A Big Day For The Biggest Boeings... And Their Building

Monday was a big day for the biggest Boeing planes... and the big building where they're built (say that fast three times -- Ed.) The American planemaker delivered its 3,000th widebody airplane from its Everett, WA site. The airplane was a 777-200ER (Extended Range) model that was delivered to Korean Air.

The 3,000 airplanes built and delivered from the Boeing Everett factory include 747, 767 and 777 models. The site -- completed in 1968, to assemble the 747 -- is celebrating its 40th anniversary this year.

"We are honored to receive the 3,000th airplane assembled at the Everett plant," said J.H. Lee, president and COO, Korean Air. "Boeing Everett employees have made high-quality, reliable airplanes that have played a critical role in the success of our airline."

The 3,000th airplane is joining the Korean Air fleet of 123 airplanes, which includes 13 777-200ERs, four 777-300s, 24 747-400s and 21 747-400 Freighters. Korean Air plans to use the new 777 for long-haul business routes to the Americas, Europe and the Middle East.

"This Korean Air 777 exemplifies the amazing accomplishments that have taken place at this factory over the past 40 years," said Ross R. Bogue, vice president and general manager, 747/767/777 Programs and Everett site. "This milestone is a tribute to the hard work and dedication of our Boeing employees, suppliers and the community. Our focus on the customer enables us to produce airplanes that provide the highest levels of safety, quality, reliability and value."

Over the years, the 3,000 widebody airplanes assembled at the Everett site have established a strong track record. Combined, the 747, 767 and 777 have completed more than 34.5 million flights through June 2007, and have logged approximately 148 million flight hours -- nearly 17,000 years of flight time.

"We can all take great pride in the achievements these airplanes have made and continue to make," Bogue said. "The Boeing 747, 767 and 777 are amazing airplanes with an unparalleled record of reliability, which is illustrated by the number of Boeing widebody airplanes in service today."

Currently, more than 80 percent of the airplanes built at the Everett site -- approximately 2,610 airplanes -- are in service around the world.

The 3,000th-delivery milestone comes nine years after the Everett site celebrated its 2,000th delivery -- a 747-400 taken by British Airways on May 15, 1998. The plant's 1,000th widebody delivery was a 767-300ER delivered to Scandinavian Airlines on August 14, 1989.

According to Boeing, the Everett plant's main assembly building -- which the Guinness Book of World Records acknowledges as the largest building in the world by volume -- has grown over the years to enclose 472 million cubic feet of space. Its footprint covers 98.3 acres.

When the original building was first completed, workers reported seeing clouds forming inside the building, according to original 747 program manager Joe Sutter. Today, the facility serves as Boeing's showcase plant.

(Note: Boeing added the DC-10 and MD-11 airplanes to its widebody family in the 1997 merger with McDonnell Douglas. Deliveries of these widebody commercial airplanes totaled 586 when production ceased in 2000. Boeing points out, however, these airplanes are not included in this milestone... since those airplanes were not assembled at the Everett site. This is, perhaps, a more charitable way of saying these were not Boeing-designed aircraft.)

FMI: www.boeing.com, Learn More About The Everett Site