美国国家公共电台 NPR United Says Goodbye To Its Iconic 'Queen Of The Skies'

 

DAVID GREENE, HOST:

A United Airlines flight from San Francisco to Honolulu today marks the end of an era. This will be the last time United flies the iconic Boeing 747. Now, when the 747 first started carrying passengers in 1970, this jumbo jet was known as the queen of the skies. And as NPR's David Schaper reports, it ushered¹ in a golden age of commercial flight.

DAVID SCHAPER, BYLINE²: Back when our TV screens were small and needed tubes to show a picture, Boeing came out with a plane that revolutionized air travel.

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)

UNIDENTIFIED MAN: Chances are, you've heard about the plane with a spiral staircase in first class, the plane the two wide aisles³ and the three wide-screen movies and the 8-foot ceilings in economy.

SCHAPER: The 747 could carry twice as many passengers as its largest predecessor⁴, the 707, and it has that distinctive⁵ hump that allows for a second level.

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)

UNIDENTIFIED MAN: Now you know, Pan Am will bring you...

SCHAPER: This vintage 1969 commercial announced that the now defunct⁶ Pan Am Airways⁷ would be the first to offer 747 flights, emphasizing the roominess, the fine dining and amenities⁸ that Boeing Company historian Michael Lombardi says few had ever experienced before in flight.

MICHAEL LOMBARDI: One of the great features and then of course that really exclusive opportunity to go up that spiral staircase on those first 747s and go into that upper deck lounge, that was just a very singular experience in air travel.

SCHAPER: But Lombardi says it wasn't just the luxuries that made the 747 a game changer. It could economically carry hundreds of passengers much longer distances nonstop.

LOMBARDI: For the first time in history, anybody in the world could get on an airplane and fly anywhere. That's what the 747 did. It gave wings to the world.

BILL KLINT: To me, it was just, I think, the spaciousness⁹ of the aircraft.

SCHAPER: That's 89-year-old Bill Klint, who loved the 747 in its early days and will be on that final United flight today.

B. KLINT: You get in there and you could sit back. It was like being in the living room.

SCHAPER: Klint especially loved flying the 747 to Hawaii.

B. KLINT: The minute you get on board, you heard the Hawaiian music. And actually, the crew was all dressed in native garb¹⁰, so to speak. No prissy uniforms or anything, it was all, like, a native thing.

MATT KLINT: I do get jealous sometimes, absolutely.

SCHAPER: Klint's 31-year-old nephew is joining him on today's final United 747 flight. Matt Klint is a travel industry consultant¹¹ who flies 200,000 miles a year.

M. KLINT: The 747 has taken me all around the world - to Asia, to Australia, to South America, to Africa. And it's been a wonderful aircraft.

SCHAPER: But with four engines, a 747 isn't nearly as fuel-efficient as modern twin-engine planes.

(SOUNDBITE OF GLORIES' "BRAVO SIERRA")

SCHAPER: British Airways, Korean Air and a few other international airlines still fly 747s. And it's still widely used for freight. Delta¹² too will later this year retire its final 747, a plane that in its heyday¹³ captured the imaginations of millions of travelers. David Schaper, NPR News, Chicago.

1 ushered   

v.引，领，陪同( usher的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• The secretary ushered me into his office. 秘书把我领进他的办公室。
• A round of parties ushered in the New Year. 一系列的晚会迎来了新年。 来自《简明英汉词典》

2 byline   

n.署名；v.署名

参考例句：

• His byline was absent as well.他的署名也不见了。
• We wish to thank the author of this article which carries no byline.我们要感谢这篇文章的那位没有署名的作者。

3 aisles   

n. (席位间的)通道, 侧廊

参考例句：

• Aisles were added to the original Saxon building in the Norman period. 在诺曼时期，原来的萨克森风格的建筑物都增添了走廊。
• They walked about the Abbey aisles, and presently sat down. 他们走到大教堂的走廊附近，并且很快就坐了下来。

4 predecessor   

n.前辈，前任

参考例句：

• It will share the fate of its predecessor.它将遭受与前者同样的命运。
• The new ambassador is more mature than his predecessor.新大使比他的前任更成熟一些。

5 distinctive   

adj.特别的，有特色的，与众不同的

参考例句：

• She has a very distinctive way of walking.她走路的样子与别人很不相同。
• This bird has several distinctive features.这个鸟具有几种突出的特征。

6 defunct   

adj.死亡的；已倒闭的

参考例句：

• The scheme for building an airport seems to be completely defunct now.建造新机场的计划看来整个完蛋了。
• This schema object is defunct.No modifications are allowed until it is made active again.此架构对象不起作用。在重新激活之前，不能进行任何改动。

7 AIRWAYS   

航空公司

参考例句：

• The giant jets that increasingly dominate the world's airways. 越来越称雄于世界航线的巨型喷气机。
• At one point the company bought from Nippon Airways a 727 jet. 有一次公司从日本航空公司买了一架727型喷气机。

8 amenities   

n.令人愉快的事物；礼仪；礼节；便利设施；礼仪( amenity的名词复数 )；便利设施；（环境等的）舒适；（性情等的）愉快

参考例句：

• The campsite is close to all local amenities. 营地紧靠当地所有的便利设施。
• Parks and a theatre are just some of the town's local amenities. 公园和戏院只是市镇娱乐设施的一部分。 来自《简明英汉词典》

9 spaciousness   

n.宽敞

参考例句：

• A high ceiling gives a feeling of airness and spaciousness. 天花板高给人一种通风和宽敞的感觉。
• The tremendous spaciousness of it was glowing with rich gold. 苍茫辽阔的景色染上了一片瑰丽浓艳的金黄色。

10 garb   

n.服装，装束

参考例句：

• He wore the garb of a general.他身着将军的制服。
• Certain political,social,and legal forms reappear in seemingly different garb.一些政治、社会和法律的形式在表面不同的外衣下重复出现。

11 consultant   

n.顾问；会诊医师，专科医生

参考例句：

• He is a consultant on law affairs to the mayor.他是市长的一个法律顾问。
• Originally,Gar had agreed to come up as a consultant.原来，加尔只答应来充当我们的顾问。

12 delta   

n.（流的）角洲

参考例句：

• He has been to the delta of the Nile.他曾去过尼罗河三角洲。
• The Nile divides at its mouth and forms a delta.尼罗河在河口分岔，形成了一个三角洲。

13 heyday   

n.全盛时期，青春期

参考例句：

• The 19th century was the heyday of steam railways.19世纪是蒸汽机车鼎盛的时代。
• She was a great singer in her heyday.她在自己的黄金时代是个了不起的歌唱家。