Perhaps the most surprising of this list of the ten airlines by number of Boeing 747 orders is that Pan Am does not appear on it. It was Pan Am that had a massive impact on the development of the Jumbo jet , and the carrier's legacy is entwined with it. Without Pan Am, it is unclear if Boeing would have developed the Queen of the Skies , and yet Pan Am is tied in 11th place for the most Boeing 747s ordered (with KLM and All Nippon Airways).
Pan Am ordered the early 100, 200F, and SP variants of the aircraft. Looking back on the legendary Boeing 747, here are the top airlines by the number of Boeing 747s ordered according to Boeing . Note the number of 747s operated might be significantly higher (many airlines purchased more Boeing 747s second-hand from other airlines).
10 Northwest Airlines Northwest placed 53 orders Unfulfilled orders: None Variants: 100, 200B, 200F, 400 Number remaining in service: None Coming in ninth place (tied with Air France) is Northwest Airlines with 53 Jumbos. Northwest was a major US airline that operated from 1926 until it merged with Delta Air Lines in 2010 ( by some measures, Delta is the largest airline operating in the world today ). Northwest ordered the original 100 variant, going on to order the 200B, 200F, and 400.
A number of 747-400s passed onto Delta following the merger; however, all of these have since been retired. Delta has moved away from Boeing widebody aircraft and now only operates Airbus widebodies (apart from its fleet of medi.