BA’s ‘Queen of the Skies’ Jumbos Bid Farewell to Rainy London

Spectators take images of a British Airways Boeing 747 as it does a flypast over London Heathrow airport on it's final flight, the last of 31 jumbo jets to be retired early by the airline due to the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic, in London, Britain, on Oct. 8, 2020. Toby Melville/Reuters

LONDON—British Airways’ last jumbo jets bade farewell to London on Thursday but cloud and driving rain prevented a rare synchronised dual take off for the “Queen of the Skies” which brought long-haul flights to the masses.

Once the world’s largest operator of the 747, BA has now retired its entire jumbo jet fleet after COVID-19 curtailed most air travel, accelerating the move to more fuel-efficient planes.