Eastman Chemical returns to Kingsport after a day of investor talks in Washington

Eastman Chemical flew from Washington Dulles International Airport to Tri-Cities Regional Airport on May 12, a 54-minute hop that landed just before 6 p.m. local time. The company's Gulfstream G450, tail number N494EC, made the trip after spending the previous day in the Washington area.

The same week, Eastman Chemical reported first-quarter 2026 earnings and held its quarterly investor call on May 1, during which CEO Mark Costa discussed the company's response to the Middle East conflict, $125 million to $150 million in planned cost reductions, and the ramp-up of its Kingsport methanolysis recycling facility, per a Business Wire release. The Washington stop likely involved follow-up meetings with analysts or policymakers as the company navigates tariff refunds and raw-material inflation.

This flight fits a pattern: the same aircraft flew from Kingsport to Palm Beach, Florida, on May 11 before returning to Dulles. Eastman Chemical's home base remains Kingsport, where its headquarters and the world's largest material-to-material molecular recycling plant are located, and where the company has been collecting plastic waste from the local airport since 2024.