Our guest speaker on Friday, May 15th via Zoom was Pete McGuire, Deputy Director for Operations at Paine Field. The photo is the new Paine Field Airport which opened a little over a year ago with over 1 million passengers during the period. However, Paine Field is much bigger than the new passenger terminal. Paine Field is named after Lt. Topliff Paine who grew up in Everett, and flew for the U. S. Army Air during World War 1. Paine also helped pioneer air mail service in the western United States. Construction began in 1936 which was a Great Depression-era project.
Paine Field is one of the most diverse airports in the United States. It includes the following: Boeing's factory and flight testing for 787, 777, 767, 747 and KC -46 aircraft; passenger service is through a unique public-private partnership; third largest aircraft maintenance, repair and overhaul facility in North America; Dreamlifter Operations Center; 550+ general aviation aircraft; two aviation colleges; three flight schools, fixed-wing and rotary; County's largest tourism site (400,000+ annual worldwide visitors) which include Boeing factory tours, the Future of Flight Aviation Center, the Paul Allen Flying Heritage Collection, the Historic Flight Foundation Flying Museum and the Seattle Museum of Flight Restoration Center. Numerous other aerospace companies amounting to a total of 220 in Snohomish County. The County Medical Examiner facility and A.R.T.S. are also located on Paine Field property
Passenger Service started on March 04, 2019 and surpassed the one million mark in March 2020. The public-private partnership is a unique first in the nation. Known as a P3 concept - Snohomish County/Propeller. The facility has two glass walkways and one hardstand gates. There are 24 daily round trips; 12 domestic destinations; E 175 aircraft (76 seats) capable of handling largest Boeing 737 and Airbus 321. With hotel style ambience in the min terminal, thee are three security lanes including one TSA Pre-Check, a concierge desk, valet parking, fireplaces, gourmet food offerings, upscale furnishing with seven types of seating and individual restrooms.
Later in the day, Snohomish County announced the closure of the Passenger Terminal for 71 days. This after the airlines that are serving Everett had reduced their schedules quite dramatically due to the worldwide pandemic. According to Propeller this will allow the company to work on projects that would have been done during regular operating periods. Another really great program for our Club.