by Bob Bogash
The Boeing 737
Prototype airplane was completed in
December 1966. It made its first flight on April 9, 1967 with
Pilot Brien Wygle and Co-pilot Lew Wallick at the controls. After
completing its 737 developmental flying with Boeing, the airplane was
sold to the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) on
July 26, 1973. It had accumulated only 979 flying hours.
NASA flew the airplane for about 23 years, and used it to develop
many of the avionic, display, and control systems used on current
jetliners.
On September 20, 1997, NASA retired the airplane and placed it with the Museum of Flight in Seattle. It now had only a still very youthful 3297 hours total flight time. It was flown to Moses Lake, Washington where a more benign climate would allow it to be stored until it could be placed on permanent display at the Museum's main facility at Boeing Field in Seattle.
As a young Boeing engineer, I had been intimately involved in the design, manufacture, and flight test of this airplane. I had spent much of my 30 plus year Boeing career similarly involved in every aspect of its descendents' history. After the airplane was retired by NASA, I being likewise retired, volunteered to be the caretaker of the airplane for the Museum. The airplane was maintained in "active" storage, meaning it was kept airworthy and able to make the flight to Seattle with little advance notice or heavy maintenance required. During the next six years, I made over 150 trips to Moses Lake (an 8 hour minimum round-trip drive), and with the help of many other volunteers, kept the airplane 'ready to go.' During this period, much preventative maintenance, and some repair work was performed. During full monthly operational checks of the airplane, I was privileged to have taxied the airplane some 600-700 miles - more than enough to have taxied to Seattle!
In 2003, the Museum decided to move the airplane to an area on the west side of East Marginal Way, across from the Museum, that had been donated by Boeing for large aircraft display. In August 2003, a NASA team from Langley Research Center in Virginia inspected and tested the airplane to satisfy themselves that it was indeed airworthy. (Of course it was!) On September 21, 2003, having received authorization from NASA, the airplane made its final flight - 33 minutes - from Moses Lake to Boeing Field. It parked on the Boeing flight line, across the ramp from the stall it had been parked in when it made its first flight 36 1/2 years before. Brien Wygle, Captain on the first flight, was aboard for the last one.
The next day, I (with my colleague Steve Huemoeller) removed all the fuel. Since we could not get the airplane de-fueled, we started the engines, and during a 2 hour 37 minute run, ran the tanks to near empty and shut them down for the last time. (On Easter Sunday, 1967, I had participated in starting this airplane's engines for the very first time. So, I guess, you could say I was there for the first.... and there for the last.) We then sadly decommissioned her many systems on the Boeing flight line, after which the airplane was moved to an area adjacent to the main museum. On Saturday, November 22, 2003, she was towed across East Marginal Way to join the first jet Air Force One, the 747 Prototype, Concorde, and other historic aircraft. She is now a mere stones throw from the Thompson Site factory, from which she rolled out in December 1966. With more than 14,000 airplanes sold, the 737 has become by far the best selling, most popular commercial jetliner in history. Along with the notable developments made while in NASA service, this airplane is truly one of the most historic aircraft in the world today. It has been an honor and a privilege for me to be Crew Chief and caretaker for this airplane. The following pictures document some of the people and places associated with this last memorable flight.
On September 20, 1997, NASA retired the airplane and placed it with the Museum of Flight in Seattle. It now had only a still very youthful 3297 hours total flight time. It was flown to Moses Lake, Washington where a more benign climate would allow it to be stored until it could be placed on permanent display at the Museum's main facility at Boeing Field in Seattle.
As a young Boeing engineer, I had been intimately involved in the design, manufacture, and flight test of this airplane. I had spent much of my 30 plus year Boeing career similarly involved in every aspect of its descendents' history. After the airplane was retired by NASA, I being likewise retired, volunteered to be the caretaker of the airplane for the Museum. The airplane was maintained in "active" storage, meaning it was kept airworthy and able to make the flight to Seattle with little advance notice or heavy maintenance required. During the next six years, I made over 150 trips to Moses Lake (an 8 hour minimum round-trip drive), and with the help of many other volunteers, kept the airplane 'ready to go.' During this period, much preventative maintenance, and some repair work was performed. During full monthly operational checks of the airplane, I was privileged to have taxied the airplane some 600-700 miles - more than enough to have taxied to Seattle!
In 2003, the Museum decided to move the airplane to an area on the west side of East Marginal Way, across from the Museum, that had been donated by Boeing for large aircraft display. In August 2003, a NASA team from Langley Research Center in Virginia inspected and tested the airplane to satisfy themselves that it was indeed airworthy. (Of course it was!) On September 21, 2003, having received authorization from NASA, the airplane made its final flight - 33 minutes - from Moses Lake to Boeing Field. It parked on the Boeing flight line, across the ramp from the stall it had been parked in when it made its first flight 36 1/2 years before. Brien Wygle, Captain on the first flight, was aboard for the last one.
The next day, I (with my colleague Steve Huemoeller) removed all the fuel. Since we could not get the airplane de-fueled, we started the engines, and during a 2 hour 37 minute run, ran the tanks to near empty and shut them down for the last time. (On Easter Sunday, 1967, I had participated in starting this airplane's engines for the very first time. So, I guess, you could say I was there for the first.... and there for the last.) We then sadly decommissioned her many systems on the Boeing flight line, after which the airplane was moved to an area adjacent to the main museum. On Saturday, November 22, 2003, she was towed across East Marginal Way to join the first jet Air Force One, the 747 Prototype, Concorde, and other historic aircraft. She is now a mere stones throw from the Thompson Site factory, from which she rolled out in December 1966. With more than 14,000 airplanes sold, the 737 has become by far the best selling, most popular commercial jetliner in history. Along with the notable developments made while in NASA service, this airplane is truly one of the most historic aircraft in the world today. It has been an honor and a privilege for me to be Crew Chief and caretaker for this airplane. The following pictures document some of the people and places associated with this last memorable flight.
Ground photos by 
