something built 50 years ago & still being used today compared to something like an aircraft designed at that time but subject to continual improvement over its ordering lifecycle ;)

PS were there any initial delivery year airframes still flying in 2019 let alone in 2020?
 
Brian G said:
Do you drive a 50 year old car?
Doesn't make much sense to fly in a 50 year old design of aircraft.
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Kind of agree, but the B52s are still going. And the 747 IS iconic, and rather amazing. If I was VERY rich I would buy one and convert it into a flying caravan :) Atcually there are a surprising number in private hands, remember reading an interview with head of sales at Boeing who said he never thought he woudl sell one to a non-royal individual but had actually shifted a fair few!
 
The front aircraft, G-BYGB, had its first flight on 09.01.99

Edit/Addition: The oldest flying 747 is registered EP-CQD and is flown by Iranian operator Caspian Airlines. First flight was 13.07.70 :)

GC
 
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In the aviation world, if it passes all the certification requirements and all the airworthiness Directives and Service Requirements, it is airworthy; and older aeroplanes have been depreciated so much that they are cheaper to own than leasing a new one. I learned to fly in a 25 year old plane and owned a 56 year old one for a while that, with its new engine and upholstery and paint job, was a really good and reliable aeroplane.
 
dweeble said:
Kind of agree, but the B52s are still going. And the 747 IS iconic, and rather amazing. If I was VERY rich I would buy one and convert it into a flying caravan :) Atcually there are a surprising number in private hands, remember reading an interview with head of sales at Boeing who said he never thought he woudl sell one to a non-royal individual but had actually shifted a fair few!
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The oldest flying B-52 is an "H" model, serial 60-0001, first flight was October 1960. Currently operated by the 2BW out of Barksdale Air Force Base, Louisiana.

GC
 
Total non-sequitur, but wasn't Barksdale where Bush first went on 9/11? Seem to remember some footage on the day of him being driven away surrounded by military but can;t find it by Googling.
 
dweeble said:
Total non-sequitur, but wasn't Barksdale where Bush first went on 9/11? Seem to remember some footage on the day of him being driven away surrounded by military but can;t find it by Googling.
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That's spot on, Airforce 1 had an F-16 fighter escort from Sarasota, FL to Barksdale

GC
 
gcgraphs said:
The front aircraft, G-BYGB, had its first flight on 09.01.99

Edit/Addition: The oldest flying 747 is registered EP-CQD and is flown by Iranian operator Caspian Airlines. First flight was 13.07.70 :)

GC
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Makes the BA older one a mere youngster compared to that Iranian one!
 
gcgraphs said:
The front aircraft, G-BYGB, had its first flight on 09.01.99

Edit/Addition: The oldest flying 747 is registered EP-CQD and is flown by Iranian operator Caspian Airlines. First flight was 13.07.70 :)

GC
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Box Brownie said:
Makes the BA older one a mere youngster compared to that Iranian one!
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And sorry to quote myself......;)

Some years back......maybe 20? We went to Reunion in the Indian Ocean, we flew Air France to Paris and got a connecting flight on I think Aire Equipe (wracks brains as to the accuracy of that) this being a wholly owned subsidiary of Air France.

It was a 747 and my abiding memory of that 10 + hours flight was the rattling and other noises emanating from the seating and gawd knows what other places......plus the seats looked about 10 years overdue for their upholstery refurbishment. The saving grace was that it was about half full so we had a whole centre row of 4 just for the two of us. :)

So thinking back I do wonder just how old that particular 747 was???

PS the return flight was full on another 747 in barely better interior condition :LOL: but it was a wonderful holiday :D
 
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gcgraphs said:
The oldest flying B-52 is an "H" model, serial 60-0001, first flight was October 1960. Currently operated by the 2BW out of Barksdale Air Force Base, Louisiana.

GC
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I always think it fascinating to consider that there were still operational Spitfires (not combat!) when that B-52 took to the skies.
 
gcgraphs said:
The oldest flying B-52 is an "H" model, serial 60-0001, first flight was October 1960. Currently operated by the 2BW out of Barksdale Air Force Base, Louisiana.

GC
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The oldest airframe the USAF still flies (as far as I can tell it's still flying) is KC135 57-1419, which dates to 1957!
 
GordonM said:
The oldest airframe the USAF still flies (as far as I can tell it's still flying) is KC135 57-1419, which dates to 1957!
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Yep, that Stratotanker is still current with the 197 Air Refuelling Sqn out of Phoenix - Sky Harbour, first flight was 29.05.58:)

GC
 
Finally, for comparison, the oldest aircraft in UK military active service is an RC-135W Rivet Joint, serial ZZ664, which first flew in October 1964 (albeit originally a USAF machine) :)

I think the oldest aircraft in continual UK active service is Puma HC.2, serial XW199, first flight in January 1971.

GC
 
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