Dreamliners replace Qantas jumbos on Sydney-San Francisco

The last Qantas Boeing 747 route to the US mainland will succumb to more fuel-efficient 787-9s at the end of the year as Dreamliners take over on Sydney- San Francisco. The move will be another bittersweet moment for the Flying Kangaroo which has ferried passengers across the Pacific in the “Queen of the Skies” for four decades and plans to phase out the 747 completely by the end of next year. The big plane's departure has been accelerated by the arrival of six additional 787s to complement the eight planes it currently has in its fleet. US carriers have already stopped flying the iconic plane, which is credited with opening the world to a generation of travelers. READ:  Qantas appoints new head of International. The new 787s start arriving from October and the Dreamliner fleet is expected to reach its full strength of 14 aircraft in the second half of 2020. The daily Sydney-San Francisco Dreamliner service begins December 4 and will complement Qantas’s existing four times weekly 787 service between Melbourne and San Francisco. The popular Californian tourist and business destination brings the number of international destinations currently served by the Qantas Dreamliner to five. The plane also flies to Los Angeles, New York, Hong Kong and London, with the Perth-London route one of the longest in the world and proving a lucrative addition to the Qantas network. The 236-seat planes bring improvements for passengers in terms of the latest seats as well as in areas such as reduced noise and increased cabin pressure. They come equipped with the latest business class suite as opposed to the now dated business seats on the 747s. There is also a next-generation premium economy seat and a new economy seat. “Our Dreamliner is the most comfortable aircraft we have ever flown,’’ said Qantas International acting chief executive Naren Kumar. “Customer feedback on the cabin environment, from the seats to the anti-jetlag measures, continues to exceed our expectations. “We’ll also soon begin upgrading the cabins of our A380 aircraft which means the inflight experience for our customers traveling to the United States will have never been better. “The 747 has been the backbone of our international fleet for more than 40 years, so it will be the end of an era and the start of another when we farewell the Queen of the Skies from flying to mainland America.”