Key facts

£5 billion

Sales of over £5 billion are generated by Scottish-based companies in this sector


10%

Complete avionic systems represent about 10 percent of civil aircraft material costs


Invention

Scotland’s aerospace achievements include the fuel system that led to the jet age and the new radar for the Eurofighter Typhoon


50

Almost 50 companies are presently active in the composite materials supply chain in Scotland, across a variety of sectors


Space world-wide

Scottish companies and research groups are significant contributors to major word-wide space projects


Mission possible

Scotland is recognised as a world leader in the CubeSat platform


UK economy generation

The wider UK space sector supports 68,000 jobs and generates around £6 billion a year to the British economy


Critical systems

Scottish companies contribute critical systems and sections to key defence projects such as the Typhoon Eurofighter and Type 45 Destroyer


12,600

Scotland is home to nearly 12,600 defence employees


£1.8 billion

Scotland's annual defence turnover


Largest in the UK

Scotland plays host to the largest defence electronics manufacturing site in the UK


5%

The technical textiles market is growing at five percent per annum and is showing significant progress


25%

Defence accounts for 25 percent of the aerospace, defence and marine sector in Scotland


11%

MRO accounts for 11 percent of all airline industry costs


MRO support

All of Scotland’s major international airports have the capacity to accommodate MRO


33%

Over one third of all UK shipbuilding takes place in Scotland


Global players

Vector, Teledyne, Rolls-Royce, BAE Systems, Thales, SELEX Galileo, Babcock Marine and Raytheon Systems all have a significant Scottish presence


40,000

Almost 40,000 staff are directly employed by the aerospace industry in Scotland


840+

More than 840 companies are involved in the aerospace defence and marine sector


World leaders

Scotland has world-leading expertise in space battery technology, miniaturisation of spacecraft systems and space borne instruments


Star gazing

NASA occasionally use a ground observatory in Dundee to track spacecraft during their missions


Major investment

The UK National Aerospace Technology Strategy supports major investment in unmanned aerial vehicles


Space-Wire leaders

Scotland has a long association with data communications language Space-Wire, with the International Space Wire standard being developed here


34

companies in Scotland have been identified as having aerospace R&D capability


R&D

The aerospace and defence sector is second only to pharmaceuticals in the percent of sales it invests in R&D


54

university departments in Scotland with aerospace R&D capabilities