Hope To Land Assembly Of 777X, 787-10 Airplanes

After a deal was struck that will have the Boeing 737 MAX built in Everett, WA, state and union leaders have set their sights on keeping assembly work on other new Boeing products in the Pacific Northwest. But it has not been determined where the planemaker will put together its planned 777X or 787-10 airplanes, let alone where it might build any clean-sheet design it introduces in the future.

Washington Governor Chris Gregoire has said often and publicly that her administration will work to keep any new Boeing assembly work in the Puget Sound region.

The Everett, WA, Herald newspaper reports that Snohomish County COO John Monroe says that there is no guarantee that Boeing will build the planned 777X there. Boeing has hinted that the follow-on 777 will have composite wings and new engines. Commercial Airplane president Jim Albaugh has said that it could be "significantly more efficient" than existing models.

Monroe said that there are a number of concerns he has about the new airplane, including a properly skilled workforce to build the large composite structures, and factory space in Everett. As Boeing ramps up production of the current 777 models, it utilizes a growing amount of the available space.

But State Commerce Department director Rogers Weed told the paper that the recent agreement between Boeing and the Machinists Union will make a strong case for building the 777X in Washington State. The 787-10 could go elsewhere, he said, based on the second production line Boeing opened in South Carolina and a plant that is doing finishing work on the Dreamliner in San Antonio, TX.

FMI: www.boeing.com, www.governor.wa.gov