A Visit to the Museum of Flight in Seattle

DALLAS — If you’ve ever visited Seattle, you might be familiar with its skyline, museums, and parks. However, you might have seen many aviation-related activities when looking up ‘what to do in Seattle’ online.

Recently, Boeing resumed its Everett factory tour, allowing visitors to enter the production line of the Boeing 777X in the largest building in the world. While this experience is at the core of every aviation enthusiast's visit to Seattle, another one might be even more famous and accessible to the broad public.

The two-seater M-21 ‘Blackbird.’ Photo: Simone Chellini/Airways

The Museum of Flight

In July, I had the pleasure of visiting the Museum of Flight for the first time. The name says it all: this is not a Museum, but THE Museum. Located south of King County International Airport, commonly known as Boeing Field (BFI), the Museum of Flight welcomed over 450,000 visitors in 2022.

The museum's origins can be traced back to 1965 when the Pacific Northwest Aviation Historical Foundation started the recovery of a 1929 Boeing 80A-1. In 1975, the Port of Seattle acquired the Red Barn, Boeing’s original manufacturing plant, which was transferred to its current location and opened to the public in 1983.

A fast succession of events led to the exponential growth of the Museum, which started expanding and welcoming some of the world's most unique aircraft. Today, the Museum hosts the world’s largest aviation collection.

In 2023, over 600 volunteers contributed to 70,553 hours of tours, lectures, and guest interactions. This group is as valuable as the Museum’s collection and contributes to making every visit unique.

The Aviation Pavilion at the Museum of Flight. Photo: Simone Chellini/Airways

Museum Pavilions

The museum is divided into multiple pavilions. One could spend a day visiting each of them, from the Great Gallery, where civil and military aircraft, including a two-seater M-21 ‘Blackbird,’ are stored, to the J. Elroy McCaw Personal Courage Wing.

Upon entering the Aviation Pavilion, a covered outdoor area dedicated to large airliners and military aircraft, one stumble upon the full-size Space Shuttle Full Fuselage Trainer (FFT). The cabin simulator joined the Museum in 2012, and some will remember its components being flown to BFI airport onboard NASA’s Super Guppy.

Notably, the Museum displays the world’s first Boeing 747, ‘City of Everett,’ the world’s first Boeing 737 wearing the NASA Langley livery, and the world's first Boeing 727 wearing the old United Airlines livery. Other jewels include the Boeing VC-137B ‘Air Force One’, G-BOAG, an ex-British Airways Concorde famous for setting the record for the fastest East-to-West Coast crossing in the United States, and the third-ever Boeing 787 Dreamliner.

The list goes on and on, and one could spend thousands of words on each aircraft.

Captions in order: G-BOAG, a British Airways Concorde, was welcomed by the Museum of Flight in November 2003; the first-ever Boeing 747, N7470, is widely considered the crown jewel of the Museum of Flight’s collection; Boeing VC-137B ‘Air Force One’. Photos: Simone Chellini/Airways

Other Museum Facilities

The Museum also offers a cafeteria, an excellent memorabilia store, plenty of outdoor spaces, a control tower mock-up, and flight simulators. It provides grade K-12 education programs for individuals and groups.

Outreach is key to inspiring the next generation of pilots and engineers, and the Museum is playing a leading role in the Seattle area. This is reflected in the museum’s mission to collect, preserve, and participate in aerospace's dynamic and diverse stories while providing experiential learning opportunities for people of all ages.

Lastly, the Museum features a restoration facility near Everett, where part of its collection is stored and maintained, including the world’s first jet airliner, the de Havilland D.H. 106 Comet MK. 4C. In fashion with its Aviation Pavilion, the aircraft is the world’s first 4C unit.

Captions in order: N7001U, the first production Boeing 727-22 built in 1964. The aircraft was donated in 1991 by United Air Lines to The Museum of Flight; the third-ever Boeing 787 Dreamliner features numerous airline logos that placed orders for the type. Photos: Simone Chellini/Airways

Highlights

As widely expected, my visit lasted the whole day, from opening to closure. The landing of an experimental Boeing 777X was the only event that made me leave the building for a few minutes.

My highlight was boarding the first-ever Boeing 747, the Concorde, and the third-ever Boeing 787 and just walking around these unique airframes for hours and hours while reading about their unique history. The simulator also impressed me, as I had so much fun piloting an F-15 upside down.

I recommend visiting the Museum of Flight to aviation enthusiasts and anyone interested in STEM subjects willing to learn more about the exciting and unique achievements of the aviation industry, especially future aviators.

It was lovely and refreshing to see children genuinely excited to visit aircraft and learn more about their history, and their parents and guides were equally excited. The numerous volunteers and guides are always available to explain what you see and guide you through the museum, adding a personal touch to the experience.

I would like to thank Ted Huetter for showing me around the outstanding collection, and I look forward to returning to the Museum of Flight every time I return to Seattle.