Boeing 747-400-still use 3.5-inch floppy disks for critical software updates.

Despite their reputation as technological
marvels of the sky, some Boeing 747 aircraft-- especially older models like the 747-400-still use 3.5-inch floppy disks for critical software updates. These disks, which hold just 1.44 MB of data, are inserted manually into a special
disk drive in the cockpit or avionics bay to upload navigation databases and system configurations.
The reason lies in aviation's strict safety and certification standards. Once a system is proven stable and certified for flight, it's often left unchanged unless absolutely necessary, Updating to newer data transfer methods canbe costly, require recertification, and introduce
unforeseen issues-so airlines tend to stick
with what works, even if it's outdated by
consumer tech standards.
Technicians typically perform these updates every 28 days, inserting multiple floppy disks one by one. It's a time-consuming process, but for airlines still operating older 747s, it remains part of routine maintenance. While newer aircraft models use modern systems
legacy technology still lingers in aviation.

 

Hello!

In my industry, at least some machine data (for legacy products) are stored in floppy disks, so 5'25 inch floppys disks are uncommon, but not unseen!

Best regards,
Mac Juli

 

Cool

 

The Wright Brothers used CP/M.

 

My company still has the problem of trying to fit an engraved stone tablet into the abacus for updates.

 

Hey, the Roman empire worked quite well for longer than most organisations exist anyway...

 

Yes, members of management can often be seen "roman" around trying to figure out things work.

 

In this case, let me hope that your company is less in uproar than Rome in 238 AD...