I am almost surprised they didn't announce the removal of their 12 A380s too. .......
The 747's were being phased out anyway (2 more were retired in March and April this year) and there would have been a much reduced fleet over the next few years, until the final retirement in 4 years time.
Also, the 747's passenger capacity is easily covered by some of the 777's (there are various seating layouts) and by the new A350's.
On the other hand, the A380's, with their much higher passenger capacity, are a bit of an enigma in light of what is going to be a period of uncertainty over the coming year.
I could see them being kept in storage, with possibly a few brought back if the higher capacity routes recover enough.
It must be costing a lot of money to keep these aircraft in storage and in airworthy condition. BA have been flying teams of engineers out to Chateauroux on a weekly basis, on company A319's.
However, I suspect (just speculating) that retiring this fleet would incur a big financial hit for the airline.
