NASA’s SOFIA airborne laboratory is set to retire more than a decade earlier than originally planned. In the first of a two-part feature, Bernd Sturm shines the spotlight on this unique aircraft and explores its unrivalled capabilities
There’s little doubt the venerable Boeing 747 has transformed the aviation industry. The iconic ‘Jumbo Jet’ brought air travel to the masses and opened up affordable international flights that made the world significantly smaller.
The type has earned its crust largely as a passenger transport and heavy-lift freighter, but it’s also served as a variety of specialist platforms, including tanker, airborne command post and even aerial firefighter. Of the almost 1,600 examples to roll off the Boeing production line, there is one heavily modified jet that remains unique – the Stratospheric Observatory For Infrared Astronomy. Better known by the acronym SOFIA, 747SP-21 N747NA (c/n 21441) is jointly operated by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) and the German Aerospace Center (DLR) and is equipped with the world’s largest airborne telescope. The highly capabl…
