Here is a United 747 buzzing the Golden Gate bridge in San Francisco. You can see that they have the flaps and gear down to get that puppy as slow as possible right over the bridge. You have to admire the steep turn with the plane setup in landing configuration, and the size of the plane makes it seem much slower than it really is. Notice the Seagull flyby in the foreground, and the pilots raising the landing gear after the flyby. Where was this plane headed next? Did it have passengers? – I’d say not likely, but it would not be out of the realm of possibility.
My wife and I had the pleasure of being on one of United’s 747-400s on the upper deck. It was a complete fluke as our flight from SFO to DEN was supposed to be flown by a 767. I suspect that they may have needed that 747 in Chicago or Dulles possibly because of a shortage of another heavy in one of those two places. There is nothing like the upper deck of the 747, it is extremely awe inspiring that such a heavy machine flies, and does so with grace.
