Aviation booming

WICHITA - As orders for more commercial airplanes take off, Wichita-area aviation suppliers and subcontractors are busy and making plans for more equipment, expanding some operations. and hiring more employees.

The burst in commercial airline activity has been good for companies that work with such manufacturers as Boeing, Airbus and Bombardier. One example is Exacta, which produces parts for Boeing. It is installing new assembly stations machines and planning to start running 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

The activity comes as commercial planemakers boost delivery rates and bring on new aircraft, such as Boeing's 787 Dreamliner and 747-8, Airbus' A350XWB and Bombardier's CSeries.

Aircraft manufacturers took in more than $100 billion in new orders at the Paris Air Show in June. That includes Airbus, which announced orders for 730 aircraft at the show. And last month, American Airlines announced an order for hundreds of Boeing and Airbus airliners.

Boeing and Airbus are slowly increasing production of narrowbody airliners - the 737 and A320 respectively - to 42 a month each to meet increased demand.

The Associated Press