Losing the second assembly line for Boeing Co.’s new 787 jetliner to another state wouldn’t be the end of aerospace in Washington, Governor Chris Gregoire said Tuesday.

In her second straight day of high-profile public statements on Boeing’s plans for a new facility, the Democratic governor made it clear that the company’s tattered relationship with its Machinists union is the most important factor left unresolved.

Boeing is expected to choose a location for the new 787 facility by year’s end. Washington is competing with South Carolina for the new project.

The union and management have been in talks. Gregoire said she and other officials are working hard to foster a good relationship, but she declined to elaborate, citing sensitivity of the negotiations.

South Carolina, meanwhile, offers a relatively headache-free labor landscape: The state’s labor policies give unions less power than they enjoy in Washington, and workers at Boeing’s facility there recently voted to oust the Machinists.

In a statement Monday, district Pres. Tom Wroblewski agreed with Gregoire’s assessment that the state’s business landscape was ideal. But regarding any contract changes, Wroblewski said only that the union was in regular meetings with Boeing leadership.

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It was a historical day on the flightline here, as the last KC-135E model touched down after its final flight.

The KC-135E, which served the Air Force for more than 50 years, will now spend its days basking in the sun in the ‘Boneyard’ and providing much needed parts to the rest of the fleet.

While the aircraft, with tail number 56-3630, only spent the last couple of decades with the Maine Air National Guard, it has long played a vital role in air superiority for the United States.

“We are proud of the heritage of this aircraft,” said Col. John Thomas, commander of the 101st Maintenance Group, Maine ANG. “This airplane was delivered to active duty in 1958, has served through the Cold War, went to Vietnam a couple of times and served in current contingencies.”

This aircraft not only served in many operations, but it also set a speed record in the 1950s by flying from New York to London and back in only 12 hours, the colonel added.

Ten of the E-model KC-135s are being preserved as static displays at various locations and three others are scheduled to be used as ground instructional trainers. But, for the operational Air Force, it’s the end of an era as the service transitions to the new air-to-air refueling tanker, dubbed the KC-X.

“For the 827th Aircraft Sustainment Group, this is a bittersweet day,” said Col. Robert Torick, 827th ACSG commander and project officer for the KC-135E retirement. “While we close this chapter, the air refueling mission story continues. We say goodbye to a real workhorse who has played a critical role in the success of the Air Force mission over the last 50-plus years.”

Even though this aircraft is now officially retired, the E-model will still play a role in keeping other KC-135 models in the air.

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Ten days after descending from space to a California landing, the space shuttle Discovery made yet another landing on Monday at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida, atop a modified jumbo jet.

The touchdown at the shuttle fleet’s home base came at the end of a two-day, cross country flight from Edwards AFB in California. Discovery had to land at the Edwards backup site when it returned from the international space station on Sept. 11, due to stormy weather at the Kennedy Space Center’s runway.

The shuttle was prepared and mounted piggyback fashion on NASA’s Boeing 747 airplane. The shuttle-jet combo took off from Edwards early Sunday and made refueling stopovers in Forth Worth, Texas, and Barksdale AFB in Louisiana. The final three-hour leg of the trip came in Monday morning. NASA estimates the cost of such ferry trips at $1.8 million.

During its two-week mission to the space station, Discovery brought up tons of experiments, supplies and equipment including a treadmill. The mission also featured a crew exchange, as well as three spacewalks to replace a coolant tank and install other equipment on the station’s exterior.

Discovery will now be readied for its next launch, scheduled for March 18 2010. The flight is one of six missions NASA hopes to send to the space station before the shuttle fleet is retired.

FedEx Express, a subsidiary of FedEx Corp. (NYSE: FDX) and the company that invented overnight shipping 38 years ago, has made international express shipping even faster with the unveiling today of its first Boeing 777 Freighter (777F) during ceremonies with The Boeing Company in Everett, Wash. FedEx Express is the first U.S.-based global all-cargo freight airline to take delivery of the 777F, and has placed the largest order for the aircraft model to date.

“The Boeing 777 is an extraordinary testament to our dedication to fleet enhancement, allowing FedEx Express to provide unmatched services to our customers around the world” said David J. Bronczek, president and chief executive officer, FedEx Express. “Its payload capacity, range and environmental efficiencies create well-rounded, long-term strategic value for our company in meeting the global shipping demands of customers.”

Introduction of the 777F to the FedEx fleet of more than 650 aircraft expands what is already the world’s largest cargo airline. Its international routes will provide service benefits to customers and enhance the efficiency of the FedEx Express global network.

The 777F is the world’s largest twin-engine cargo aircraft. Its flight range, the equivalent of about 6,675 land miles, or nearly three times the approximate distance between the east and west coasts of the U.S., is the longest of any two-engine freighter, with a payload capacity of 215,000 pounds (98 metric tons).

This represents an increase in range of more than 2,400 miles and an additional 14,000pounds of payload over the MD-11 freighter, which until now has been the primary long-haul aircraft in the company’s fleet.

The global freighter’s range enables FedEx Express to fly between major markets and hubs in Asia, Europe and the U.S. with more freight and in less time than it takes today, allowing latercut-off times for customers in the markets to drop off their shipments. For example, 777F transit times from points in Asia to the U.S. will be from one to three hours faster than those of the MD-11.

By April 2010, FedEx Express plans to have four 777Fs serving routes between Asia and the U.S. In all, there will be 15 777Fs in the company’s fleet by the end of fiscal 2014; FedEx Express also has a second order of 15 777Fs, which will be delivered between fiscal 2014 and fiscal 2019, and holds options on 15 more 777Fs.