Seattle’s Lake Washington. It was the same airfield where the Douglas World Cruisers began and finished their firstever around-the-world flight in 1924. From Sand Point, Boeing also delivered Army and U.S. Navy fighters as well as the company’s first production commercial airplanes, the Model 40. In 1926, the U.S. Navy began to turn Sand Point into a naval air station and the local community responded by approving the construction of the region’s first municipal airport and dedicating it to William Boeing. The King County International Airport, also known as Boeing Field, opened in 1928. And the Boeing Airplane Company established a hangar at the field and soon began to deliver airplanes there— the first a Boeing Model 80. During World War II, a camouflaged Boeing Field was the site for deliveries of the B-17 Flying Fortress and B-29 Stratofortress. At the height of production Boeing handed over an average of 12 B-17s each day. With the beginning of the jet age and introduction of the 707 commercial jetliner, Boeing opened a Commercial Delivery Center at the south end of Boeing Field. Commercial deliveries later were moved to the north end of the airport; the former site now is used for testing and delivery of military derivatives of Boeing commercial jets, including the E-3 Sentry Airborne Warning and Control System, or AWACS, and P-8A Poseidon. Now, the 737 has a new, upgraded delivery center, the most recent chapter in Boeing’s century-long history of delivering world-class jetliners. And with the 737 order backlog numbering in the thousands, it looks to stay a busy place for many years to come. n MICHAEL.J.LOMBARDI@BOEING.COM Photos: (Top) At nearly 6,000 square feet (560 square meters), the entryway of the Seattle Delivery Center is the focal point of the facility, connecting the new building with the existing one, which also has been remodeled. JIM ANDERSON | BOEING (Bottom) A Xiamen Air 737-800, parked and ready for delivery from one of three new covered jetways at the Seattle Delivery Center. MARIAN LOCKHART | BOEING 14 BOEING FRONTIERS
Frontiers November 2015 Issue
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