Boeing 747 #1 “Queen of the Skies” being rebuilt

Forty-five years ago, she made history, ushering in the era of the jumbo jet and changing the face of commercial flight. A giant of the skies, it made our world smaller and mesmerized the people of the Pacific Northwest, us included.

When the 747 dubbed The City of Everett (RA001) took her inaugural flight on February 9, 1969, it was an enormous day for both of us. And just as we are tremendously proud to be a part of the Boeing 747’s legacy—as chief engineer and co-pilot on the first flight—we’re equally proud to be a part of her renewal at The Museum of Flight.

Since accessioning the first 747, the Museum and its dedicated team have been faithfully caring for the aircraft, but Seattle’s damp climate takes a toll, and The City of Everett is showing signs of wear. That’s why, this summer, the Museum will embark on an ambitious project—a complete external restoration to return her to first flight conditions.

More here….

(Source: Museum of Flight)

Update

The restoration went ahead. The Museum of Flight’s board authorised it in 2012, and the work — sanding down the faded paint and applying more than 60 gallons of fresh paint to the exterior — took nearly two years. RA001 reopened for public tours in 2014.

A roof was subsequently built over the museum’s Aviation Pavilion, so The City of Everett and the aircraft alongside it are now under cover, which was the underlying problem the restoration was fighting.

The aircraft is the prototype 747-100, registered N7470. 168 747-100s were built; 167 went to customers and Boeing kept this one. It first flew on 9 February 1969 from Paine Field.

It outlived the production line. The last 747 was delivered on 31 January 2023 — number 1,574 — 54 years after this aircraft first flew.