Earlier this year, Frankfurt-based leisure carrier Condor Flugdienst celebrated 65 years since commencing operations in March 1956. The German airline has operated a wide range of aircraft over the years, including a handful of Boeing 747s. These came in two distinct periods, each corresponding to a different variant of Boeing’s famous jumbo jet.
The 747-200s
According to data from ATDB.aero, Condor has operated a total of four 747s over the years. The first three belonged to the 747-200 series, and joined the German leisure carrier in the 1970s. The 747-200 was a longer-range development of the original 747-100, with more powerful engines and an increased maximum takeoff weight (MTOW).
The first 747-200 to join Condor did so in April 1971, bearing the registration D-ABYF. D-ABYH then joined it just under a year later, in March 1972. The 747 was still in its infancy at the time, and Condor was the first leisure-focused carrier to fly the jumbo jet.
Both of these aircraft left Condor for Korean Air in 1979. Sadly, D-ABYH was shot down by Soviet fighter jets in 1983 while flying for Korean Air. It had strayed into prohibited USSR airspace, and the resulting crash tragically killed all 269 occupants. Condor operated a third and final 747-200 on lease from Lufthansa from January 1979 to June 1980.
A single 747-400
The departure of Condor’s last 747-200 in 1980 brought an end to the airline’s first period of jumbo jet operations. However, the 1990s would herald a new, if brief, dawn for the 747 at the German leisure carrier. It actually planned to lease three 747-400s from Lufthansa during this decade. However, it ultimately canceled two of these acquisitions.
This left the airline with a single 747-400 on lease from the German flag carrier. In actual fact, it was a 747-400M ‘Combi’ with an ‘SCD’ suffix that indicated that it had a side cargo door. This aircraft bore the registration D-ABTD, and it joined Condor in June 1993 to operate the German leisure carrier’s route to the Taiwanese capital of Taipei.
After just under three years at Condor, D-ABTD returned to Lufthansa in February 1996. It spent the rest of its career there, where it also bore the name Hamburg. 2012 marked the plane’s retirement, and it flew to the Mojave Desert in 2013 for scrapping.
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Condor’s fleet today
Condor’s present fleet no longer features aircraft anything like the 747 as far as size is concerned. According to data from ch-aviation.com, just 15 of its 50-strong fleet are widebody aircraft. All of these are examples of Boeing’s 767-300ER twinjet. However, with an average age of 25.8 years old, these planes’ days may be numbered.
This leaves Condor with 35 narrowbody aircraft at its disposal. The most numerous type is the rare stretched Boeing 757-300. It operates 13 of these ‘flying pencils,’ with an average age of 22.1 years old. Condor’s remaining 22 aircraft are all Airbus designs. In total, it has 12 A320s (20.1 years on average) and 10 A321s (7.2 years on average) in its fleet.
Did you know that Condor used to fly the Boeing 747? Perhaps you even flew on one of the German leisure carrier’s jumbos yourself? Let us know your thoughts and experiences in the comments.
