California-based aerospace company JetZero has announced plans to build a nearly $5 billion manufacturing facility at Piedmont Triad International Airport — a project officials say will bring more than 14,500 jobs to the region in the coming decades.
At an event celebrating the announcement Thursday, North Carolina Governor Josh Stein called the deal the “largest job commitment in North Carolina history."
“North Carolina is the perfect location,” he said. “North Carolina was first in flight. We are also the future of flight.”
The facility will be used to produce JetZero’s fuel-efficient, all-wing Z4 jet. Construction is slated to begin in 2026, with the first planes expected to roll off the line in the 2030s.
The move comes with significant public investment. JetZero will receive more than $1 billion in combined state and local incentives over the next 37 years, including around $90 million from Guilford County and the city of Greensboro.
Brent Christensen, president of the Greensboro Chamber of Commerce, emphasized that the impact will unfold gradually.
“This is a long-term project, so you don’t need 14,000 employees on day one,” he said. “This is a 10-, 15-, 20-year project that will grow the airport and grow our community — but it won’t grow it overnight.”
The average salary for the new jobs is expected to be close to $90,000.