Asiana Airlines recently announced on social media that its final Boeing 747-400 aircraft will be retired on March 25, 2024. The aircraft, which bears the registration number HL7428, will operate daily flights between Taipei and Seoul until retirement. The airline plans to use the plane for the OZ711 and OZ712 segments.
Asiana Airlines received the airframe with serial number 28552 on June 18, 1999. The airline has used the airplane for 25 years, traveling to various locations such as Frankfurt, New York, Los Angeles, Manila, and Hong Kong from its home base in Seoul. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the aircraft was parked in Seoul. However, in May 2022, the airline reactivated the aircraft and repurposed it for flights to Changchun.
Since June 1993, the airline has operated eighteen 747-400s, one of the primary aircraft types in the carrier’s global network.
The 747-400 aircraft was a famous Asia-Pacific aircraft during the 1990s and 2000s. Many major carriers, such as Cathay Pacific, Qantas, Thai Airways, Air India, Air China, and Singapore Airlines flew it. However, the number of 747-400s flying in the area has significantly reduced since HL7428 was retired, with Air China being the last scheduled operator.
Nowadays, airlines in the region have opted for more efficient aircraft, such as the Boeing 747-8i, which Korean Air, a possible merger partner, is embracing. Korean Air has recently confirmed an order for 33 Airbus A350 aircraft as part of its fleet renewal plan in preparation for the merger.
Commercial airlines are withdrawing four-engine aircraft from their fleets due to Airbus and Boeing’s announcement of high-efficiency aircraft and the airline fleet renewal plans. While some of these planes will be converted into freighters and continue to serve, others will be left unused in an aircraft boneyard before being demolished.