5 US Locations At The Center Of Boeing’s Operations

Boeing is one of the most well-known aircraft manufacturers in the world. Founded more than 100 years ago in the state of Washington, Boeing’s presence has spread throughout the world, and the company has cemented its place in aviation history. Today, Boeing is remembered primarily for aircraft like the 747 and 737 family, but there is so much more the manufacturer has done.
5 Boeing Field
Seattle, Washington
While Boeing’s presence is global, the company still has strong roots in Seattle, where it was founded in 1916 on the Duwamish River. The delivery center for 737 MAX aircraft, 777 and 767 freighters is in Seattle, and manufacturing plants for these planes are located throughout Washington.
Photo: BlueBarronPhoto | Shutterstock
King County International Airport (BFI), commonly known as Boeing Field, is located a few miles south of downtown Seattle. It is where Boeing tests and delivers airplanes. While there are other operations at the airport, Boeing’s presence and history are so significant that the airport’s IATA code is BFI. The Museum of Flight, which houses the first 747 ever made and other aircraft like the third 787 Dreamliner, 727-100, B-29, B-52, and a Concorde.
According to King County, which runs the airport, it is one of the busiest general aviation airports in the country. A few facts about the airport are below:
Averages 180,000 aircraft takeoffs and landings each year
Supports $3.5 billion in local business
Supports more than 16,000 jobs
Creates $2 billion in labor income
4 Everett factory
Everett, Washington
The manufacturing site in Everett, constructed to house the production of the 747, is the largest manufacturing building in the world. January 1967 marked the commencement of operations in Everett, and on May 1st, the building’s doors opened for the first time. Over the years, the facilities in Everett have been used to build the 747, 767, 777s, and 787s.
Today, the facilities in Everett span 98.3 acres and have 472 million cubic feet of space.
Photo: cpaulfell | Shutterstock
Below are some facts about the Everett facilities:
Almost 36,000 staff work there daily
There is a fire department on site
More than 26 cranes are spread throughout 39 miles of tracks
Construction costs were upwards of $1 billion
The main doors can take almost five minutes to open
There are almost one million overhead lights inside
There is an underground tunnel system with water, sewer, and electrical utilities, but also space for staff to move around on bicycles and tricycles
After a pause during the COVID-19 pandemic, Boeing has reopened the Everett plant for public tours. According to the company’s website, tours are offered from Thursday to Monday and last 80 minutes. Boeing does not allow any items on the tour and asks everyone to store their belongings in complimentary lockers.
3 Charleston factory
Charleston, South Carolina
In 2011, Boeing opened a factory in Charleston, South Carolina. This facility was to be an assembly site for the 787 Dreamliner. When Boeing was considering a second location for the 787 assembly (the first was in Washington at the time), the choice came down to Washington or South Carolina. South Carolina won because of several factors, two of them being that the area was home to several parts suppliers and the state had a largely unionized workforce.
According to Richmond Fed, the South Carolina state government offered Boeing an incentive package to set up shop in Charleston. Boeing was required to create 3,800 full-time jobs and invest at least $750 million.
Photo: Lukas Souza | Simple Flying
The facility opened in 2011, and one year later, Boeing delivered the first 787 manufactured in South Carolina. The first plane was a 787-8, and the first 787-9 was delivered less than three years later.
Beverly Wise, then-Vice President and General Manager of Boeing South Carolina, said,
“In 2012, we delivered our first South Carolina-built 787-8, and less than three years later, we’re celebrating another significant milestone-our first 787-9 delivery. This is an incredible achievement for Boeing, and I’m proud to be a member of the Boeing South Carolina Team.”
2 Headquarters
Arlington, Virginia
Though the company was founded in Seattle, it has been several years since Boeing has been headquartered in Washington state. In May 2022, Boeing announced it was moving from Chicago to Arlington, Virginia, located right outside of Washington DC. It is important to note that only the global headquarters was moved, and that each of the individual business units remained at their current headquarters.
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The locations are the following:
Boeing Commercial Airplanes – Seattle, Washington
Boeing Global Services – Plano, Texas
Boeing Defense, Space, and Security – Arlington, Virginia
At the time, Boeing President and CEO Dave Calhoun said,
“We are excited to build on our foundation here in Northern Virginia. The region makes strategic sense for our global headquarters given its proximity to our customers and stakeholders, and its access to world-class engineering and technical talent.”
1 Renton factory
Renton, Washington
Another major factory is located in Renton, just over 30 miles from Everett. Here, Boeing manufactured the 707, 727, 737, and 757. In 2015, Boeing began working on the 737 MAX family, and it continues to do so today.
Photo: Thiago B Trevisan | Shutterstock
According to Boeing, more than 14,500 planes have been built in Renton, where facilities cover more than one million square feet. Each of the four aircraft families that were built in Renton have passed the 1,000 aircraft-delivery milestone, a record that has not been equaled by any other factory worldwide.