AUBURN, WA—Production of fuselage stringers for the first Boeing 737 MAX has begun at the company’s assembly plant here.

CHICAGO—The Boeing Co. projects air cargo traffic will grow at an annual rate of 4.7 percent over the next 20 years, with global air freight traffic expected to more than double by 2033.

Every year, fans of the Winter X games see snowmobile racers battle the elements and the laws of gravity to perform amazing feats—including long distance jumps and double back flips. What the fans don’t see is the ongoing battle between fasteners and vibration within every bolted joint of the snowmobile.

Manually assembling small parts isn’t that difficult. Inserting a screw into a hole or a wire into a connector is simply a matter of hand-eye coordination. Assembling larger parts, like, say, the multiton fuselage sections of a jetliner, is whole other matter.

WASHINGTON—NASA’s new Vertical Assembly Center, a 170-foot-high machine that will be used to assemble elements of the agency’s Space Launch System, is ready to weld parts for the rocket that will send humans to an asteroid and Mars.

MOBILE, AL—Airbus is hiring the latest wave of quality inspectors for its assembly plant under construction here. The hourly pay for these positions ranges from $20 to $23.50 based on skills, education and experience.

The bald eagle is a majestic symbol of power and freedom. It’s also the logo of one of America’s oldest aerospace manufacturers: Pratt & Whitney.

HUNTSVILLE, AL—NASA has successfully tested complex rocket engine parts produced with the additive manufacturing process laser metal sintering.

Regardless of its size, an airplane part needs to be monolithic, with minimal dimensional variation. Such parts ensure better control of the aircraft’s final weight.

EVENDALE, OH—GE is utilizing a next-generation carbon fiber composite for the fan blades that will debut in the GE9X jet engine, which will drive Boeing’s upcoming 777X passenger aircraft.