Today Show gives Future of Flight a boost

Published 9:00 pm Sunday, May 6, 2007

Interest in the Future of Flight Museum and Boeing Tour Center skyrocketed following a recent Today Show episode broadcast from the Boeing Co.’s Everett factory.

Last Monday, NBC’s Matt Lauer kicked off his “Where in the world is Matt Lauer?” series from the 777 production line in Everett. (To read more about Lauer’s visit, http://www.heraldnet.com/stories/07/05/01/100loc_a1lauer001.cfm) The morning program co-anchor mentioned that viewers could tour the factory by visiting Mukilteo’s Future of Flight.

The museum’s Web site averages between 400 and 500 unique visits daily. On the day of the broadcast, the Future of Flight’s site received 1,872 unique hits, said Sandy Ward, marketing director for the museum. The Web site continued to bring in above-average visitation levels all week.

Actual attendance at the museum surged as well, leading the museum to turn away visitors on Saturday.

“We’ve had a tremendous increase in interest,” Ward said.

Lauer shot a segment of his program while standing in front of a 777 engine. The image hasn’t been lost on viewers who keep trying to climb up onto the 777 engine at the Future of Flight.

To watch Lauer’s broadcast from Everett, visit the Today Show Web site: http://today.msnbc.msn.com/id/3041544/.

For more on the Future of Flight and Boeing Tour Center, http://www.futureofflight.org/ or http://www.boeing.com/companyoffices/aboutus/tours/index.html.