A New Plane Built in Long Beach?

I would be surprised if it happens simply because of the cost of living in Southern California would force the aircraft maker to pay much higher salaries, rent, etc., than in, say, Nashville. However, the aviation expertise is here already. So the learning curve and ramp-up time would be much less.

AVIATION: German company is also considering several other cities for its international headquarters. By John Canalis Staff Writer

LONG BEACH -- A German aerospace company is considering building a new airplane in Long Beach, according to news reports.

The project would also likely include the unnamed company's international headquarters and the addition of about 400 jobs.

Long Beach was cited among a number of locations in the running for the project by Miami Today, a business publication serving South Florida.

Miami, North Carolina, South Carolina, the United Arab Emirates, Croatia and Indonesia are also contenders to build the "fully certified" aircraft, the newspaper reported.
Whether the airplane would be for commercial or private use was unclear.

Citing Miami-Dade County's practice of keeping potential employers' names under wraps during negotiations, the newspaper did not name the company, which is apparently seeking $3.9 million in tax incentives from various government agencies in Florida.

Officials with the Boeing company in Long Beach were not immediately aware of the project.

It was unclear from the report whether the German outfit would seek tax breaks from California, Los Angeles County and the city of Long Beach, but asking for such incentives is commonplace when high-paying manufacturers shop for new locations.

The company could choose a city by fall, begin hiring by winter and start construction in winter, the newspaper reported.

In addition to the assembly line and headquarters, the company plans to establish an aerospace research and development center.

A representative for Long Beach Mayor Bob Foster was unaware that Long Beach was being considered but said that other airplane manufacturers had made inquiries about doing business here in the past.

The last commercial jetliner to be built in Southern California, the Boeing 717, was assembled in Long Beach.

Boeing still makes the C-17 military cargo plane here. On Monday, Boeing announced that it reached a deal to sell two C-17s to Qatar, an Arab emirate.