Boeing 747 Videos: Tests, Assembly and Flight
A collection of Boeing 747 videos from testing, production and line service.
Boeing 747 footage worth watching, with an explanation of what you are actually looking at in each one.
Testing and production
- The rejected takeoff test - a 747-8 at maximum weight, on fully worn brakes, with no reverse thrust. The most demanding test in the certification programme.
- Extreme testing - wing loading to 150 percent of limit load, water ingestion, and temperature extremes.
- Building a 747-8 - a full-length documentary on how one is made.
- The Intercontinental in final assembly - the last passenger 747 coming together at Everett.
- The GEnx-2B engine - the only engine ever offered on the 747-8, and the chevrons that made it quiet.
In service
- Reverse thrust on landing - an EVA Air 747 at Singapore, and why the spray goes forward.
- Taking off in heavy rain - why rain does not trouble a jet engine, but does trouble the runway.
- Struck by lightning - how an airliner takes a direct strike and flies on.
- Car versus a 747 engine - Top Gear, a Citroën 2CV, and a serious point about jet blast.
When it went wrong
Two accidents, both freighters, both worth understanding rather than just watching.
- National Airlines Flight 102 - Bagram, 2013. Armoured vehicles broke loose on takeoff and destroyed the stabiliser jackscrew. Seven crew died.
- Tradewinds at Medellín - 2006. A takeoff rejected 12 knots above V1 on a wet runway. Everyone walked away.
Elsewhere on the site
Videos are embedded throughout the rest of the site alongside the aircraft they show - including flight-deck films, Combi cargo loading, and the special-mission 747s carrying shuttles, telescopes and a laser.
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In this section
EVA Air Boeing 747-400 landing with heavy reverse thrust
An EVA Air Boeing 747 lands at Singapore after heavy showers, showing pronounced wing flex and full reverse thrust.
Virgin Atlantic Boeing 747-400 taking off in heavy rain
A wing-mounted view of a Boeing 747-400 engine running through heavy rain during taxi, takeoff and climb.
Boeing 747-8 performs the ultimate rejected takeoff test
Boeing's 747-8 rejected takeoff test - accelerating to takeoff speed at maximum weight, then stopping on worn brakes with no reverse thrust.
The GEnx-2B engine that powers the Boeing 747-8
GE Aviation explains the GEnx-2B engine that powers the Boeing 747-8, covering its fan, core and noise-reducing chevrons.
Boeing 747-8 undergoes extreme testing
A short film covering the extreme testing the Boeing 747-8 undergoes, from wing loading to water ingestion and brake trials.
Making the first commercial Boeing 747-8 Intercontinental
The first Boeing 747-8 Intercontinental comes together at Everett, from wing and fuselage join to roll-out of the last passenger 747 line.
A Boeing 747 struck by lightning on takeoff
An All Nippon Airways Boeing 747-200 is struck by lightning on takeoff, caught on camera from the ground.
Building the Boeing 747-8, full documentary
A full-length documentary following the construction of the Boeing 747-8, from wing assembly to roll-out.
Car versus a Boeing 747 engine
Richard Hammond tests whether a car can survive the thrust of a Boeing 747's engines, using a Citroën 2CV and a Ford Mondeo.
Boeing 747 Crash at Bagram: National Airlines Flight 102
Dashcam footage of National Airlines Flight 102, the 747-400BCF that stalled after takeoff from Bagram in 2013 when its cargo broke loose.
Tradewinds Boeing 747 rejected takeoff and overrun
A Tradewinds Boeing 747-200 rejected its takeoff 12 knots above V1 at Medellín in 2006, overran the runway and lost its nose gear. No injuries.