Seahawks 747 Flies ’12th Man’ Pattern Over Seattle Skies
A special Seahawks 747 made its maiden voyage over the Seattle skies tracing the number 12 in the process, in time for Sunday’s Super Bowl XLVIII (48).
Boeing (BA-NYSE) — which was founded in Seattle, Washington and is headquartered in Chicago — proudly debuted its brand new 747 honoring the city’s favorite sons, the Seahawks, painting the legend “Spirit of 12s, Go Hawks” close to the nose of the plane, along with the team’s logo.
Moreover, during the test flight, the 747-8 Freighter took a short 13-minute flight from Paine Field, over downtown Seattle, and finally to Boeing Field before traveling on a three-hour, 20-minute “12th Man” trip around Washington.
This is what that pattern looks like on the radar tracking the Seahawks’ 747:
Boeing’s new Seahawks-themed 747 takes first flight in 12 pattern to salute Seattle fans http://t.co/l7CUkHlsxY pic.twitter.com/WCOawWY1p5
— Fox11.41 (@Fox11_41) January 31, 2014
“@BoeingAirplanes: Stunning even in the rain. The @Seahawks 747-8. #GoHawks #SB48 #Boeing pic.twitter.com/kAqTJS0XCi”
— mathieu domingue (@mathieudomingue) January 31, 2014
The special Seahawks 747 was unveiled earlier this week, complete with all the Super Bowl bound team paraphernalia to the delight and pride of Seattle fans.
The new Boeing member flies under the call sign BOE12 (how cool is that — even if you’re not a Seahawks fan) and for those geeks who want to follow exactly how making this cool design is possible, here is a link to the flight plan.
The Seahawks 747 was unveiled by Boeing on Wednesday and the “12 Man” flight took place on Thursday. The airline manufacturer shared some Super Bowl related “fun facts” along with the presentation of the aircraft:
“- It would take 144 747-8 Intercontinential passenger airliners to carry the 67,000 fans that fit in CenturyLink Field;
– Seahawks running back Marshawn Lynch can squat the weight of 16 economy seats (unfilled, of course);
– A 747-8 Freighter can carry 121 million Skittles (Lynch’s favorite treat); and
– Quarterback Russell Wilson’s longest pass this season was 80 yards, just 3.5 feet less than the length of a 747-8.”
Boeing Commercial Airplanes President and CEO Ray Conner said in a press release:
“The Seahawks have been an inspiration to our entire community throughout this incredible season. We’re honored that we could join together two Northwest icons, the Seahawks and the 747, for this special salute from the entire Boeing team.”
#Seahawks 747-8 #SB48 Next to a giant 12 mid-field, its all about the number… credit to @futureofflight @Boeing pic.twitter.com/ud6XsrQNVT
— Damned Demon (@Dave_Wilhelm) January 31, 2014
She's off! 747-8 in @Seahawks livery takes to the skies. #GoHawks #SB48 #Boeing pic.twitter.com/N53ONNlcKH
— Boeing Airplanes (@BoeingAirplanes) January 30, 2014
Tweets about “seahawks 747 photo”
In case you are wondering if this is a big waste of money, all planes have to do a test flight and the Seahawks 747 pattern is not the strangest thing Boeing has come up with.
[Image Courtesy of Boeing]
