Dive Brief:

• Aerospace startup JetZero unveiled plans on Thursday to build its first manufacturing and assembly facility in Greensboro, North Carolina as it looks to break into commercial aerospace production. 
• The $4.7 billion plant is expected to create 14,500 jobs, the largest job announcement in state history, according to the Economic Development Partnership of North Carolina. 
• JetZero aims to begin construction next year, and eventually produce 20 planes per month when at full capacity by late next decade. The startup plans to deliver its first commercial aircraft by the early 2030s.

Dive Insight:

Founded in 2021, JetZero has garnered attention across the airline industry for its promise to build “middle market,” more fuel efficient aircraft. 

JetZero is aiming to take on the market by offering a wider design that tackles what the startup says are some of the key pain points with current aircraft. Its signature Z4 plane will feature a wider boarding door and more passenger sections that prioritize personal space and individual overhead bins, according to a release. The startup also claims its planes will feature 50% better fuel efficiency as a result of its all-wing design. 

Each plane will seat 250 passengers and be able to fly routes up to 5,000 nautical miles. 

Both Alaska Airlines and United Airlines have invested in the company, as well as signed conditional purchase agreements. 

JetZero is partnering with Siemens to integrate digitial and industrial artificial intelligence tools across the new factory. The two companies will also work together to build JetZero’s prototype, set to take flight in 2027. 

The startup also plans to work with the state’s community college system to create a talent pipeline for the thousands of jobs it promises to spur. 

“We’ve already discussed the company’s unique workforce needs and outlined a detailed customized training plan which will be developed through our NCEdge program,” John Loyack, vice president of economic development for the North Carolina Community College System, said in a statement. “In a joint effort with Guilford Technical Community College and other colleges in the region, we’re excited to move forward into implementing a customized program.”

The project will be aided by a sizable state grant that spans the next 37 years. JetZero, which is calculated to grow the economy by $259.4 billion over that time, could then receive more than $1 billion in state incentives, according to the North Carolina Department of Commerce.

The Southeast is becoming a growing hub for aerospace manufacturing. Boeing, which has produced its Dreamliner planes in South Carolina since 2007, is in the midst of a $1 billion expansion to the campus as it looks to ramp production of the planes. 

Boeing supplier Williams International is expanding further south in Florida, where it’s building a $1 billion gas-powered turbine engine manufacturing site. 

Finally, fellow startup Archer Aviation began production at its Georgia factory in January. The air taxi manufacturer hopes to produce 650 electric takeoff and landing aircraft a year by 2030.