Son Of The Company Founder Chose A Different Career

William E. Boeing Jr., the son of the founder of the aerospace giant, passed away Wednesday from unknown causes at the age of 92.

“We are deeply saddened by the passing of Bill Boeing, Jr.," Boeing Chairman and CEO Jim McNerney said in a statement.

“We are especially grateful for his efforts to preserve our largest home community’s history of aerospace innovation by helping secure and renew the legendary Red Barn, our first factory, a special place that he visited as a boy. Then, as a leading light in the creation and expansion of the Museum of Flight, he helped showcase our heritage and inspire generations to join in and further advance the science and business of aerospace.

“As a successful businessman and a model for citizenship, Bill positively shaped the region around Seattle, not least through his family support for the Seattle Children’s Hospital, and all the while sharing his passion for education and history wherever he could.

“Bill continued his family’s great heritage with grace, energy and goodwill. As we cherish his memory, we will also continue to see his works through the institutions he left us and the people who were helped and inspired by his leadership.”

The Associated Press reports that Bill Boeing Jr. chose a career in commercial real estate rather than follow his father into the airplane business.

But he continued his ties to the aviation community. The Museum of Flight ...  which he helped create ... said in an obituary posted on its website "as a trustee at the Museum, he led the way in turning the institution from a small, local attraction to one of international importance. Fueled by an unparalleled commitment to furthering education and preserving aerospace history, his guidance and support allowed the institution to pursue its mission of becoming “the foremost educational air and space museum in the world.” Among the most important of his Museum-related achievements was his leadership in saving, moving, and restoring the historic Red Barn – where his father began building floatplanes in 1916. In an operation that was guided and financed by Mr. Boeing, the Red Barn was floated by river barge from its original location on the Duwamish River to sit adjacent to Boeing Field on what would become The Museum of Flight campus."

FMI: www.museumofflight.org