As North Carolina’s biggest economic development catch, JetZero is going to gobble up more than 600 acres at Piedmont Triad International Airport. That still leaves several hundred acres, keeping it in the hunt for prospective tenants.
“There are three or four of them that are good, solid prospects,” Kevin Baker, executive director of the airport’s authority, said in a recent interview. “I’d say one or two are very solid prospects that would require smaller amounts of space that we absolutely have. So yeah, we are far from out of business here.”
Long Beach, California-based futuristic jet maker JetZero is taking a big contiguous parcel once home to a public golf course, but in recent years graded and made “shovel-ready.” That’s the lingo of economic developers seeking to lure a major employer to the high-visibility Interstate 73 tract, perhaps a third original equipment manufacturer to accompany long-term tenant Honda Aircraft Co. and upstart Boom Supersonic.
Luring Denver-based Boom 3 ½ years ago sparked a hot streak for PTI, which in 2023 won Britain-based Marshall Aerospace’s U.S. operations for repair and overhaul of military aircraft. With their big-box buildings complete and road and bridge work nearing completion around them, the two companies are preparing to commence operations at the airport, eventually employing more than 2,000 people.
JetZero promises to be far bigger: a $4.7 billion manufacturing plant projected to create more than 14,500 jobs over the next decade, the largest employment announcement in North Carolina history.
As PTI’s reputation has spread in aviation and economic development circles, Baker said, “we’re pretty much getting asked to submit on just about every project that happens now. Marshall and JetZero found us because of the Boom project.”
Since publicizing its selection of Greensboro in mid-June, JetZero is determining exactly where to put its operations at the airport, Baker said. It may occupy acreage on both sides of I-73, putting it in proximity to Boom and Marshall.
Last week, on an oversize aerial photo, Baker pointed out numerous parcels that are going to remain available after JetZero nails down its site. He said the authority continues to buy property, reaching deeper into commercial and residential areas in northwestern Greensboro.
“If somebody comes and wants a 500-acre site, we don’t have that,” Baker said. “But we do have a bunch of 50- to 100-acre sites.”
The prospects are aviation-related, as required by the Federal Aviation Administration. “In other words, they have to have a need for a runway,” Baker said.
That generally means suppliers of aircraft accessories are likely to be located in the vicinity of the airport, according to Baker.
“Seats are going to come from somewhere else,” he said. “Tires are going to come from somewhere; radios are going to come from somewhere else.”
He anticipates Guilford, Forsyth and other adjoining counties securing suppliers as production ramps up enough to justify big production runs.
As local and state economic recruiters have acknowledged, JetZero and Boom are still unproven since neither has assembled a plane. That brings uncertainty, Baker said.
“Obviously, they’re both startups,” he said. “There’s a risk with any startup in any business, and this is a very highly technical, complicated business. But they’ve got good plans. They’re making headway.”
