The Scottish aerospace industry

A dramatic rise in the volume of air traffic in Scotland in recent years means the importance of the Scottish aerospace industry to the wider economy continues to grow. Scottish aerospace companies have an annual turnover of £2.1 billion and, including defence jobs, provide employment for 30,000 people.

Scottish aerospace sectors

Over 22 million passengers passed through Scotland’s airports in 2005, a figure that is set to rise in coming years, thereby creating many opportunities for Scottish aerospace investment. There are currently in excess of 150 companies operating across several thriving aerospace industries such as:

• Avionics 
• Defence 
• Manufacturing and design 
• Maintenance, repair and overhaul 
• Research and development
• Space
• Unmanned aerial vehicles
• Composites

The future of Scottish aerospace

Significant consolidation and the rise of lower cost air travel, which drives productivity improvement and cost reductions, have brought considerable changes to the global industry over the past decade. As a result, Scottish aerospace companies have been forced to face up to a number of new challenges.

• The Scottish aerospace industry can boast high levels of specialist expertise.
• Scotland’s world-class academic sector includes departments with aerospace specialities and produces thousands of high-quality graduates each year.
• Significant Scottish aerospace research & development takes place, and a number of excellent public/private partnerships exist.
• Scotland is an established centre of design engineering excellence with a commitment to skills development.
• Many of the leading global aerospace and defence companies have facilities in Scotland.

Support for the Scottish aerospace industry

Scottish Development International (SDI) is the specialist inward investment arm of Scottish Enterprise. We help Scottish companies develop business opportunities overseas and offers active support for the aerospace industry in Scotland.

A dedicated and experienced team is on hand to help developers, investors and operators maximise the potential of the Scottish aerospace industry in Scotland. Contact us to find out more about the support available for aerospace business development in Scotland.