FSX-SE Why is "this" Qantas airplane significant...??

[P_7878 6,534]

Folks, if you wish, please take a shot at a reply, here, (without, first, taking recourse to your "friend", in the internet search-engine,...🙂...)...

"What is significant about this particular 747-400 (Jumbo or Queen of the Skies - as you (or the airlines) may, fondly, call it...)...?"

And, while at it, hope, you also enjoy these few simple pictures, below, of this iconic aircraft type....(departing Sydney)....!!

[BTW, I just happened to find this Qantas livery....(lurking around in my legacy PMDG 747 directory)...]

Edited July 22, 2020 by P_7878

[vc10man 732]

Due to be retired end of this month, AFAIK because a poster here posed the question to take the Last Flight on it, or take up a new job. Right?

[P_7878 6,534]

Rick: Right......This specific (VH-OEJ) tail-number, arrived, "today", at LAX, from Sydney, on the way to the California’s Mojave Desert....

End of the Qantas 747 era.. this happened to be the very last one...(of the two, I believe, that were retired this month...)....

[I was just struck by the coincidence of seeing (VH-OEJ) in my old PMDG 747 folder, and, I'd only one Qantas livery in there...]

[vc10man 732]

18 minutes ago, P_7878 said:

Rick: Right......This specific (VH-OEJ) tail-number, arrived, "today", at LAX, from Sydney, on the way to the California’s Mojave Desert....

End of the Qantas 747 era.. this happened to be the very last one...(of the two, I believe, that were retired this month...)....

[I was just struck by the coincidence of seeing (VH-OEJ) in my old PMDG 747 folder, and, I'd only one Qantas livery in there...]

Thanks. And the name on the nose, Longreach, stuck in my mind, as I have seen her and photographed her many a time when Qantas used to fly into Manchester UK.

[SoJourned 65]

[P_7878 6,534]

Thanks. folks..!

Perfect drawing of the kangaroo over the Australian coast...!! Beautiful...!!

Qantas CEO Alan Joyce:
“They have made the world smaller….it overcame the tyranny of distance that was and continued to be an issue for Australia.”

The flight’s co-pilot, Greg Fitzgerald:
“It’s like Aeroplane Jelly and Vegemite – it’s always been there. We don’t know life without the 747.”...🙂....
.

[YMMB 234]

I wonder if Qantas could share the flight plan including co-ords for the kangaroo?  I looked it up on Flightaware and it didn't include the kangaroo section. Flight QFA 7474

[Shug 210]

VH-OEJ also famous for wearing the Wunala Dreaming livery at one time.

[Shug 210]

4 hours ago, vc10man said:

Thanks. And the name on the nose, Longreach, stuck in my mind, as I have seen her and photographed her many a time when Qantas used to fly into Manchester UK.

Rick, I think you'll find that Longreach was on the nose of every Qantas 747-400. 

[787flyer 633]

Nice screenies. Thanks for posting.👍 I ave one or two that i painted in my PMDG fleet as well.

Its a sad day to see the Queen leave the Qantas fleet and for that matter, other airline fleets as well.

On the other hand lets hope Qantas project Sunrise comes to fruition that pushes the envelope of flight travel even further.

[vc10man 732]

5 hours ago, Shug said:

VH-OEJ also famous for wearing the Wunala Dreaming livery at one time.

Saw it, right in front of me, at Melbourne, as I waited to catch an Ansett flight to Canberra

5 hours ago, Shug said:

Rick, I think you'll find that Longreach was on the nose of every Qantas 747-400. 

Thanks for the update

[DAH4062 45]

1 hour ago, vc10man said:

Saw it, right in front of me, at Melbourne, as I waited to catch an Ansett flight to Canberra

 

Hi Rick.

 

The one you saw must have been VH-OJB, a non-ER -438 with RB211s. It was the original Wunala Dreaming from I think 1994 to around 2003 when the ERs were coming in. 

 

If you had been waiting for an Ansett flight it must have been pre-2001 when they went bust, which would place you in the OJB era.

[vc10man 732]

1 hour ago, DAH4062 said:

 

Hi Rick.

 

The one you saw must have been VH-OJB, a non-ER -438 with RB211s. It was the original Wunala Dreaming from I think 1994 to around 2003 when the ERs were coming in. 

 

If you had been waiting for an Ansett flight it must have been pre-2001 when they went bust, which would place you in the OJB era.

Yes, in fact it was 1995. At that time I was not into aircraft registration marks. I just stood and gazed at the Wunala Dreaming 747-400 gracefully gliding to take off threshold.

[P_7878 6,534]

Hi All:

Glad for the many interesting comments and recollections...!!

 

Bit of notes:

This Boeing 747-438ER was the 57th and "last" Boeing 747 delivered to Qantas (coincidentally was also the last 747 to leave Qantas...). After been received by Qantas, on July 30 (2003), next day, July 31 (2003), it was ferried from Everett to New Iberia, Louisiana, in an "All Red" livery (see first image below) without titles for painting. The aircraft was then painted in the traditional Aboriginal "Wunala Dreaming" livery. It was the second Qantas 747 to carry the "Wunala Dreaming" livery (see last three images below).

VH-OEJ had operated its first revenue service (Sydney - Los Angeles) on August 26, 2003, and it flew, for the last time, yesterday, July 22, 2020, the same route (Sydney - Los Angeles).

In January, 2012, it was painted in the standard (Corporate) livery. The aircraft was renamed 'Wunala' with a black kangaroo directly under the name. You will spot these markings on a few of my screenshots above. You have (already) noted the word "Longreach" under the black kangaroo. Apparently this word has a double meaning: it signifies both the "long reach" of the aircraft (i.e. they have a long range), and the town where Qantas commenced operations: Longreach, Queensland.

So, below, please find a few (more) repaint-previews of (VH-OEJ), I caught, from the local Avsim Library files: 3 for Wunala dreaming, and one for an "All Red" paint before the Wunala dreaming livery was applied to (VH-OEJ).

Enjoy (and fly them if you can)...🙂...!

 

Edited July 23, 2020 by P_7878

[787flyer 633]

That is one smart repaint I have to say!👏

If I remember, this particular aircraft VH-OEJ has worn a number of different, special liveries over the years including the World cup livery with the football (soccer), the boxing kangaroo livery etc. I also remember a F1 racing livery but this may have not been this aircraft.