Boeing to open new 737 MAX line

Boeing says it will open a new 737 Max assembly line in Everett, Washington, this summer, giving the jet a second production site in the Seattle area. (boeing.com) The new “North Line” will be able to build every 737 Max model, though Boeing says it will start with the 737-8, 737-9 and 737-10. The company says the Everett line will copy the build process used at its three existing 737 lines in Renton. (boeing.com) Boeing says construction and tooling are finished, and the immediate job is staffing the line with hundreds of workers drawn from new hires and transfers from Renton, Everett and Moses Lake. New mechanics are completing 12 weeks of foundational training and on-the-job work in Renton before Everett starts producing jets. (boeing.com) The line is opening later than Boeing first planned. FlightGlobal reported Boeing had targeted the second half of 2024, then delayed the move after the Federal Aviation Administration capped 737 output in early 2024 following production-quality problems. (flightglobal.com) Those problems were laid out in the National Transportation Safety Board’s June 24, 2025 report on the January 5, 2024 Alaska Airlines Flight 1282 blowout. Investigators said the 737-9 left Boeing’s Renton factory without a required removal record to ensure bolts and attachment hardware on the mid-exit door plug were properly replaced. (ntsb.gov) Boeing says Everett will begin at low-rate initial production, meaning the pace is intentionally slowed so the company and the Federal Aviation Administration can check whether the new line matches the approved Renton system. Boeing says the first airplanes from Everett will be used to show conformity before the line is folded into regular 737 Max output. (boeing.com) That matters because Boeing says the Everett line adds capacity only after the slow start is complete. The company says the North Line is intended to support production rates above 47 aircraft a month, while FlightGlobal reported Boeing is currently at 42 a month after the Federal Aviation Administration raised the earlier cap. (boeing.com) (flightglobal.com) Everett is a notable choice because Boeing has never built 737s there before. FlightGlobal reported the company is using space that once housed 787 assembly, after Boeing moved 787 production out of Everett in 2021. (flightglobal.com) The 737-10 that Boeing plans to build in Everett is still not certified, and FlightGlobal reported the 737-7 also still awaits Federal Aviation Administration approval. Boeing’s 2025 annual report said completing certification of the 737-7 and 737-10 remains one of the company’s biggest opportunities. (flightglobal.com) (sec.gov) For Boeing, the Everett line is both an expansion and a test. The company is trying to increase 737 output with a new factory flow while convincing regulators that the same quality controls will hold. (boeing.com)