Header image: Alaska Airline employees 1957 // Courtesy of EPLS Northwest Room

Paine Field is ideally situated for an airport.

It sits at an elevation just above the fog line on the coast, allowing clear views in all directions for air traffic control. Its runways are on the far west of the continent, making it easy for pilots to travel up and down the coast, or across the Pacific (which is important when delivering airplanes to airlines around the world). And Paine Field is next to a deep-water port -- ideal for receiving and shipping goods.

In fact, Paine Field was originally intended to be the regional airport for the Greater Seattle Area before SeaTac took that designation. But history works in funny ways. Paine Field would eventually become an important regional hub for commercial aviation ... but it would take a few decades.

Origins/WWII

In the 1930s, a WPA (Works Progress Administration) crew of 300 men cleared land on the far edge of Everett near Mukilteo for airport runways. After World War II broke out, the military took over the area as part of the war effort.

The field was named after a famous Everett-based WWI aviator, Topliff “Top” Paine.

Because of the war, Paine Field never became the commercial airport that it was originally conceived to be.

After the war, Alaska Airlines set up its overhaul and repair services at Paine Field.

Topliff Paine // Courtesy of Everett Public Library

The Boeing Years/PAE

In the late 1960s, Boeing came to town. They started production in Everett inside the biggest building in the world by volume. If you haven’t taken a tour of the Boeing plant, you really should put it on your bucket list — it’s a giant, self-contained city-world that draws tourists from around the world. The scope of the place will boggle your mind.

Remember how I said that history has a funny way of working? Finally, Paine Field became a hub for international travel when the Paine Field Airport (PAE) opened for commercial flight in 2019. The airport was opened by a company called Propeller, who saw an opportunity for growth and development, given the economic and population expansion of Seattle and Western Washington. The boutique airport went on to win numerous awards for design.

Though the economy of aerospace is changing, today Everett is still synonymous with aviation. We’re a Boeing town in many ways, a place proudly populated by engineers.

Inside of Alaska Airline, 1957 // Courtesy of EPLS Northwest Room

See for yourself

If you want to experience the wonder of flight today, you can take the Boeing tour, or visit the Future of Flight. It’s filled with interactive exhibits that take you inside a space station, puts you at the controls of a flight simulator, and breaks down into layman’s terms the complexities of aerospace design. It’s a must for sparking interest in STEM.

From the days of the WPA, to WWII, the glory days of Boeing, and now PAE luxury, Paine Field is clearly a place where local imagination takes flight.

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