Boeing has suspended operations at its North Charleston, South Carolina, site as Hurricane Idalia continues to pass along the East Coast of the United States.
The announcement was made via Boeing’s Employee Emergency Information site and stated that the manufacturer will suspend all operations at the site from 4:00 pm on August 30, 2023, until at least 8:00 am on August 31, 2023.
“Our teammates’ safety and security are of prime importance during any weather emergency,” Boeing added.
In an update at 11:00 pm local time (UTC +4), the US National Hurricane Center (NHS) warned that “areas of flash, urban, and moderate river flooding, with considerable impacts, are expected from eastern South Carlina through North Carolina into Thursday [August 31, 2023].”
According to Aviation Flights, a site that tracks production and delivery flights of all aircraft manufacturers, the last Boeing 787 delivery was to SAUDIA on August 28, 2023. However, the Boeing 787-10, registered as HZ-AR32, departed Everett Paine Field (PAE) and not Charleston International Airport (CHS).
The last Boeing 787 to be delivered from CHS was a Turkish Airlines 787-9, registered as TC-LLV, which was handed over to the carrier on August 17, 2023.
According to ch-aviation.com data, Boeing only delivered five aircraft of the type in August 2023.
Meanwhile, the site’s records showed that only three Boeing 787s made their first flight during the same month. On August 25, 2023, an Etihad Airways 787-9, registered as A6-BNE, took off on its maiden journey from CHS, while another SAUDIA Boeing 787-10, registered as HZ-AR33, departed and arrived at CHS on August 12, 2023.
Lastly, a Singapore Airlines Boeing 787-10, registered as 9V-SCU, completed its first test flight on August 8, 2023.
The Charleston site is home to the only Boeing 787 production line after the manufacturer unified the final assembly of the type in March 2021.
“[…] through our 787 study it became evident that the consolidation to a single production location in South Carolina will make us more efficient and lower production and better positioned for the future,” Gregory Smith, the now-retired chief financial officer (CFO) of Boeing, said during the company’s Q3 2020 earnings call in October 2020.
