History was quietly made at the Eagle County Regional Airport on Monday — that is if you can call a massive plane landing “quiet.”
A privately chartered Boeing 767-200ER jet out of Washington, D.C., touched down at about 5 p.m. — the largest commercial aircraft ever to land at the county airfield.
Greg Phillips, Eagle County aviation director, received a call Friday inquiring if the facility could accommodate the Boeing 767 charter.
“We knew we had a long enough runway, but when a flight like this gets scheduled, there’s a lot of checking and double checking,” said Phillips.
After a thorough review of both the runway length and pavement strength, the airport confirmed it could handle aircraft.
“There are very few airports in central Colorado that could,” Phillips said.
The arrival brought several airport workers out of their offices to witness the historic landing.
“It’s good to know that a 767 can land, on paper, and it’s even better to see it happen,” said Phillips.
The plane will remain parked at the airport tarmac before departing next week.