What’s it like to fly on a Presidential VIP Boeing 747 private jet? Join me on this jackpot flight from London to Beijing.
Video
History of this B747-400 Combi (MSN28551/LN1131)
This Boeing 747-400 Combi (Reg: N28551) was initially built for Asiana Airlines but the airline did not take delivery. She was then assigned to Air Namibia in Oct 1999 before serving Abu Dhabi Amiri Flight (2004-2015), Morocco Government (2015-2017) and Dubai Air Wing (2017-2021) before being sold off.
It was in storage for 2 years and has recently been activated. Engineers share their work on keeping the 747 active before we take off in my video.
The 1997 aircraft logged 21,102 flight hours in 4,241 cycles. The VIP interiors were refurbished in 2019 and can accommodate 91 passengers in comfort.
The Airplane
Interior Tour of VIP B747-400
After takeoff, I tour the VIP 747 interiors from the private bedroom to the “golden” bathroom with shower, then the “Majlis” area, the dining/conference area, the rear cargo hold, and the upper deck suites.
The airplane furniture and carpet was mostly covered as it was in storage for over 2 years.
There is also a private toilet with a walk-in shower inside the bedroom.
The 2nd zone is the "Majili" hall. You can see how wide the B747 looks like without all the walls and dividers.
Next is the dining/conference area that can fit 26 people.
The airplane can also carry an entourage with Business Class recliner seating in 2-3-2 configuration.
On the upper deck, you can find 8 mini-suites that can fully recline.
Given the 747 is a Combi, it can carry cargo in the aft fuselage, in addition to the cargo hold. There is a horse container that comes with the airplane.
The cargo area on the main deck can carry 95 tons of cargo (concert equipment, horses, cars etc.)
Golden Cockpit
Perhaps the most interesting feature of this VIP B747 is in the cockpit. Check out the golden throttles, speedbreak and flap control. The engineers seem to think they're made of real gold. Who knows but it is certainly the most "crazy" cockpit feature I've seen! I am sure the pilot feels extra "powerful" on the control.
The Flight
Our ferry flight from London Stansted to Beijing took 10 hours and 27 minutes. Don't miss the video on takeoff and landing from the cockpit.
The routing took us flying over 15 countries over the United Kingdom, EU Airspace, Türkiye, Georgia, Azerbaijan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan and China.
During the flight, I tried out the private bedroom. It was a weird experience to have such a large space all to myself. I was feeling adrenaline in my body and became quite excited yet emotional, thinking about this once-a-lifetime special experience.
Soon, the sun rises again over Xinjiang province, China as we continue to head East. It was a gorgeous sunrise fully caught on my video.
We landed on Runway 01 at Beijing Capital International Airport. That was the end of the ferry flight.
The B747-400 will be undergoing heavy maintenance in Beijing. I am grateful to see another B747 back in the sky and this once-a-lifetime experience flying inside a Presidential 747!
Video
Enjoy the full flying experience in my vlog: