1 of 2 | The Sea-Tac parking garage, with 13,000 spaces, is the world’s second-largest parking lot, according to the online geography site WorldAtlas.com. Number 1 honors go to the West Edmonton Mall in Alberta, Canada, with 20,000 spaces…. (Port of Seattle, 1968) By Erik Lacitis Seattle Times staff reporter Editor’s note: Pacific NW magazine’s
FAA chief must be a watchdog independent from industry
By Justin T. Green Special to The Times The Federal Aviation Administration — a crucial part of ensuring passenger safety in our country — has been without a permanent leader for more than a year. Meanwhile, there have been repeated near collisions between airliners, and aviation disasters have only been narrowly averted. These close calls
New $800M sustainable aviation fuel plant planned for Washington state
1 of 2 | Amer Halilovic, working as a fueling agent, pulls a hose back to a hydrant cart (at right) after refueling an Alaska Airlines jet at Sea-Tac International Airport on Jan. 10, 2020. Dutch company SkyNRG has announced plans… (Ellen M. Banner / The Seattle Times) By Dominic Gates Seattle Times aerospace reporter
Boeing isn’t a bank, but it’s the ultimate ‘too big to fail’ company
By Jon Talton Three things struck me as hair-on-fire points in my colleague Dominic Gates’ superb examination of Boeing’s prospects to right itself after four challenging years. First, the company’s net debt has increased to nearly eight times from where it stood at the end of 2018. That’s nearly $40 billion. Half of this comes from the
Sea-Tac Airport’s new $1B international terminal too tight a squeeze for 20 big jets
By Dominic Gates Seattle Times aerospace reporter The gleaming new International Arrivals Facility at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport, which opened last year at a cost of about $1 billion, was supposed to fit 20 big, widebody aircraft simultaneously. But according to the Port of Seattle, that many long-haul aircraft won’t fit side by side because
Aging, unreliable runway safety device leaves U.S. airports vulnerable
By Alan Levin A crucial safety system that’s relied on to avoid potentially fatal collisions at major U.S. airports is aging and plagued by outages that have left travelers unprotected for months at a time. At some airports, it hasn’t ever been installed. The technology — which tracks vehicles on or near runways to alert
EPA proposal takes on health risks near US chemical plants
By MICHAEL PHILLIS The Associated Press In what could prove a significant move for communities facing air pollution, the Environmental Protection Agency proposed on Thursday that chemical plants nationwide measure certain hazardous compounds that cross beyond their property lines and reduce them when they are too high. The proposed rules would reduce cancer risk and
WA can lead the next sustainable era of aerospace
By Chris Raymond and Jon Holden Special to The Times Washington has been at the center of aviation since 1916, when Bill Boeing founded his airplane company in a shipyard on Seattle’s Duwamish River. Since then, the state has led the world in designing and manufacturing airplanes that have connected and protected people around the world.
Toxic fumes on board airplanes? Airlines may have to do something about it
Masked passengers fill a Southwest Airlines flight from Burbank to Las Vegas on June 3, with middle seats left open. (Christopher Reynolds/Los Angeles Times/TNS) By Kiera Feldman Los Angeles Times The airline industry would be forced to adopt new measures to protect passengers and crew members from toxic fumes on airplanes under a bill introduced
Pioneering Moses Lake flight uses hydrogen to power regional airplane
Universal Hydrogen on Thursday morning flew a regional airliner with a 40-passenger capacity using hydrogen fuel cell propulsion. The airplane took off at 8:41 a.m. from Grant County International Airport and flew 15 minutes. The flight… (Universal Hydrogen By Dominic Gates Seattle Times aerospace reporter MOSES LAKE — A small crowd of investors, airline representatives