Boeing to open new Everett 737 MAX production line to boost output beyond Renton
- Boeing said it will open a new 737 MAX assembly line in Everett this summer, the first time the jet will be built outside Renton, as it pushes production higher. - The new “North Line” will start at low-rate initial production, support a jump from 42 to 47 MAX jets a month, and later add capacity above 47. - The ramp comes as a U.S. watchdog says FAA actions on MAX smoke-and-fumes risks need more work, with a fleetwide software fix not expected until mid-2028. (oig.dot.gov)
Boeing says it will open a new 737 MAX assembly line in Everett, Washington, this summer, extending MAX production beyond its longtime Renton home for the first time. (boeing.com) (flightglobal.com) The company calls the Everett site the “North Line.” Boeing said it has finished construction and tooling there and is hiring and training hundreds of workers for the startup. (boeing.com) Boeing has three 737 lines in Renton now. The Everett line is meant to supplement those lines and help the company move past its current 42-a-month 737 production rate. (flightglobal.com) (boeing.com) On Boeing’s April 22 first-quarter earnings release, the company said the 737 program is still producing at 42 a month and repeated that it expects certification of the MAX 7 and MAX 10 in 2026, with first deliveries in 2027. (boeing.com) (investors.boeing.com) Chief Executive Kelly Ortberg said Boeing expects to raise MAX output to 47 a month this summer. CNBC, citing Reuters, reported that increase is central to Boeing’s effort to reduce losses. (cnbc.com) Everett will not immediately run at full speed. Boeing said the line will begin with low-rate initial production so it can prove to the Federal Aviation Administration that its processes match Renton’s before folding the line into normal output. (flightglobal.com) (boeing.com) Boeing said the North Line can eventually build all 737 MAX variants, but it will start with the MAX 8, MAX 9 and MAX 10. The MAX 7 is not in the initial mix, and neither the MAX 7 nor MAX 10 is certificated yet. (boeing.com) (flightglobal.com) The production push lands as the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Office of Inspector General says the Federal Aviation Administration needs further action on a separate 737 MAX safety issue tied to smoke and fumes after bird strikes. (oig.dot.gov) (flightglobal.com) That issue involves the LEAP-1B engine’s load reduction device, a feature designed to limit structural damage after severe fan damage. In two Southwest Airlines MAX 8 incidents in 2023, the device activated after bird strikes and smoke or fumes entered the cockpit or cabin. (oig.dot.gov) (flightglobal.com) The inspector general said FAA followed its policy but left unresolved questions, including how long it will take to get a software fix across the fleet, how pilots are warned about the hazard, and how they are trained to use oxygen equipment. (oig.dot.gov) FlightGlobal reported the FAA expects aircraft-level approval of the software in the third quarter of 2026, after which Boeing would issue a service bulletin and the agency would move toward a rule requiring installation. The watchdog said the update may not be installed fleetwide until mid-2028. (flightglobal.com) (oig.dot.gov) For Boeing, the near-term picture is a factory expansion paired with a long certification and oversight queue. The company’s first-quarter report showed a record $695 billion backlog, including more than 6,100 commercial airplanes, underscoring why getting Everett running matters. (investors.boeing.com)
