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| Mini Boeing 747-400, Northwest Airlines |
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Length: 8 1/4"
Wingspan: 7"
Includes desk stand.
The Boeing 747-400 is a widebody commercial airliner, and is the most recent version of the Boeing 747 aircraft in service. The -400 series is the highest selling model in the 747 family. The 747-400 is to be replaced by the Boeing 747-8 as the latest commercial model, which is in production as of 2009.
The 747-400 was announced by Boeing Commercial Airplanes in October 1985. Compared to the 747-300 the 747-400 has 6 feet (1.8 m) wing tip extensions and 6 feet (1.8 m) winglets, and a glass cockpit which dispensed with the need for a flight engineer. The 747-400 also improved on the -300 with an additional fuel tank in the horizontal stabilizer, engines with improved fuel efficiency and higher thrust, an all-new interior, revised fuselage/wing fairings and newer in-flight entertainment. Like the 747-300, the passenger version of the 747-400 included the stretched upper deck (SUD) as a standard feature. The SUD was almost twice as long as the standard upper deck. It had previously been offered as a retrofit and first appeared on two Japanese 747-100 SR models. While the wingspan was increased, the overall weight of the wings was decreased due to the use of composites and aluminum alloys.
It was rolled out in January 1988 and first flew on 29 April 1988. Certification was received on 10 January 1989 with Pratt & Whitney PW4000 engines, 18 May 1989 with CF6-80C2s and 8 June 1989 with Rolls-Royce RB211-524Gs. The first 747-400 was delivered to Northwest Airlines on 26 January 1989, with service entry on 9 February.
The extended range freighter (ERF) entered service in October 2002. The next month, the extended range (ER) passenger version entered service with Qantas, the only airline ever to order the passenger version of the 747-400ER. Qantas uses the aircraft on its Melbourne-Los Angeles and Sydney-San Francisco flights, which are too long to operate using a standard 747-400.
The Boeing Signature Interior was later made available on the 747-400, either as interior refitting on existing 747-400s or as a "fresh-from-installation" option on newer 747-400s and 747-400ERs. One example, China Airlines's four newest Boeing 747-400s (tail number B-1821x), also the last four passenger 747-400s built, were newly built with Boeing Signature Interior. One of these (B-18210) has a hybrid livery, with China Airlines' tail and Boeing's fuselage liveries.
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