Seattle – Boeing Tour

On Tuesday, July 22nd we drove 20 miles north to Mulkiteo for a tour of a Boeing Factory where they build airplanes. We were not allowed to bring personal items into the factory itself. No backpacks, no purses, no cell phones, and no cameras translate to no photos. When I sat down to write this post how I realized much I relied on pictures to jog my memory.

What do I remember? We started in an auditorium with a short film and then took a bus that ran the length of a long hangar type building. Volume-wise the building was huge. It could house all of Disneyland. At two locations we got out, walked down long hallways, and went up a large freight elevator. We saw 747s and 787s being built. I was surprised it was a very labor intensive, individual driven process, not an assembly line as I would have expected of a factory. Planes are only assembled here. All components and parts come from other locations. The tour was very polished and efficiently presented and we were not allowed to linger. To review what we'd been shown, we were directed to a collection of educational online videos at https://www.youtube.com/user/Boeing. Some anecdotal information did linger in my brain.

I, Frank, Margaret, Joe, John, and Sue pose for a complimentary photo taken as part of the Boeing Tour.

The twenty mile drive north took about a half hour.

When the 707 was introduced it was not selling well and so Boeing, having sunk a lot of its capital into the new design, hired veteran pilot Tex Johnston to fly it at an air show. Unexpectedly  – and unsanctioned – the pilot took the  huge 707 into a barrel roll at one end of the field. To prove it was not a mistake he did it again at the other end. When an executive asked him afterward what he though he was doing the pilot replied, "Selling airplanes". It worked.

The 787 is also called the Dreamliner. It is designed for the comfort of its passengers and so has more room. Because it is built more of carbon composite fiber than aluminum, corrosion is not such a big issue. The cabin can be kept at a more comfortable humidity level for people. Passengers are less jet lagged because the windows undergo illumination changes to simulate the passage of time and the sun.

A 737 like Southwest Airlines flies exclusively sells for about $300 million. I think the Dreamliner was about twice that. Planes are ordered and a 50% deposit placed before construction begins. Planes are not built on spec. They are built for a specific customer and that airline's name is displayed on the fuselage of the plane itself and on all the paperwork accompanying assembly. Once built, a plane is first tested by Boeing pilots, then tested by pilots of the buyer with Boeing pilots along. A plane's virgin flight (after the test flights) originates from the Boeing field and is fully populated with flight crew and passengers.

The tour bus let us off at the entrance to the gift shop (naturally). We browsed there and made some purchases with the benefit of Joe's one time annual 30% discount as a Boeing employee. We then grabbed a quick lunch in a cafe off the lobby of the Future of Flight Aviation Center. The floor of the lobby itself was quite unique, a map of the area. This image was reminiscent of a clever practice during war time. A replica of an aerial view of an entire city was painted on the flat roof of airplane factories to camouflage them from potential bombings.

The floor of the lobby was embellished with a satellite view of the Boeing Factory,
the Future of Flight Aviation Center, and surrounding area.

After lunch we walked down a small ramp in the aviation center to look at the Aviation Gallery, a large room full of displays. Our timing was perfect because we were able to have a guided tour by a former Boeing employee.

The retired employee was delighted to have an engaged audience and
we were glad to listen and learn instead of just reading signage.

Remember paper tickets? These are a far cry from today's electronic boarding passes
or an image on your smart phone that you show to board at the gate.
Security was a lot easier long ago, too.

After the guided tour we went to the observation deck and saw a few planes taking off and landing. From our tour bus we had seen one test flight take off earlier in the day. You can tell a test flight because the plane is still painted an aqua green and not the colors of the purchasing airline.

The skies are getting to be a bit more typical Seattle raincloud color. It misted a bit.
Sue, Margaret, Joe, John, and Frank pause in their observations to pose for this photo.

Before leaving, to prove we had all been there, I convinced everyone that we needed to memorialize our feet on the map.

Clockwise from upper left:    Frank, Sue, Margaret, John, me, and Joe.

After driving back to home base, Joe was our chef for the night, grilling some chicken he had marinated. We played FitzIt™ and Bananagrams™. Though I think for our crew, which overthinks everything, we needed to rename the game FightsIt™. There were strong objections to saying the item "beef" for the phrase "usually considered unhealthy"  and we took issue with using the item "helicopter" for the phrases "hollow" and "can be recycled". Bananagrams™ was a bit safer.

I brought along these games because they were small and so packed well.
Little did I suspect how contentious they would turn out to be!

The wisest game choice of all, however, was assembling the 550 piece sea scene puzzle purchased the day before at the Seattle Aquarium. There was much less controversy! A piece either "fitz" or it duzn't".

Hmmm...    Just where does this piece go?

There was a lot of blue and a lot of same-colored fish in multiple places, but we persevered.