Editing Boeing Field (section)

==History==
Aviation history in Seattle began in 1910 when [[Charles K. Hamilton|Charles Hamilton]] performed an air show at The Meadows racetrack, located on the site of the present-day [[Museum of Flight]]. Hamilton executed diving maneuvers and staged a race between an aircraft and an automobile. After crashing and landing in a pond at the center of the track, he repaired his aircraft and resumed flying the following day.<ref name=":1" />

A 1911 Seattle development plan proposed transforming the Duwamish Valley into an industrial zone. [[William E. Boeing|William Boeing]] acquired a shipbuilding facility on the western bank of the Duwamish River, where he founded Pacific Aero Products, later renamed [[Boeing|Boeing Airplane Company]]. The factory manufactured 50 [[Boeing Model 2]] training aircraft during World War I, testing them on a sandy field west of the Duwamish River. This testing ground eventually developed into King County Airport.<ref name=":1" />

In 1928, King County voters approved a $950,000 plan to build the region's first municipal airport.<ref name=":2">{{Cite web |last= |first= |date=2006-10-26 |title=The history of Boeing Field |url=https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/the-history-of-boeing-field/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230703083248/https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/the-history-of-boeing-field/ |archive-date=2023-07-03 |access-date=2023-07-03 |website=The Seattle Times |lang=en}}</ref> The airport's proximity to the Boeing Airplane Company and its use by Pacific Air Transport's regular airmail service led to its naming as "Boeing Field."<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |title=Boeing Field, Seattle's first municipal airport, is dedicated on July |url=https://historylink.org/File/2077 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230703083250/https://historylink.org/File/2077 |archive-date=2023-07-03 |access-date=2023-07-03 |website=HistoryLink |lang=en}}</ref> Construction of the runway began on March 28, 1928, using material dredged from the Duwamish River bed. At that time, the airport site was served by three railroad lines and Highway 99.<ref name=":0" />

Construction of the first county-owned hangars began shortly after the airport's opening. The administration building and terminal were officially inaugurated on April 21, 1930. Boeing Field served as Seattle's sole passenger terminal throughout the 1930s, providing passenger services, flight schedule information, and meteorological data for airlines. Regular flights to Portland and San Francisco were operated by West Coast Air Transport and Pacific Air Transport. These carriers later merged to create [[United Airlines]], which pioneered both 28-hour transcontinental service and the first flight attendant corps composed of trained nurses.<ref name=":1">{{Cite web |last= |date=2005-05-01 |title=The Early History of KCIA/Boeing Field |url=http://airportjournals.com/the-early-history-of-kciaboeing-field/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230703083249/http://airportjournals.com/the-early-history-of-kciaboeing-field/ |archive-date=2023-07-03 |access-date=2023-07-03 |website=Airport Journals |lang=en}}</ref>

By 1935, the U.S. Bureau of Air Commerce (later [[Federal Aviation Administration]]) began investigating the construction of a new airport elsewhere in King County due to risks associated with the high ridge east of Boeing Field.<ref name=":0" /> In the late 1930s, as war threatened Europe, Boeing shifted to round-the-clock operations, intensifying production of [[Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress|B-17]] and [[Boeing B-29 Superfortress|B-29]] bombers, which became crucial support for U.S. efforts during World War II.<ref name=":1" /><ref name=":2" />

Galvin Airport, built in 1941 about five miles south of Boeing Field, later became the region's main passenger airport, now known as [[Seattle–Tacoma International Airport|Seattle-Tacoma International Airport]] ("Sea-Tac"). This development changed Boeing Field's function, as it evolved into a significant regional general aviation and industrial airport.<ref name=":1" /> The first [[Boeing 707]] jet airliner prototype, nicknamed "[[Dash 80]]," departed from Renton Airport and made its inaugural landing at Boeing Field in 1954, marking aviation's entry into the jet age.<ref name=":1" /><ref name=":2" />

A new control tower was constructed at the airport in 1962,<ref name=":2" /> though regular airline service from Boeing Field ceased in 1971.<ref name=":0" /> In 1981, the Airpark hangar complex was built to accommodate 20 business jets.<ref name=":2" /> The Seattle [[Museum of Flight]] opened in 1987. An expansion of the Airpark hangar complex in 1988 added 16 more spaces.<ref name=":2" />

The August 1946 [[OAG (Air Travel Intelligence)|OAG]] lists 24 [[United Airlines]] weekday departures, 10 weekly flights on [[Northwest Airlines]] and several [[Pan Am]] [[Douglas DC-3]]s a week to [[Juneau, Alaska|Juneau]] via [[Annette Island Airport]] which was the airfield serving [[Ketchikan, Alaska|Ketchikan]] at the time. Northwest moved to SEA in 1947, United moved in 1949, and Pan Am in 1953.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://merrick.library.miami.edu/cdm/compoundobject/collection/asm0341/id/21774/rec/314|title=Pan American World Airways system time table, April 1, 1953 :: Pan American World Airways Records|access-date=July 18, 2020|archive-date=January 18, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210118150656/https://merrick.library.miami.edu/cdm/compoundobject/collection/asm0341/id/21774/rec/314|url-status=live}}</ref> [[West Coast Airlines]] was operating scheduled passenger [[Douglas DC-3]] service from the airport by November 1946 and served Boeing Field for many years.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.timetableimages.com/ttimages/wc4611.htm|title=West Coast Airlines|access-date=2020-10-29|archive-date=2020-11-01|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201101082620/https://www.timetableimages.com/ttimages/wc4611.htm|url-status=live}}</ref> West Coast successors Air West followed by [[Hughes Airwest]] operated scheduled passenger flights including [[McDonnell Douglas DC-9-30]] jet service until 1971 when Hughes Airwest moved its service to Seattle-Tacoma International Airport.<ref>http://northwestairlineshistory.org {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220327010624/http://northwestairlineshistory.org/ |date=2022-03-27 }}, Digital Archive, Timetables, Hughes Airwest January 1, 1971 system timetable</ref>  West Coast began operating [[Douglas DC-9-10]] jet service from Boeing Field in 1968.<ref>{{cite web |date=April 28, 1968 |title=West Coast Airlines route map |url=https://www.timetableimages.com/ttimages/wc/wc68/wc68-2.jpg |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210420092245/https://www.timetableimages.com/ttimages/wc/wc68/wc68-2.jpg |archive-date=2021-04-20 |website=Airline Timetable Images}}</ref>

[[File:Boeing Field terminal interior 01.jpg|thumb|left|Boeing Field terminal interior, showing the ticket counters of [[Kenmore Air]] and [[SeaPort Airlines]], before the latter discontinued service to the airport in 2012]]
Boeing Field has one passenger airline, [[Kenmore Air]] with daily flights to Friday Harbor and Eastsound/Orcas Island. Before 2019, the last scheduled passenger jets were operated by Hughes Airwest with McDonnell Douglas DC-9-30s in 1971. A proposal by [[Southwest Airlines]] in June 2005 was submitted to King County to relocate from Seattle-Tacoma International Airport to Boeing Field, but was rejected by [[County Executive|King County Executive]] [[Ron Sims]] in October. A similar proposal by [[Alaska Airlines]] (a response to the Southwest proposal) was also rejected. Southwest Airlines said it wanted to avoid the heavy fees at Sea-Tac due to its expansion program.<ref name="SPI20051011">{{cite news |work=[[Seattle Post-Intelligencer]] |title=Plan won't fly: Sims kills Southwest's Boeing Field hopes |url=https://www.seattlepi.com/seattlenews/article/plan-won-t-fly-sims-kills-southwest-s-boeing-1184887.php |publication-date=October 12, 2005 |page=A1 |first1=Jennifer |last1=Langston |first2=Gordy |last2=Holt |access-date=January 26, 2024}}</ref>

The transfer of ownership of Boeing Field from King County to the [[Port of Seattle]] was proposed in 2007 as part of a land swap with land owned by the Port.<ref>[http://www.portseattle.org/news/press/2007/02_26_2007_20.shtml County, Port, BNSF Announce Signed Memoranda on Land Deal] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080725055956/http://www.portseattle.org/news/press/2007/02_26_2007_20.shtml |date=2008-07-25 }}, Port of Seattle, February 26, 2007.  Retrieved 2009-02-21.</ref> Boeing Field is planned to handle more cargo traffic, including "overflow" from nearby Sea-Tac, as part of its long-range plans.<ref>{{cite news |last=Nall |first=Marissa |date=June 15, 2023 |title=Boeing Field eyes plan that could relieve cargo congestion at Sea-Tac |url=https://www.bizjournals.com/seattle/news/2023/06/15/boeing-field-planning-for-increased-cargo-demand.html |work=Puget Sound Business Journal |accessdate=June 15, 2023}}</ref>

The [[National Plan of Integrated Airport Systems]] for 2011–2015 [[FAA airport categories|called]] it a ''primary commercial service'' airport.<ref>
 {{cite web
 |url=http://www.faa.gov/airports/planning_capacity/npias/reports/media/2011/npias_2011_appA.pdf 
 |title=2011–2015 NPIAS Report, Appendix A 
 |format=[[PDF]], 2.03 MB 
 |work=National Plan of Integrated Airport Systems 
 |publisher=Federal Aviation Administration 
 |date=October 4, 2010 
 |url-status=dead 
 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120927084535/http://www.faa.gov/airports/planning_capacity/npias/reports/media/2011/npias_2011_appA.pdf 
 |archive-date=2012-09-27 
}}
</ref> [[Federal Aviation Administration]] records say the airport had 34,597 passenger boardings (enplanements) in [[calendar year]] 2008,<ref>{{cite web
 | url = http://www.faa.gov/airports/planning_capacity/passenger_allcargo_stats/passenger/media/cy08_all_enplanements.pdf
 | title = Enplanements for CY 2008
 | format = PDF, 1.0 MB
 | work = CY 2008 Passenger Boarding and All-Cargo Data
 | publisher = Federal Aviation Administration
 | date = December 18, 2009
 | access-date = July 9, 2013
 | archive-date = November 5, 2012
 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20121105055932/http://www.faa.gov/airports/planning_capacity/passenger_allcargo_stats/passenger/media/cy08_all_enplanements.pdf
 | url-status = live
}}</ref> 35,863 in 2009 and 33,656 in 2010.<ref>{{cite web
 | url = http://www.faa.gov/airports/planning_capacity/passenger_allcargo_stats/passenger/media/cy10_all_enplanements.pdf
 | title = Enplanements for CY 2010
 | format = PDF, 189 KB
 | work = CY 2010 Passenger Boarding and All-Cargo Data
 | publisher = Federal Aviation Administration
 | date = October 4, 2011
 | access-date = July 9, 2013
 | archive-date = January 17, 2012
 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20120117091453/http://www.faa.gov/airports/planning_capacity/passenger_allcargo_stats/passenger/media/cy10_all_enplanements.pdf
 | url-status = live
}}</ref>