When Gov. Mark Sanford and other officials jet off to a global air show in England to court new industry next month, they'll probably be packing a little more swagger in their pitch.

Unlike at past shows, they'll no longer just be selling some nebulous concept about transforming South Carolina into an aviation hub. At this year's gathering in Farnborough, they'll be able to point to the newly finished Vought Aircraft Industries plant in North Charleston as concrete proof that the state is a real contender, Commerce Secretary Joe Taylor said Thursday.

'All of the sudden, what you have is credibility,' Taylor said.

Several hundred invited guests were on hand Thursday as government officials and company executives marked the completion of Vought's 342,000-square-foot manufacturing facility, where about 375 workers will be hired over the next five years to make aft fuselage components for Boeing Co.'s new 787 passenger jet.

Many marveled at how such a large structure could be built so quickly. It took slightly more than a year to finish.

Sanford said the $560 million investment Vought is making in North Charleston with its 787 partner, Italy's Alenia Aeronautica, is among the largest in South Carolina since BMW built its automobile plant in the Upstate in the early 1990s. He said the plant opening is a reminder of how the state can compete in an increasingly globalized economy, in this case by adding value 'in getting people from Point A to Point B,' he said.

'This is a big, important announcement,' Sanford said.

The 787 Dreamliner is considered within commercial aviation circles a revolutionary next-generation aircraft. Most notably, it is the first large jet to be made almost entirely of lightweight composite materials, rather than aluminum, a move expected to cut fuel consumption significantly.

In another industry departure, parts will be made by suppliers on every continent except Antarctica before being transported on specially modified 747 cargo jets to a Boeing plant in Everett, Wash., for final assembly.

'In the past, Boeing would give us a set of drawings and say, ?Build us this ...' ' said Elmer Doty, Vought's chief executive.

The local plant, built on the outskirts of Charleston International Airport, is already assured a steady backlog of work.

To date, Boeing has booked 360 firm orders from 26 airlines for the long-range jet. Continental Airlines Inc. this week said it would buy 10 more 787s, bringing its total to 20. Japan's All Nippon Airways will be the first carrier to take delivery of the 787, probably in the second quarter of 2008. Chicago-based Boeing is exploring whether it needs to double its manufacturing capacity for the Dreamliner.

'It's the most successful aircraft launch in the history of Boeing,' Doty said.

Vought has hired about 50 workers at the North Charleston site, where production is scheduled to begin in July, said Mark Dickey, vice president and general manager. The company's aft fuselage sections will be attached to other structural components across the road at a plant operated by Global Aeronautica, a joint venture between Vought and Alenia.

Together, the companies expect to hire at least 725 employees for the 787 project, about 75 more than original projections.

The Global Aeronautica facility is scheduled to open later this year. Production there is set to begin in January, said Charles 'Newt' Newton, a recently retired Vought executive who is now helping run the joint venture.

'It's a slow, steep climb,' Newton said. 'Then you have to run like heck.'

Reach John McDermott at 937-5572 or jmcdermott@postandcourier.com.