I took this photo August 28, 2011. Getting a 747 jet on top of a building is the epitome of creative problem solving. It's been accomplished in McMinnville, Oregon, about 50 miles from Portland. The Evergreen Aviation & Space Museum is also home to Howard Hughes' Spruce Goose. It's inside it's own building, along with lots of other aircraft. But, as you can see, this retired 747 has a penthouse view!
Here's a photo that I took in September 27, 2009, showing the 747 on the ground at the museum. It waited here until everything final preparations has been made on the new building and the weather forecast was as good as possible.
I have no photos of how it got situated on the roof, here's one that I took on June 27, 2010. I found a May 6, 2010, mention of the placement of the 747 on top of the building at the Daily Journal of Commerce Web site. It's the caption for a photograph: After closely following weather patterns, a crew carefully placed a Boeing 747 atop a steel structure at the Evergreen Aviation and Space Museum in McMinnville early Sunday morning. The jumbo jet is now the eye-catching centerpiece of a new water park and educational museum being built on the museum grounds. “We needed the winds to be less than 10 miles per hour,” said Rick Jenkins, right, superintendent with Hoffman Construction Co., general contractor for the project. “The weatherman promised and delivered winds of 2 to 3 miles per hour so we could get the big jet up there.” Workers operating two giant Campbell cranes needed 50 minutes to lift and place the 350,000-pound plane. “I can put this … on my resume, but I doubt that anyone else will need my expertise in placing jets on buildings,” Jenkins said.
Here's one more that I took August 28, 2011, with a closer view of the waterslides coming out of this side of the 747. Those two tiny people put it all in perspective.
About Wings & Waves Waterpark, from the Evergreen Aviation & Space Museum in McMinnville, Oregon. Evergreen Wings & Waves Waterpark is an indoor, all-season educational waterpark that includes ten waterslides (ranging from slides for the little ones to slides for daredevils), a wave pool and a children’s museum dedicated to teaching students about the power of water. Consisting of classic Evergreen Museum building design, the space features nearly 70,000 square feet of educational fun, topped by a massive Evergreen International Aviation B747-100 aircraft on the top of the building. Throughout the structure, Waterpark visitors will learn about the power of water and its effects on society through dozens of interactive exhibits and learning tools. Both the Museum and the Waterpark aim to serve an important community education role and further distinguish McMinnville as a premier location for teaching students of all ages about the wonder of science.
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