First set of wings for the Boeing 747-8F completed

The first set of wings for the Boeing 747-8F have been completed, said Boeing, as they make progress on the 747-800 freighter and the Intercontinental (passenger version). The 135-foot wings add Boeing’s latest aerodynamic technologies, allowing the aircraft to fly farther and more efficiently. The newly advanced airfoil is said to improve overall performance and fuel efficiency.

Update

Those wings flew. The 747-8 Freighter first flew on 8 February 2010 and entered service with Cargolux in October 2011; the Intercontinental followed with Lufthansa in June 2012.

The wing described here was the biggest single engineering change in the aircraft — an entirely new design rather than a modified 747-400 wing, with raked wingtips in place of winglets and a manoeuvre load-alleviation system that saved about 1,400 lb of structure.

155 747-8s were built — 107 freighters and 48 passenger aircraft. The last one was delivered to Atlas Air on 31 January 2023, ending 747 production after 1,574 aircraft.