Gov. Roy Cooper joined Boom Supersonic officials in Greensboro Monday to cut the ribbon on the company’s new high-speed jet manufacturing facility. It’s the latest milestone for a business that officials say could transform travel.
Although the $100 million facility has been completed, it will be a while before the first actual Overture plane is built, says Boom founder and CEO Blake Scholl.
First, they’re going to practice building the planes and work out any bugs. It’s expected to be three or four years before the first completed plane rolls out of the facility. .
Ultimately, Boom plans to have a workforce of about 2,400 people and the ability to churn out 33 planes a year. Scholl says the area’s combination of manufacturing heritage and strong educational institutions was key to putting the plant here.
"There couldn’t be a better place in the country or frankly on the planet for us to do what we’re doing than here in North Carolina," he says. "Because of the workforce, because of the skill set and because of that ability to continue to build that skill set and workforce."
There is some industry skepticism about whether Boom can reach their manufacturing goals in the timeframe they’ve laid out. Company officials say United Airlines and American Airlines have both made non-refundable deposits on a total of 35 planes. Gov. Cooper says that shows confidence.
"They see that this is an airline that’s going to happen, that this plane with supersonic speed and sustainable fuel is the future of aviation,” he says.
Scholl says Boom has acquired enough land at PTI to construct two more plants like the Overture Superfactory when the time comes to build larger models of their planes.