Corning returns to Charlotte after Amazon inks multibillion-dollar fiber deal

Corning flew from Harris Hill Gliderport near its New York headquarters to Charlotte Douglas International Airport on June 11, a 1-hour 21-minute hop aboard Challenger 850 N28CG. The trip is the latest in a flurry of visits to the region this month, including multiple round trips on June 9 and 10.

The same week, Corning and Amazon announced a multibillion-dollar partnership to supply optical fiber for Amazon’s data centers, per a June 8 release covered by Spectrum Local News and Broadband Breakfast. The deal will expand Corning’s North Carolina manufacturing facilities, creating 1,000 advanced manufacturing jobs and several hundred construction positions. Corning CEO Wendell Weeks called it a way to “lead the way toward building a resilient U.S. manufacturing base.”

Charlotte has become a recurring destination for the company as it ramps up production in the Carolinas. Corning already operates major fiber-optic cable plants in Hickory, N.C., and the new Amazon-backed expansion is likely to add capacity there. With a flight department of seven aircraft and a hangar at Elmira-Corning Regional, the company’s pattern of shuttle flights to Charlotte suggests hands-on oversight of its growing Southern manufacturing footprint.