Northwest Aerospace News PNAA 2021 ADVANCE | Page 21

The first 747 and the first 747-400 fly over Seattle in 1988 .
In 1966 , Boeing established the Boeing Space Center in Kent , Washington , to support NASA ’ s Apollo program both with program leadership and with construction and testing of a spacecraft called the Lunar Rover that carried Apollo astronauts across the moon ’ s surface .
By 1971 , a worldwide recession lead to the cancellation of Boeing ’ s flagship Supersonic Transport program and an end to commercial jet orders . During this particularly trying time , Boeing CEO Thornton “ T ” Wilson pursued diversification strategies , launching programs that included refining wind turbine technology and building the world ’ s first wind farm in Goodnoe Hills , Washington . By the end of the decade , Wilson oversaw the launch of two new airplane programs , the 757 and 767 , which introduced a number of innovations that are fundamental to commercial aviation today .
The Model 777 , launched in October 1990 , was the first entirely new Boeing airplane in more than a decade and was the first jetliner to be 100 percent digitally designed . Entering revenue service in 1995 , more than 1,600 have been delivered and the newest members of the family , the 777-8 and 9 , are currently in certification flight testing over the Pacific Northwest .
At the turn of the century , Boeing introduced the world ’ s first composite commercial jet , the 787 Dreamliner . With a focus on passenger experience , efficiency and sustainability , the 787 is the fastest selling twin-aisle jet in history , having revolutionized air travel by allowing passengers to bypass the hub-and-spoke model previously used by airlines with more desirable point-to-point travel .
Throughout the company ’ s history , Boeing employees have often faced and overcome tremendous adversity , and have taken on challenges that others thought to be too difficult or even impossible . Today , Boeing once again faces tremendous adversity in the form of a global pandemic and its dramatic effect on the aerospace industry , but the can-do , pioneering spirit and optimism that was there in the early days is still strong today . And just as the company has done in the past , Boeing will make it through these times , and there will be no turning back .
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FEBRUARY | MARCH 2021 ISSUE NO . 19 21