With allusions to the Wright brothers and the state’s pioneering role in early aviation, North Carolina leaders gathered Monday at Piedmont Triad International Airport in Greensboro to celebrate what they hope will be the next evolution in flight.
Boom Supersonic, a Colorado startup, cut the ribbon on its first “superfactory,” a 179,000-square-foot complex that could eventually produce up to 33 supersonic jets and employ thousands of people in central
North Carolina. Boom announced its arrival in the Tar Heel State in January 2022 and entered into an incentive deal to create at least 1,761 jobs at the location. North Carolina secured the project nicknamed “Thunderbird” by defeating Florida after a long recruiting process.
To attract Boom, the state and Guilford County offered incentive packages worth more than $121 million if the company hired at least 1,750 people and invested $500 million in the Greensboro location by the end of the decade.
In January 2023, Boom broke ground on its superfactory, where it plans to create a commercial aircraft called Overture that can carry passengers over water at speeds of about 1,300 miles per hour. This is approximately twice the speed of today’s traditional aircraft.
The aircraft manufacturer estimates that the Overture will be certified to carry passengers in 2029.
“The supersonic aircraft we build here in Greensboro will be delivered to airlines on six continents, ensuring the future of America’s leadership in aerospace manufacturing,” Boom founder and CEO Blake Scholl told Monday the attendees. According to him, the market is ready for another option besides the two dominant manufacturers: Boeing and Airbus.
“It has never been clearer that the world is not well served by the duopoly we have in commercial aviation manufacturing,” he said. “Our customers, like United, have been very vocal about wanting an alternative to brand A and brand B.”
Scholl said each Overture aircraft will sell for $200 million. In March, the company conducted its first test flight, at sub-supersonic speed, in California.
With the factory structure now complete, Boom will install testing equipment at the airport facility over the next six to 12 months.
Top Democrats and Republicans spoke at Monday’s ribbon cutting, including Gov. Roy Cooper, who acknowledged the state has backed an unproven manufacturer.
“Sometimes we all have to take a little risk,” he said. “This risk will pay off for your company, for its employees and their families, and their contractors, for the state of North Carolina and for the world.”
Cooper emphasized that most of the state’s incentives for Boom were “performance-based,” meaning the company will only benefit if it meets hiring and investment targets. He also noted that some of the taxpayer-funded improvements to the site, including to the building and surrounding roads, will make the airport site more attractive to potential employers, regardless of Boom’s future.
Enjoy Triangle tech news? Subscribe to Open Source, The News & Observer’s weekly newsletter, and receive it in your inbox every Friday morning. Register here.
