Honda Announces $56 Million Factory For New Jet

Honda has announced it will spend $56 million to build a new factory for its second business jet at Piedmont Triad International Airport in Greensboro, North Carolina, the site of its original HondaJet factory. The company says it will employ 280 people with an average wage of $80,000 a year at the new facility, which will build the HondaJet 2600, which will seat up to 11 people and have a range of 2,625 nautical miles. The news came as Boom Supersonic got shovels in the ground at the same airport for the plant that will build its Overture supersonic airliner.

Boom announced Greensboro as its factory location last year and construction on the facility began Thursday. It's more than an assembly line, however, and the "Overture Superfactory" campus will cover 62 acres. “This site will house the final assembly line, as well as test facility, and customer delivery center for Boom’s flagship supersonic airliner, Overture,” the company said. Both Honda and Boom will get incentives from local and state governments to sweeten the deals. “Our economy is taking flight with a talented workforce and strong infrastructure ready for these new, good-paying jobs in innovation and aerospace," said Gov. Roy Cooper.