Singapore Airlines’ first B747-200B in 1973.

[Caravelle]

On the emotional occasion yesterday of Boeing rolling out its final B747 at Everett for Atlas Air, we look back at 50 years ago in 1973, when Singapore Airlines launched its B747-200 flights, with 2 lounges onboard and a service that even airlines talk about.

https://youtu.be/Mg_wbrEDQys

https://youtu.be/i7bhu1_i-1w

My first Boeing 747 flight was on a Singapore Airlines flight from Singapore to Sydney in 1976, where the respective airports were then known as Paya Lebar and Mascot. There was a live band onboard that played 2 sets of about 30 mins each in front of where the movie screen used to hang and I remembered too that they strummed their guitars and sang “Sweet Caroline”.

[Caravelle]

I remember reading the papers the following day of the arrival of SQ’s first 747-200Bs. The pair flew on different delivery paths, one via the Pacific and the other across USA and via the Atlantic.

https://www.nas.gov.sg/archivesonlin...5-0050568939ad

[Caravelle]

https://www.nas.gov.sg/archivesonlin...5-0050568939ad

[yflyer]

Thanks for sharing, Caravelle! Incredible to learn that they actually had a live band onboard in 1976 as "inflight entertainment"!

I don't think I ever flew on these SQ 747-200B's. By the time I got round to flying SQ's 747's it was their 747-400 Megatop in the 90's, flying SQ2 on the SIN-HKG sector, landing at the old Kai Tak. I remember feeling so envious of pax continuing on to SFO.