Since 1970, United Airlines has been using the Boeing 747. Now the airline is selling off pieces of the planes—including the seats—as it prepares to retire the 747 planes from its fleet next month.
The company announced Wednesday that its MileagePlus members can use their award miles to buy or bid on pieces of 747 aircraft flown by the carrier. The buy now items available include triple and double passenger seats that cost 250,000 to 275,000 miles, respectively. Yes, the double seats cost more. The airlines is also selling single window cuts and 2-foot by 2-foot United Airlines livery panels.
The remaining items will become available online between Oct. 30 and Nov. 7, the date of the final United 747 flight. Members will be able to bid on items including the rudder trim indicator, standby airspeed indicator, N182UA – tail number cut, and forward- and rear-facing American flag cut-out
The proceeds from this auction through MileagePlus Exclusives will be used to bring middle school students to Air Camp, where they will get hands-on experiences with aviation and aeronautics.
United announced in January that it would push up the retirement date of its 747s to the fourth quarter of this year. The airline originally planned to take the planes out of service in 2018.
The company will officially retire the Boeing 747 from its fleet on Nov. 7. The last flight will be from San Francisco to Honolulu and will recreate the first 747 flight operated by United in 1970, including retro uniforms.