Don’t think I’ve ever heard it put that way. Found this on Wiki:
“In 1965, Joe Sutter was transferred from Boeing’s 737 development team to manage the design studies for the new airliner, already assigned the model number 747.[9] Sutter began a design study with Pan Am and other airlines to better understand their requirements. At the time, many thought that long-range subsonic airliners would eventually be superseded by supersonic transport aircraft.[10] Boeing responded by designing the 747 so it could be adapted easily to carry freight and remain in production even if sales of the passenger version declined.”
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boeing_747
1965 was pretty early in the program so it could be that they considered that too be a hedge. Air cargo was a small business in 65 so if it was a hedge somebody had great vision.
Cargo mainly needs a good truck to, pardon the expression, take off.
In terms of capacity the 747 was a game changer for air freight. The early turbofan engines reducing fuel consumption was a very big deal too.
Morning,
Here’s a hedge...
When HP built the first major building on Page Mill, Dave made sure the architecture would accommodate a supermarket in case the company didn’t ‘fly’.