The final flight of Qantas' last passenger jumbo jet left an iconic message behind with a kangaroo drawn in its path over the Pacific Ocean.
Flight QF7474 departed Sydney Airport at 2pm on Wednesday after a week of final farewells across the country.
In Canberra last week, excited onlookers and passengers sent off the piece of history as it flew over the Snowy Mountains and across Lake Burley Griffin.
Qantas brought forward the scheduled retirement of the fleet by six months due to the coronavirus pandemic which has grounded the travel industry.
The flight, on route to retirement in the Mojave Desert in the United States, took a unique flight path to draw the iconic kangaroo in the Pacific Ocean.
Captain Sharelle Quinn was at the helm of the plane and said the groundbreaking aircraft was important to aviation enthusiasts and travellers.
"It has been a wonderful part of our history, a truly ground breaking aircraft and while we are sad to see our last one go, it's time to hand over to the next generation of aircraft that are a lot more efficient," she said.
Farewell, #Queenoftheskies✈️Today, the last 747 in our fleet, VH-OEJ departed Australia for the final time – adding a special display en roo-te to the US🦘#747farewellpic.twitter.com/KXzNKhxFOH
— Qantas (@Qantas) July 22, 2020
Qantas chief executive Alan Joyce said the plane had allowed international travel to become cheaper and more accessible.
"This aircraft was well ahead of its time and extremely capable. Engineers and cabin crew loved working on them and pilots loved flying them. So did passengers," he said.
"They have carved out a very special place in aviation history and I know they'll be greatly missed by a lot of people."
