Reference
Boeing 747-400F
The nose-loading long-haul classic. Payload, cargo hold, door size and typical role below.
- Maximum payload
- 112,900 kg
- Cargo volume
- 755 m³
- Cargo hold (L × W × H)
- 48.00 × 4.86 × 3.04 m
- Cargo door
- 3.40 × 3.12 m
About the Boeing 747-400F
The 747-400 freighter, and for two decades the aircraft that carried most of the world's long-haul air cargo.
Like the -8F it has a hinging nose door, so long pieces load down the centreline rather than turning through a side opening. Many remain in service with the major cargo carriers alongside the newer -8F.
What it carries
How it is built
- A main deck cleared of cabin fittings and floored to take pallets and containers, with a cargo door in the forward or aft fuselage large enough to accept a full-height pallet.
- A powered roller and ball-mat floor system that lets a loaded pallet be pushed into position by one handler rather than lifted.
- Locks in the floor that engage the pallet base and hold the load against flight loads without separate lashing.
- A rigid barrier behind the flight deck separating the crew from the cargo compartment, with a smoke-detection and suppression system covering the deck.
- Lower-hold compartments retained under the main deck, taking the same LD-series containers a passenger aircraft carries.
Why it is used
- The highest payload and volume of any air freight equipment, which is what makes long-haul air cargo economic at all.
- Takes standard ULDs, so the load is built up away from the aircraft and craned aboard in minutes.
- Main-deck height accepts tall and awkward pieces that would never fit a belly hold.
- Long range with a full load, so intercontinental sectors fly without a technical stop.
What to check before booking
- Needs a main-deck loader and a widebody-capable stand, which limits the airports that can handle it.
- Payload and range trade against each other: a full structural payload usually means a shorter sector.
- Freighter capacity is concentrated in a few hubs, so the routing may add a road leg at either end.
Track your air cargo
Follow an air waybill from acceptance to delivery with live status and ETAs across every major carrier.