Now that Boeing has finished the last 747 and sent it off to Atlas Air’s freight operations, the company will use the vacant assembly line to ramp up production of its popular 737 models.
Most of the demand from airlines these days is for single-aisle planes, and the 737 and Airbus’s A320 series are the main choices. Boeing expects the single-aisle market to grow by 50% over the next 20 years. Currently, Boeing aims at producing 31 737s a month on two production lines at its Renton, Washington factory. The new line at Everett will begin production next year.
In addition to creating a 737 line at its Everett plant where it has mainly produced twin-aisle planes, it will also add a third line at Renton, enabling it eventually to produce as many as 60 737s per month. In addition to the space freed up by the former 747 assembly area, the new 737 line will eventually take space now used for 787s, with that production moving to the South Carolina plant which is already the major site for 787s.
