Northwest Aerospace News April | May 2019 Issue No. 8 | Page 19

T
he Queen was created by the
men and women of Boeing, from
brilliant engineers to highly skilled
machinists using imagination, courage,
hard work, dedication and above all:
passion. They worked long hours to
make real something that the world
said could not be done. Because of
that dedication they were called “The
Incredibles” and their pioneering spirit
and amazing accomplishment still
inspires the latest generation of Boeing
employees.
The 747 was also born from great
leadership, especially Joe Sutter who
headed the design team and has since
been known as the “Father of the 747.”
It started with the brilliant direction of
Boeing CEO William Allen. It was his
decision to take the great financial risk
to “bet the company” on a plane that
many said would not fly, both literally
and financially. It was also his friend-
ship with Juan Trippe, the legendary
leader of Pan American Airways, that
formed the catalyst for the launch of
the 747.
The partnership between Boeing and
Pan Am ushered in the jet age on Aug.
15, 1958, when Pan Am took delivery
of the United States’ first commercial
jet airliner, a Boeing 707-120. Plans
began for Oct. 26, 1958, when Pan Am
and the 707 would make history by
inaugurating the first 707 service and
the first daily transatlantic jet service
from New York to Paris. As a result,
air travel began to grow. By the early
1960s the gates at major airports were
reaching capacity and Juan Trippe
began the search for a bigger airplane.
Trippe and Allen made an “if you
buy it, we will build it” agreement to
build an airplane that would be twice
the size of the 707, launching the 747
program with a formal agreement in
April 1966.
On Sept. 30, 1968 the giant
jet rolled out of The
Boeing Company’s new
Everett, Washington plant,
[constructed while the first
747 was being assembled].
It was, and remains, the
world’s largest building.
The founding of that new Boeing site
near Paine Field in Everett, Washington
in 1967, along with the establishment
of Boeing suppliers who set up shop
in the local community, brought tens
of thousands of new jobs to the city of
Everett and neighboring communities.
Boeing exhibited to the world its new
hometown pride and honored the com-
munity by naming the first 747 the “City
of Everett.”
Since then, the Boeing site adjacent
to Paine Field has made Everett and
Washington State familiar names across
the globe — becoming a destination
for U.S. presidents, world leaders, and
other dignitaries — as well as more than
300,000 tourists from around the world
who visit Everett annually to tour the
giant Boeing facility.
Also on the global stage, the site leads
U.S. exports and is a gateway that
connects the U.S., Washington State and
the surrounding community to the entire
world.
Each day more than 30,000 Boeing em-
ployees continue the work of producing
wide-body jets in the now 472 million
cubic feet of space that covers over 98.3
acres. Fifty years after that first 747, the
site leads the world in making twin-aisle
jets — having produced more than 4,500
747s, 767, 777s and 787s.
Over the last fifty years, those employees
have provided their treasure and time to
the local community through the Boeing
Employee’s Community Fund, one of
the largest employee-directed charities in
the world.
The impact of the 747 and the new Ev-
erett factory was not just financial. The
airplane introduced a number of techno-
logical and aviation firsts, the greatest
being the invention of the twin-aisle
wide-body design. It also marked the
first commercial use of the high-bypass
turbofan engine. Beyond size, comfort
and efficiency, what is most import to the
flying public today is safety. Under the
command of chief designer Joe Sutter,
the 747’s design was based in safety.
APRIL | MAY 2019 ISSUE NO. 8
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