Boeing 747 / Federal ExpressBoeing 747 Federal Express airplane model. The hugely significant 747 revolutionized airline transport. Far bigger than anything before it, the 747 slashed operating costs per seat and thus cut the cost of long haul international airline travel. Boeing conceived the 747 in the mid 1960s following its failure to secure a US Air Force contract for an ultra large strategic transport (which resulted in the Lockheed C 5 Galaxy), when it identified a market