United Airlines is flying its final 747 flight before retiring the iconic jumbo jet.
The plane departed at 2:50 Eastern Time from San Francisco — 50 minutes late, according to FlightAware — and is slated to land in Honolulu, Hawaii at 8:01 P.M eastern time, or 3:01 P.M. Hawaiian time. The entire journey is expected to take 5 hours and 11 minutes. The route was symbolic, replicating the route United’s first 747 flew in July of 1970.
United said more than 300 people boarded the flight, and that tickets had sold out within 90 minutes of the announcement. Celebrations were underway at San Francisco Airport before the departure, and will continue once the plane has landed in Hawaii.
The airline had announced this past January that it was retiring 747 jets. The last international 747 flight, from Seoul, South Korea to San Francisco, took place on October 29.
“While today is bittersweet, we’ll continue to honor the Queen of the Skies’ game-changing legacy of connecting people and uniting the world with our next generation of long-haul aircraft,” United CEO Oscar Munoz said in a statement.
