The Boeing Factory Tour was a much anticipated event, and it certainly fulfilled our expectations.
However, no purses, backpacks, bags, still or video cameras are allowed on the tour, for security and safety reasons, so we cannot show you any pictures of the actual tour.
The facility is gigantic, located right beside the Paine Field airport. Convenient for maiden flights of recently assembled planes that will be flown off to their new owners.
It is a very large impressive assembly line facility. Imagine having three large cavernous buildings to house several assembly lines for building 3 or 4 different models of aircraft. I believe they are assembling the 767, 777, 747, and the new 787 at the facility. I say assembling because portions of the planes are built at other facilities, and the sub assemblies are brought to this facility to be assembled into the final product. There are about 30,000 employees working at this facility. Each of the buildings has it’s own cafeteria, exercise and lounge facilities, etc.. Employees ride bicycles within and between the buildings to keep travel time to a minimum.
After purchasing your tickets and waiting for your assigned tour start time, you are directed to a theater where you watch a short film about Boeing and the history of aviation. You r group is then taken outside to board busses that will take you between the 3 large buildings where the different models are built. On arrival at each building you enter a long basement corridor beneath the assembly areas, then into a large freight elevator that takes you up to a catwalk level above the assembly lines so you have a view down over each assembly line and can see how the planes start with parts that are assembled into a fuselage, then they add the wings and wheel assemblies, then the plane is rolled to the next position for additional assembly of the engines, tail, etc. to completion of the plane.
When we were there they were in process of building the first production of the 787 Dreamliner, scheduled for delivery in September to Japan Air Lines, I think.
The 90 or so minute tour concludes back at the aviation center where you are guided through a store where you can purchase model planes, t-shirts, etc. beyond the store there are various interesting exhibits. I went to the car and got my camera so I do have some pictures I can share with you.
Here is Sylvia in front of a section of a 787 Dreamliner fuselage, and me beside it.
There was also a mockup of a cockpit, and guess who jumped in and hammed it up for the camera….
I got to pose beside a landing gear from an older model plane.
The Dreamlifter is a large plane that they use to pick up and fly in assemblies with which they will assemble the 787s at the facility.
Beside the facility there were completed planes, awaiting delivery to the proud new owners.
The tour was well worth the time and money. If you are ever in the Seattle
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