Fast forward to the last day of January , 2023 in the same Everett factory where the 747 was born . There were wide smiles , coupled with tears and camera-shutter clicks , as about 10,000 people celebrated the delivery of the final 747 .
That last airplane , a 747-8 Freighter , was the 1,574th manufactured , capping a production run spanning more than five-and-a-half decades . It outlasted any number of airplane programs that came and went during that span — both at Boeing and its competitors .
Thousands of employees — both current and former — were joined by customer and supplier representatives , government officials and a global online audience . They gathered to pay tribute to the last of its kind , a four-engine behemoth with the distinctive hump that changed the commercial aviation industry forever .
Employees watch as factory doors open revealing the final 747 .
Veteran Fabrication employee Joey Nguyen , who volunteered to help at the event , has worked on 747 parts in Auburn , Washington , but had never seen a completed 747 before Tuesday . “ To see it in person — the last one — it ’ s really amazing . It ’ s massive ,” he said . Employees pose for photos beside the final 747 prior to the ceremony . ( Josh Green photo )
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