Boeing Delivers the 50th 747-8, to Lufthansa

Boeing has completed delivery of  the 50th 747-8.

Lufthansa, the launch customer of the Boeing 747-8 passenger version, took delivery of the milestone 747-8 almost a year after the first revenue flight of the 747-8 Intercontinental.

Boeing delivered the 50th 747-8, a 747-8 Intercontinental passenger version, to Lufthansa on May 29, 2013. The aircraft is pictured here at the Everett Delivery Center

It is the airline’s seventh Boeing 747-8 Intercontinental and the 82nd 747 Lufthansa has received since the beginning of Boeing 747 deliveries in 1969.

“Lufthansa is very proud to have the next Boeing 747-8 entering our fleet – almost exactly one year after the launch flight from Frankfurt to Washington, DC,” says Nico Buchholz, executive vice president fleet management for Deutsche Lufthansa AG.

“After one year of operation and now seven aircraft in the fleet, the aircraft has proven and delivered … excellent economical and ecological performance,” adds Buchholz. “We are very happy with the reliable operation of the 747-8.”

Over a period of more than a year and a half, the 747-8 in-service fleet (including all Boeing 747-8F freighters in service as well as 747-8Is) has achieved an average schedule reliability ‒ an industry measure of departure from the gate within 15 minutes of scheduled time ‒ of 98.8 per cent, according to Boeing.

“This delivery is not only an important milestone for the 747-8 program, but it sets the stage for our future,” says Eric Lindblad, vice president and general manager of the 747 program. “We will be building and delivering the 747-8 for decades to come.”

The Boeing 747-8 has about six million parts manufactured by more than 550 suppliers in almost 30 countries, including the United States, China, Germany, Japan, South Korea and the United Kingdom. In the U.S., more than 450 suppliers across almost 40 states contribute to the 747-8 program.

Boeing delivered the first 747-8 Intercontinental to Lufthansa in April 2012. The aircraft entered service on June 1, 2012 with a flight from Frankfurt, Germany to Washington, D.C.

Cargolux Airlines took delivery of the first Boeing 747-8 Freighter in October 2011. To date, 35 Freighters and 15 Intercontinentals, including eight of the Boeing Business Jet version, have been delivered.