Manufacturing

The aircraft manufacturing industry is responsible for the production and supply of military and civilian aircraft to the global aviation markets. The aircraft manufacturing industry is largely synonymous with the aerospace industry, which is responsible for the design, engineering, development, testing and manufacturing of aircraft for airlines, commercial freight transport, surveillance, law enforcement, meteorological, climate and space research, and military aviation.

The aerospace industry also manufactures aircraft capable of leaving the earth’s atmosphere (space shuttles and high-altitude aircraft). Military air forces worldwide and the aviation industry (airlines and commercial transport) represent clients of aircraft manufactures. Leading global aircraft manufacturers include Airbus, Boeing, Lockheed Martin (LM), United Technologies Corporation (UTC), General Dynamics, Bombardier, United Aircraft Company (UAC), Northrup Grumman, EADS, Thales, Dassault, and Saab. A number of innovators and pioneers in the aerospace or aircraft manufacturing industry were acquired or consolidated under current market leaders during the past three decades.

The aircraft manufacturing industry is also populated by a number of component manufacturers such as Raytheon, General Electric, Rolls Royce Group plc, Parker Hannifin, Honeywell, and a number of other specialty companies and multinational conglomerates with only a portion of revenue originating from the aerospace market. With a heavy emphasis upon technological development in defense sector orders, aircraft manufacturers are characterized by multiple cycles of prototyping, testing, and after-market development services. This creates significant demand for employment and third-party services in aerospace engineering and other specialty fields of engineering. Major after-market service markets also exist for maintenance, aircraft leasing, and armaments.