Farewell to the Falcon: Virgin Atlantic 747 retired to Spain

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Sad news as the Virgin Atlantic 747 nicknamed the Falcon flies down to Spain to be dismantled, an effect of the coronavirus outbreak that has seen these larger, less efficient 4 engine beasts retired from service in fleets across the aviation world.

First flying in 2001, the Falcon became famous in Star Wars circles when it was adorned in an image of the Millennium Falcon to celebrate the opening of Galaxy’s Edge last year.

Virgin Atlantic is currently flying its Star Wars liveried Boeing 747, nicknamed ‘The Falcon’, to Ciudad Real in Spain. The aircraft is the second of the final seven to make the journey, following the type’s sudden retirement in early May.

Today’s flight south to Spain is almost certainly the last one that G-VLIP will operate. The aircraft was initially bound for Alitalia. However, the Italian airline never took it, according to Planespotters. Instead, following its first flight in April 2001, Virgin Atlantic took delivery of the Boeing 747-400 on May 15th of that year.

In September last year, we were treated to G-VLIP’s second theme park sponsored livery. The aircraft was renamed as The Falcon to celebrate the opening of the new Star Wars area at Walt Disney World in Florida. The name change was accompanied by a big decal of the Millennium Falcon applied to the side of the aircraft.

Mark Newbold
Mark Newbold
Exploring the galaxy since 1978, Mark wrote his first fan fiction in '81 and been a presence online since his first webpage Fanta War in 1996. He currently contributes to ILM.com and SkywalkerSound.com, having previously written for Star Wars Insider, StarWars.com, Star Wars Encyclopedia, Build The Millennium Falcon, Starburst Magazine, Geeky Monkey, TV Film Memorabilia and Model and Collectors Mart. He is a four-time Star Wars Celebration Stage host (the only podcaster to have appeared on every Celebration podcast stage since it began in 2015), the Daily Content Manager of Fantha Tracks and the co-host of Making Tracks, Canon Fodder and Start Your Engines on Fantha Tracks Radio.
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Sad news as the Virgin Atlantic 747 nicknamed the Falcon flies down to Spain to be dismantled, an effect of the coronavirus outbreak that has seen these larger, less efficient 4 engine beasts retired from service in fleets across the aviation world.

First flying in 2001, the Falcon became famous in Star Wars circles when it was adorned in an image of the Millennium Falcon to celebrate the opening of Galaxy’s Edge last year.

Virgin Atlantic is currently flying its Star Wars liveried Boeing 747, nicknamed ‘The Falcon’, to Ciudad Real in Spain. The aircraft is the second of the final seven to make the journey, following the type’s sudden retirement in early May.

Today’s flight south to Spain is almost certainly the last one that G-VLIP will operate. The aircraft was initially bound for Alitalia. However, the Italian airline never took it, according to Planespotters. Instead, following its first flight in April 2001, Virgin Atlantic took delivery of the Boeing 747-400 on May 15th of that year.

In September last year, we were treated to G-VLIP’s second theme park sponsored livery. The aircraft was renamed as The Falcon to celebrate the opening of the new Star Wars area at Walt Disney World in Florida. The name change was accompanied by a big decal of the Millennium Falcon applied to the side of the aircraft.

Mark Newbold
Mark Newbold
Exploring the galaxy since 1978, Mark wrote his first fan fiction in '81 and been a presence online since his first webpage Fanta War in 1996. He currently contributes to ILM.com and SkywalkerSound.com, having previously written for Star Wars Insider, StarWars.com, Star Wars Encyclopedia, Build The Millennium Falcon, Starburst Magazine, Geeky Monkey, TV Film Memorabilia and Model and Collectors Mart. He is a four-time Star Wars Celebration Stage host (the only podcaster to have appeared on every Celebration podcast stage since it began in 2015), the Daily Content Manager of Fantha Tracks and the co-host of Making Tracks, Canon Fodder and Start Your Engines on Fantha Tracks Radio.
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