By Dan McCue
The Boeing Corporation has acquired Alenia North America’s half of Global Aeronautica LLC, a fuselage subassembly facility on its fast-growing manufacturing campus in North Charleston, S.C. that was the last local vestige of the company’s original supply chain for the 787 Dreamliner.
Global Aeronautica, LLC, began in 2004 when Alenia North America and Vought Aircraft Industries formed a joint venture in support of the Boeing 787 Dreamliner, choosing a site adjacent to Charleston International Airport to build two massive facilities.
In 2008, Boeing purchased Vought’s interest in the joint venture and has since announced plans to locate a second assembly line for the Dreamliner, the world’s first passenger airport made largely from composite materials, directly next door.
No purchase price was announced for the Global Aeronautica acquisition. Boeing will now integrate the entire facility into its operations on the 240-acre campus.
“The Boeing Charleston site is critical to the success of the 787 program,” said Jim Albaugh, president and CEO of Boeing Commercial Airplanes in a written statement. “Through this acquisition, Boeing benefits by joining together two solid operations – including their talented employees and state-of-the-art facilities – into one Boeing team. Ultimately, we believe integration of the site will increase productivity for the 787 program and allow us to maintain our long-term competitiveness.”
Global Aeronautica’s role in the assembly process entails the joining of the mid-fuselage sections, the installation and testing of associated elements, and the application of surface finishes to more than 60 % of the 787’s fuselage.