Boeing 747 passenger era fading as jumbo jet disappears from service

The Boeing 747 entered commercial service in January 1970, bringing a new scale of passenger capacity to international air travel. Pan American World Airways was the launch customer and the first airline to carry paying passengers on the jet.

More than five decades later, the 747 is fading from passenger service. The widebody that once defined long-haul flying is being withdrawn from schedules, and its time carrying travellers is coming to an end.

Pan Am's order set the type on its way, and the airline's name remains tied to the jet's early history. Its 1970 introduction marked the point at which a single flight could carry far more people than before.