Couple weds on final Delta 747 flight, plane to retire in Arizona

PHOENIX — Some couples get married in a church. Some get married on the beach. But if you’re Holly Rick and Gene Peterson, you do things a little differently: You get married on a plane.

The couple married on board Delta Airlines’ final 747 passenger flight, which took place from Atlanta to Marana, Arizona on Wednesday, according to a press release from the airline.

For Holly, who is a Delta flight attendant, and Gene, who is a Delta pilot, getting married on the flight just seemed natural. The pair had met on the upper deck of a 747 that was flying U.S. troops to Kuwait nine years ago.

“We met nine years ago on the 747-400,” Gene said. “Since then we’ve spent years flying this airplane together around the world.

“In a lot of ways we really grew up on the 747, so it’s a fitting salute to say goodbye with this milestone. For us, it’s really a way of showing that as one life ends, another one begins.”

“We met at row 75,” Holly said. “I will never forget that day, and just feel so blessed that we are able to take this awesome aircraft on its last flight.”

Both Holly and Gene have been in the aviation industry for decades and used it to their advantage during their long-distance relationship.

“Every month Gene and I would look at our schedules and bid on flights together and every once in a while we’d get to fly together,” Holly said.

“There were times where we wouldn’t get on the same rotation and we’d be apart for a month and a half, but for us, it just worked.”

Holly said the 747 plane has began to “feel like home” to her, so it was only fitting that the couple would use it as the backdrop for their special moment.

“It’s always been my favorite plane, and it’s absolutely a love of Gene’s – he loves it like he loves me,” she said. “We’re so fortunate to able to give her a farewell with the memory of a lifetime. It was meant to be.”

After its final flight, the 747 passenger jet will now retire in Marana.

“I am very sad to say goodbye to one of the most iconic airplanes that’s ever been made, but we’re thrilled and proud to have this lifelong memory of getting married on the last passenger 747 flight in the United States,” Gene said.

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