THE AIRPLANE USED by the Chinese premier for his trip to Ireland has become the largest commercial plane to ever land at Dublin Airport after it arrived this evening. 

Premier Li Qiang has arrived at Dublin Airport for a two-day visit to Ireland, during which he will meet Taoiseach Leo Varadkar and President Michael D Higgins. 

The aircraft carrying him, a Boeing 747-8, has a wingspan of 68 metres and is 76 metres long.

According to DAA, this is bigger than the current largest commercial aircraft to land at Dublin Airport – the B747-400, which has a wingspan measuring 64 metres and is 71 long.

It’s here! A very special moment as Air China flight CCA001 arrives at Dublin Airport - the largest passenger aircraft to land here in our 84 year history. We’re delighted to facilitate the arrival of Premier Li Qiang to Ireland. ✈️ pic.twitter.com/d500hBAR3n

— Dublin Airport (@DublinAirport) January 16, 2024

Esther Rowley, a plane spotter who lives in Dublin, told The Journal earlier today that she would be travelling to the airport to see the plane land. 

“The 747 is such an iconic aircraft. We don’t get to see many of them these days so to get a 747-8 version of it is just spoiling us,” she said.

“A lot of spotters have travelled to other airports just to see them, so to have them come to Dublin is just amazing for us to experience.

“A 747 is the type of plane that would make anyone stop to look at, even if you’re not interested in planes.”

Esther said that Dublin Airport does not see as many unusual aircraft landing there as it did in the past, but she said that spotters do still get the occasional surprise visitor.

“It makes this one more special,” she said. “Probably the most exciting ones in recent years have been Air Force One, an Ilyushin Il-96 and an Ilyushin Il-76.”

The largest aircraft of any kind to land at Dublin Airport is the military Lockheed C-5 Galaxy, with a wingspan of 67 metres and a length of 75 metres, which last visited Dublin in 2019.

The moment Chinese Premier Li Qiang stepped off the plane at Dublin Airport to be welcomed by Minister @EamonRyan. 🇮🇪 🇨🇳 pic.twitter.com/oZszg5OItf

— Dublin Airport (@DublinAirport) January 16, 2024

‘Exciting airplane’

Aoife Kiernan, another aviation enthusiast who is based in Dublin, told The Journal earlier that while she didn’t think she would be able to make it to the airport, she might be lucky enough to convince a family member to drop her out to take a look at the plane.

“It’s a big, exciting airplane and it has four engines, which is something rare these days,” she said. “It’s the most modern iteration of the B747 Jumbo which became a household name. It’s also a Chinese government aircraft with an interesting livery.”

Kiernan said that while Dublin Airport occasionally welcomes interesting aircraft, the schedule itself isn’t that exciting.

“There are some nice aircraft scheduled in like the B767 & the A350, and some airlines with nice liveries like Icelandair. It will be cool to see JetBlue come to Dublin this summer.”

She added that there is “definitely” a community who love plane spotting at Dublin Airport.

“I have good like-minded friends in a WhatsApp group and I look at Facebook groups too to get the latest airline goss.

“We are hoping for a nice plane-spotting platform at Dublin Airport that will be comfortable and accessible to all.”

‘Queen of the skies’

Fellow aviation enthusiast Brian Hayes explained the significance of the aircraft, saying the original Boeing 747 “broke the mould for flying for many decades”.

“The Boeing 747 has been going for over 50 years. It’s colloquially regarded as the queen of the skies in the aviation world,” he said.

The first 747-100 began operating in 1970 in the US. Decades later, the Boeing 747-800 started its rollout in 2010, with 155 produced since.

Many of the 800s are configured for freight, with less than a third of the fleet used for passenger transport.

An Air China Boeing 747-8 Alamy Stock Photo Alamy Stock Photo

“I flew on a 747 in 1988 and I thought I’d never fly one again – but last month, I flew a 747-800 from Frankfurt to San Francisco. It was fabulous,” Hayes said.

He said the significance of tonight’s event is mainly that it is the “first 747-800 to land in Dublin Airport”.

On top of that: “It’s big! And it will be a big presence this evening.”

Dublin Airport

DAA spokesperson Graeme McQueen said it marks “another significant milestone” for the airport.

“This will be the biggest commercial aircraft to ever land at Dublin Airport and will join the long list of landmark moments in the long history of the airport, which this week celebrates its 84th birthday,” he said.

Rowley said there is a “huge community” of people of all ages interested in spotting
planes at Dublin Airport.

“They all go for different reasons. Some go to take photos, some like to take note of the registration of the planes and some just go simply to watch,” she said.

“There is a huge following on a Dublin Movements Group on Facebook. When I joined in 2015, it had under 4,000 followers and now it has over 15,000.

“People share photos and news on it. Aviation enthusiasts from other countries love coming to spot at Dublin Airport too. It’s a great spotting environment and I have met so many lovely people who are as passionate about the hobby as I am, and I’m lucky enough to consider some as good friends.”

With reporting by Lauren Boland and Hayley Halpin