What Happened to AirAsia's Boeing 747s?

January 11, 2023

11 JAN | World's best low-cost carrier, AirAsia, has been operating an all-Airbus narrowbody fleet for the past decade. However, in its history, the airline has also operated other unique aircraft types- most notably, the Boeing 747.

It is highly unusual to see a budget airline operate a Boeing 747 but between 1990-2003, it was a reality! During the time period said above, the airline leased 6 different Boeing 747-200s from Tower Air and Air Atlanta Icelandic. The airline used these superjumbos on Haj pilgrimage flights, from several destinations including the US and Europe.

Four of the aircraft have been scrapped, but the remaining pair are still in use. G-BDXJ is being preserved in Dunsfold, UK as a film prop and for specialist training exercises, while TF-ATD is being used as a testbed for the Boeing 787's Trent 1000 engines.

In addition, for a brief period of time, AirAsia operated the MD-11. The aircraft was leased from World Airways from March 1999 to February 2000, according to planespotters.net. As of now, the aircraft is in storage at Victorville and will likely be sent to scrap.

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Written by: Sohail Sawlani
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