Many of commercial aviation’s most iconic aircraft, such as the Boeing 747 and the Airbus A380, are quadjets, but neither of these aircraft types is being produced any more. If you love the quadjet, it can be good to know where you can still find them and what the alternatives are. As the demise of quadjets continues, instead we see them being replaced by much more fuel-efficient twinjets with lower operating costs, like the Boeing 777, the Boeing 787, and the Airbus A350.

Although quadjets are no longer in production, a number still remain in operation, mostly for either cargo use or with legacy airlines on high-yield, dense routes linking major hubs. Indeed, airlines such as British Airways, Emirates, Singapore Airlines, Qantas and Qatar Airways are just some of the ten airlines still using the Airbus A380. As for the Boeing 747, sadly, only Lufthansa, Air China, and Korean Air still operate this unique aircraft on regular passenger flights.

Boeing 747

The Queen Of The Skies

The Boeing 747 has a long history spanning over fifty years and first flew on February 9, 1969. It was introduced into service in January 1970 with Pan American World Airways (Pan Am). The distinctive four-engined widebody was in production from 1967 until 2023, and 1,574 were built. There were 20 variants of the Boeing 747, and 87 airlines operated it. It was a popular long-range aircraft, with many of the world’s largest airlines choosing it as their flagship aircraft.

The jumbo jet was the first twin-aisle widebody airliner and was immediately recognizable by its partial double-deck with a raised cockpit. Airlines mostly operated it with three classes of travel for passenger flights, but it was also popular with cargo operators. The 747-400 was the most common variant, and, over its history, the 747 logged more than 118 million flight hours and almost 23 million flight cycles, per Boeing. The Boeing 747-8F was delivered to Atlas Air in January 2023.

Air travel rapidly grew in the 1960s, as did long-distance travel. The 747 was built in response to growing demand and the popularity of the 707 and Douglas DC-8 with airlines and passengers alike. Juan Trippe, the President of Pan Am, asked Boeing to produce an aircraft that was 2.5 times the size of the 707 and could provide mass air travel on long-haul international routes. In 1966, Pan Am ordered 25 747s, and the aircraft revolutionized air travel and won the hearts of almost anyone who flew on it.

Airbus A380

The Double-Decker Superjumbo

The Airbus A380 was first introduced into service in 2007. The four-engine long-range widebody was the world’s first fully double-decker passenger aircraft and attracted the attention of airlines and passengers alike. It is the largest commercial passenger aircraft in the world, and 251 were built (plus three prototypes) and delivered to 14 airlines. At the current time, ten operators still operate the aircraft, with the largest being Emirates, with 123 Airbus A380s.

The aim of the A380 was that it would be a large, long-range aircraft that could reduce congestion at some of the world’s busiest airports. Its first flight took place on April 27, 2005, and it entered commercial service in October 2007 with Singapore Airlines. The Airbus A380 was manufactured between 2003 and 2021, and, as of December 2021, it had completed more than 800,000 flights over 7.3 million block hours, carrying over 300 million passengers, according to Airbus.

Data from ch-aviation, as of this June, suggests that 182 A380s are still in service. Although the aircraft had a $445 million price tag, the development cost of the aircraft program was $25 billion, and that was never recouped by Airbus. The A380 was the first new aircraft program of the 21st century, and it helped reshape global aviation and define ultra-long-haul travel. The aircraft was innovative and still influences commercial aircraft design today.

Boeing 777

The Classic: Still In Production, Much In Favor

The first flight of the Boeing 777 was in June 1994 and it received FAA certification the following year. It has always been popular due to its range and fuel efficiency. It is one of the most successful commercial aircraft in history, and there are several variants, defined by range and fuselage length. 1,772 Boeing 777s had been built and delivered as of October this year, and it has 102 operators worldwide (past and present). Emirates is the largest operator, followed by Qatar Airways.

The 777 is the largest twinjet ever and the most built widebody in history, being commonly referred to as the ‘triple-seven’. The program was launched in October 1990, with an order from United Airlines, and the type entered service in June 1995. It was planned to replace the DC-10 and L-1011 trijets, but it also sits between the Boeing 747 quadjet and the twin-engined Boeing 767. The 777 later competed with the Airbus A340 and the McDonnell Douglas MD-11, and now faces the A350.

The longer-range variants of the Boeing 777 were launched in 2000 and first delivered in 2004. Of these, the 777-300ER is the best-selling variant, and 833 of the aircraft have been delivered, with Air France as the launch customer. The latest version of the 777 is the 777X, which is the largest and most fuel-efficient series of the family.

It has a wider cabin, composite wings with folding wingtips and powerful GE9X engines. There are two variants, the 777-9, which has high capacity and the 777-8, which is ultra-long-range. The program has been delayed multiple times, and the first deliveries are now expected in 2027.

Boeing 787 Dreamliner

Revolutionary Long-Haul Airliner

In December 2009, the Boeing 787 Dreamliner took its first flight, and the twin-engined widebody was delivered to launch customer All Nippon Airways (ANA) in October 2011. The aircraft has either Rolls-Royce Trent 1000 or General Electric GEnx-1B engines, and is made of composite materials. It can be recognized by its serrated engine nacelles, smooth nose, four window cockpit and raked wingtips.

The aircraft is known for its fuel efficiency, larger windows and lower cabin altitude. There are three variants, namely the 787-8, 787-9, 787-10, but it can also be a Boeing Business Jet (BBJ). The Boeing 787-9 has the longest range. As of October this year, over 1,200 Dreamliners have been built, according to Boeing, and there are 79 operators. The largest users are All Nippon Airways (ANA), United Airlines, Japan Airlines and American Airlines.

The Dreamliner is a popular choice with the world’s largest airlines and now operates some of the longest routes in the world, such as Air New Zealand’s New York to Auckland route, and the Perth to London route for Qantas. 50% of the aircraft by weight is made of carbon fiber composites, making it more fuel efficient and able to fly further with reduced fuel burn and emissions and lower operating costs.

Airbus A350

The New Kid On The Block

The Airbus A350 is a twin-engine, widebody, long-range aircraft with a composite fuselage, wings with blended winglets, and Rolls-Royce Trent XWB engines. Its first flight took place in June 2013, and there are two main passenger variants, namely the shorter A350-900 and the longer A350-1000. The launch customer was Qatar Airways, which first received the aircraft in January 2015. There are around 685 examples of the aircraft currently in service with 38 airlines.

The A350 is one of the most advanced airliners flying, and was built in response to the Boeing 787 Dreamliner. Singapore Airlines is the largest operator with 65 aircraft, but Turkish Airlines is the biggest customer, with 110 units of the aircraft on order. Qatar Airways, Cathay Pacific, Air France and Delta Air Lines are other major operators. The current global Airbus A350 fleet has completed 1.58 million flights on 1,240 routes, carrying 400 million passengers.

The Airbus A350-900ULR currently operates one of the longest flights in the world from Singapore to New York, flown by Singapore Airlines with a duration of around 18 hours. It was thought that Xiamen Airlines would beat this with a flight from New York to Fuzhou in Southern China with a duration of 19 hours and 20 minutes, but it has since emerged that this includes a stop in Tokyo.