An Asiana Airlines Boeing 777 headed from Sea-Tac Airport to Seoul, South Korea, landed successfully on one engine at Sea-Tac about 3:25 p.m. today after dumping fuel over Puget Sound.

The plane’s left engine apparently developed problems shortly after takeoff from Sea-Tac at 3:02 p.m.

The aircraft, Asiana Flight 271, carried 179 passengers and crew.

Witnesses on the plane’s takeoff path in Federal Way said they heard loud booms coming from the plane’s engine and saw flames coming from the left engine’s exhaust.

The pilot shut down the defective engine and circled near the airport dumping

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It seems like only five years ago (actually, it was in February, 2004) that I was writing a story about cinematographer Scott Gribble, a co-founder of Wonderdog Media, and how he was moving the firm, and his family, from Rockford, Ill. to the Tacoma area.

Today I heard from Gribble that he is celebrating his 10th anniversary in business. And beyond that, he shot the film "Keep Your Day Job Super Star," which has been accepted as an entry in the Seattle True Independent Film Festival 2009. The film will premier June 14 at Center Cinema in Seattle.

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Nearly two years after its debut in an event broadcast worldwide, Boeing’s oft-delayed 787 Dreamliner finally appears nearly ready for its first flight.

That’s the word from Boeing executives Wednesday who said the revolutionary composite twin jet only needs to pass a few more ground tests before taking to the air.

They wouldn’t say exactly when the jetliner will leave the runway at Everett’s Paine Field for its first test flight, but they did say that long-awaited event will happen before July 1.

Problems with fastener and parts shortages, supplier issues and some design problems have kept the first 787 in the assembly hall far longer than Boeing had originally projected.

The plane already has received 60 percent of the Federal Aviation Administration certifications it needs before it is approved from commercial service, said the 787′s chief project engineer Mike Delaney.

That’s a pace ahead of the Boeing 777, the last new airplance Boeing designed and built.

Delaney spoke at a morning technical briefing Wednesday for the aviation press at Boeing’s Everett plant.

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Railroad and terminal operator executives at the annual Port of Tacoma breakfast this morning praised the Port of Tacoma for being “forward looking.”

The executives participated in a panel discussion regarding the challenges of the current economy on the port industry.

“The Port of Tacoma is constantly looking forward,” said John Kaiser, vice president and general manager of marketing and intermodal sales with the Union Pacific Railroad.

Kaiser told a packed conference room at the Hotel Murano that the Tacoma port is one of the most forward looking ports.

His comment was actually part of

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Boeing unveiled a mid-life upgrade package for its popular 737 today that includes a Dreamliner-style interior and aerodynamic and engine improvements that improve fuel efficiency by two percent.

The total package of upgrades will be available to airlines by 2011.

The interior improvements will be an extra-cost option, the aerodynamic and engine improvements will become standard on the plane beginning next year.

The biggest visible difference for airline passengers will be the new interior.

That interior will feature blue LED lighting on the plane’s ceiling, larger, designed overhead baggage bins and reconfigured vents, speakers and light

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The Port of Seattle kicked off the 2009 cruise season recently with a new cruise terminal and expectations for record ship calls.

The port expects a record 211 cruise ship calls this year, though the total volume of passengers is expected to fall below 2008′s record of 886,000 passengers.

The majority of those cruise ship calls will be handled at the port’s new Smith Cove Terminal north of downtown near the city’s Magnolia neighborhood.

The port built a $72 million terminal building at Smith Cove to replace a temporary terminal near Safeco Field that is returning to

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The Better Business Bureau will wrap up tax season by helping members shred personal documents for free this Saturday in Burien.

Attendees of “Secure Your ID Day” from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. at Burien Chevrolet, 14400 1st Ave. S., will receive tips on identity theft prevention and proper disposal of documents containing personal information.

Information such as financial data, Social Security numbers and birth dates could by used to steal individuals’ identities or money if not properly shredded as BBB suggests.

At the event, attendees can drop off documents to be secured and shredded on the

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Passenger traffic at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport fell by more than 6 percent during 2009′s first quarter, new figures from the airport reveal.

Sea-Tac, whose traffic volumes remained high last year when many airports were seeing lower volumes, has finally felt the recession’s effects.

The effect is the strongest in international traffic at the airport where the number of visitors dropped off more than 12.5 percent in the first quarter. Domestic traffic reductions were less severe at 5.38 percent.

March showed a small rebound with total traffic down 4.29 percent compared with 6.1 percent for the first quarter.

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