Since entering service in 1970, more than 1,500 Boeing 747s were built. For decades, if you were flying long-haul, you’d be flying a 747. The giant jumbo opened the world to passengers, democratizing air travel and earning itself a place as an icon of modern aviation.
But times change, and the advent of new twinjets that could fly just as far on much less fuel saw the 747 in decline. The pandemic of 2020 accelerated retirement plans for many airlines, leaving the world somewhat devoid of the Queen of the Skies as we enter 2025.
Flying a passenger Boeing 747 isn’t easy, but it’s not impossible, as several airlines still offer scheduled flights with the type. We take a look at who’s flying the Boeing 747 in 2025, and how to catch a flight on the last remaining Queens this year.
How many Boeing 747s are flying in 2025?
Although the passenger Boeing 747 has become something of a rarity, as a type, the use of the 747 is still relatively widespread.
Planespotters.net lists 264 747s in active use right now, plus another 35 that are listed as ‘parked’. Some of these aircraft may be stored longer term and unlikely to return to service, but many are simply undergoing maintenance ahead of returning to their fleets.
The vast majority of the active 747 fleet is used for cargo. Atlas Air is the largest operator, with 51 aircraft in service, 48 Boeing 747-400 and 13 747-8. UPS flies 43 in its fleet, mostly the newer -8, and Cargolux has a fleet of 29, split between the -400 and -8.
Although most of the world’s Boeing 747s are in cargo-carrying roles, there are still some passenger operators too.
Which airlines fly the Boeing 747 in 2025?
According to data from planespotters.net, there are 50 Boeing 747s in commercial passenger configurations that are still in airline fleets. Not all of these are ‘active’ – the number drops to 39 aircraft if we consider currently active examples only.
Inactive aircraft may be undergoing maintenance, which is likely the case for operators like Lufthansa as the airline relies heavily on the 747 for high-capacity operations. In other cases, such as Mahan Air’s single 747-300, the aircraft hasn’t flown for some time and may well never do so again, but remains in the fleet on paper at least.
Airline | Type | Number in fleet | Number active |
Air China | 747-400 | 2 | 1 |
747-8 | 6 | 5 | |
Korean Air | 747-8 | 7 | 6 |
Lufthansa | 747-400 | 8 | 7 |
747-8 | 19 | 18 | |
Mahan Air | 747-300 | 1 | 0 |
747-400 | 2 | 1 | |
Rossiya | 747-400 | 5 | 1 |
TOTALS | 50 | 39 |
Where can you fly a Boeing 747 in 2025?
According to data from aviation analytics company Cirium, your absolute best bet for flying a Boeing 747 in 2025 is to pick a flight operated by German carrier Lufthansa. Sporting the largest fleet of passenger 747s in the world, the range of flights available makes it possible to travel all over the world with a Lufthansa Queen (as long as you don’t mind connecting through Frankfurt).
For Iranian airlines, schedule data isn’t available from Cirium. However, interrogating Flightradar24 data shows Mahan Air is mainly using the 747-400 on domestic routes from Tehran (THR) to Kish Island (KIH) and Mashhad (MHD). In 2024, it made a couple of international appearances in Dubai (DXB) and Latakia (LTK), but these are the exceptions rather than the rule.
Airlines have not filed their schedules for the full 2025 year yet but below is data for the flights scheduled to be operated by a Boeing 747 up to the end of October 2025.
Airline | Flights scheduled | Departure airport | Arriving airports |
Aeroflot/Rossiya | 755 | Moscow Sheremetyevo International Airport (SVO) | Sochi (AER) Ignatyevo (BQS) Ugolny (DYR) Sokol (GDX) Khabarovsk Novy (KHV) Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk (UUS) |
Lufthansa | 10,987 | Frankfurt Airport (FRA) | Bengaluru (BLR) Boston (BOS) Buenos Aries (EZE) Chicago (ORD) Hong Kong (HKG) Houston (IAD) Johannesburg (JNB) Los Angeles (LAX) Mexico City (MEX) Miami (MIA) New York (JFK) Newark (EWR) San Francisco (SFO) Sao Paulo (GRU) Seoul (ICN) Shanghai (PVG) Singapore (SIN) Tokyo (HND) Toronto (YYZ) Vancouver (YVR) Washington (IAD) |
Korean Air | 1,643 | Seoul Incheon International Airport (ICN) | Atlanta (ATL) New York (JFK) Los Angeles (LAX) Singapore (SIN) |
Air China | 4,199 | Beijing Capital International Airport (PEK) | Guangzhou (CAN) Shanghai (SHA) Shenzhen (SZX) |
Although Lufthansa is the easy pick here, don’t discount Korean Air for a long-haul trip on the 747-8. Its fleet of seven aircraft can be spotted in US airports now and then. If you plan to take a nostalgic trip across the Pacific with Korean Air, you’d better make it quick, as changes are coming.
The service to Atlanta, operating under a joint venture with Delta Air Lines where Delta flies the A350 to Seoul and Korean the 747-8, will be switching away from the Queen of the Skies at the end of March. According to Cirium, from March 30, 2025, Korean will swap its double-decker for the capable 777-300ER.
This means Korean Air will no longer operate the world’s longest passenger 747 flight. That accolade will be handed on to Lufthansa with its Frankfurt to Buenos Aires service.
Korean Air previously removed the 747-8 from its London Heathrow (LHR) service, marking the end of the Queen at the iconic British airport. Now, five of its 747-8s have been sold to the Sierra Nevada Corporation as part of its ‘doomsday plane’ project. Two have already left the fleet, with the other three set to be handed over imminently.
Lufthansa plans to retire the 747-400 by 2028 as part of its fleet renewal plan, replacing them with its incoming Boeing 777X. However, the 747-8s are getting a refresh with the new Allegris cabin starting in 2025, so are likely to stay in the fleet for at least another decade.