A Boeing 747 is once again back on the UK civil registry after a three-month gap broke the aircraft’s 52-year run in the UK. COVID-19 and recent sanctions on Russia saw all of the UK's registered 747s retired or handed back, but as reported by Key Aero, one Queen Of The Skies is back.

Fitting Jubilee news

Fittingly, news of the Queen Of The Skies’ return to the UK registry came after a Jubilee weekend celebrating 70 years of Queen Elizabeth’s reign. The Boeing 747 was acquired by London-based Air One Aviation and was reregistered as G-UNET last month. The Boeing 747 is believed to be the first UK-registered jumbo powered by Pratt & Whitney engines.

G-UNET is 30 years old and was originally in service with Air Canada before being converted for cargo use in 2006. Since then, the aircraft has been flown by Air China Cargo, ACT Airlines, and Air CargoGlobal.

Air One Aviation Limited is an Exclusive Global Sales Agency that represents international cargo airlines. The agency organizes global charter services for freight forwarders, logistics providers, and charter brokers using freighter Boeing 747 and B737 aircraft. The jet is yet to be put into active service.

British Airways 747 scrapped
British Airways was one of many airlines to retire its 747s early. Photo: Getty Images

Where did the UK’s 747s go?

Many UK-registered Boeing 747s had already been scheduled for retirement when COVID-19 turned the aviation sector upside down. In May 2020, Virgin Atlantic announced that its seven remaining 747s would be retiring early and not returning to the skies.

The number of UK registered 747s was reduced further a few months later, in July 2020, when British Airways revealed that it would be retiring its 31 remaining Boeing 747s with immediate effect. While some of the iconic planes were preserved, many ended up being broken down for scrap and spare parts - a difficult spectacle for many who had admired the aircraft for decades.

Virgin Atlantic Boeing 747-400
Most UK registered 747s were retired due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Photo: Vincenzo Pace | Simple Flying.

East Midlands-based CargoLogicAir, which is owned by the Russian Volga-Dnepr Group, handed back its two Boeing 747-400Fs to lessors Aircastle and AerCap in early March. The move was partly due to Western sanctions affecting Russian-based businesses and airlines operating within the UK, EU, and the US. The decision by CargoLogicAir resulted in there being no UK-registered jumbos for practically the first time in 52 years.

As well as resuming the presence of a UK-registered 747, G-UNET will be different from its UK registered predecessors due to its engine type. The 747 will be powered by Pratt & Whitney engines, whereas Virgin Atlantic’s had been powered by GE Aviation engines and British Airways’ 747s by Rolls-Royce engines.

Boeing will not produce any more 747 jumbo jets after all pending orders are fulfilled later this year. The Queen of the skies has had a long and glorious production cycle spanning more than half a century, but that is set to end as the planemaker delivers the last unit in just a few months.

Are you happy to see the return of a UK-registered Boeing 747? Let us know in the comments below.

Source: Key Aero