British airline Virgin Atlantic Airways is preparing to withdraw its final Boeing 747-400, which will be converted into a US operated troop carrier.
The aircraft (G-VROY), parked in the airline's maintenance hangar at London Heathrow, was subject to an acceptance check by its lessor.
FlightGlobal understands that the plane will depart on December 16, or even December 17, for Pinal Airpark. Atlas Air will take over as troop carrier.
Speaking at an event above G-VROY on December 11, Corneel Koster, director of customer and operations for Virgin Atlantic, said the plane would have a "new home" but "would continue to do so. fly customers around the world ".
Koster said the airline has operated around 30,747 during its history, carrying around 60 to 70 million such passengers. The G-VROY, leased from GECAS, was initially shipped new to Virgin Atlantic in mid-2001.
But Virgin Atlantic is gradually abandoning its 747s and four-engine Airbus A340s to replace the twin-engine Airbus A350 and Boeing 787, already in service with the operator, and the A330neo, which will arrive from 2022.
The G-VROY is powered by a General Electric CF6 engine. The fleet recall requires that the original engines of every chartered aircraft be reinstalled - in their original position - if they have been removed.
Virgin Atlantic made 17 engine changes while the plane was parked in Manchester to complete these preparations.
The airline hosted a special event at G-VROY for fans on December 12, attended by Captain Yvonne Kershaw who went from flying a Boeing MD-83 to flying a Virgin Atlantic as a crew of 747s, then becoming Britain's first 747 female captain in 1993.
Koster highlighted the attractiveness of 747s, indicating that 100,000 people expressed interest in the event within the first minute after it was advertised.
“We're not the ones to take it easy - we want to throw a big party,” he said, but current restrictions will force airlines to limit attendance to 40 people.
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