REPORTAGE – The “Jumbo Jet”, created more than half a century ago, has made it possible to open non-stop routes between the seven continents. Replaced by more fuel-efficient and quieter aircraft, it will remain the workhorse of air cargo for many years to come.
The gigantic white bird patiently waits outside the Everett hangar, resplendent under the wintry skies of Puget Sound in Washington State in the northwest of the United States. “ He is beautiful, isn’t he? I never tire of it, and yet I have known him intimately for half a century smiles Scott Tomkins, an elegant octogenarian, wrapped in a thick beige jacket, a black Boeing cap screwed on his head. He and his ilk wouldn’t have missed the show for the world. In bitter cold, they stroll through the factory in Paine Field, near Seattle. Their faded blue jackets are embellished with an evocative patch: ” Boeing 747 1 » and an intriguing sesame: « Incredible “. Like these ” incredible » employees who, in the 1960s, worked on the great technological and industrial gamble of the famous American aircraft manufacturer in Everett (State of Washington). They are only a handful, but the pride is intact.
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