Aerospace Manufacturing Statistics 2026

Industry overview

The US aerospace and defense industry produced about $955 billion in total economic output in 2023, combining direct manufacturing, supplier industries, and induced economic activity. Direct manufacturing revenue across the aerospace product and parts segment ran about $382 billion. Commercial aircraft and parts represent roughly 55% of that direct revenue, with defense and space accounting for the rest.

The industry is recovering capacity after the 2020 to 2022 disruption. Commercial aircraft deliveries by Boeing and Airbus continued ramping through 2024 against a record backlog exceeding 14,000 commercial aircraft between the two primes. Defense procurement remained strong on the back of the National Defense Authorization Act and sustained European and Pacific demand.

Employment and wages

Aerospace pays significantly more than the manufacturing average. AIA puts the average aerospace and defense worker compensation at roughly $107,000 per year. The premium reflects the skill requirements, the security clearances common to defense work, and the engineering-heavy mix of roles.

Direct aerospace manufacturing employs about 510,000 people in the United States. Total industry employment, counting suppliers and induced jobs, comes closer to 2.2 million. Engineering roles account for a large share: aerospace engineers alone number about 67,000, and the sector employs heavy concentrations of mechanical engineers, electrical engineers, and systems engineers as well.

Top states by aerospace employment

Aerospace manufacturing concentrates in a handful of states with deep histories in commercial aircraft, defense primes, and space launch. Washington remains anchored by Boeing Commercial Airplanes. California spans aerospace, defense, and the growing space sector. Texas grew sharply on space launch, defense, and Bell Helicopter. Florida runs a large space and defense base. Connecticut concentrates jet engines and propulsion.

Exports and trade balance

Aerospace runs the largest positive trade balance of any US manufacturing sector. ITA puts US aerospace exports at roughly $135 billion in 2023, with civil aircraft and parts driving most of the total. Major export destinations include Canada, France, the United Kingdom, Germany, China, and Japan. The sector's positive trade balance, after netting against imports, exceeds $65 billion in most years.

The depth of US aerospace exports makes the supply chain unusually sensitive to trade policy, export controls, and ITAR compliance. Any change to those frameworks affects sourcing patterns at the prime contractor level, which cascades to thousands of tier-2 and tier-3 suppliers.

Supply chain and AS9100

The aerospace supply chain is one of the most quality-controlled in industry. AS9100, the aerospace-specific quality management standard layered on ISO 9001, has become a baseline expectation for any shop pursuing tier-1 or tier-2 work. The IAQG OASIS registry tracks roughly 22,000 AS9100-certified organizations globally, with about 6,000 of those in the United States. NADCAP accreditations layer on top for specialty processes like heat treating, non-destructive testing, and special welding.

The US tier-2 and tier-3 supplier base is large but concentrated. Most prime contractor work flows through a few hundred preferred tier-1 suppliers, which in turn maintain qualified supplier lists running into the thousands. Onboarding a new supplier into a prime's qualified list often takes 18 to 24 months and significant upfront audit cost.

Commercial vs defense mix

The split between commercial aerospace and defense roughly tracks 55/45 in revenue, though the mix has tilted slightly toward defense over the last three years as commercial recovered more slowly. Commercial aircraft production rate growth at Boeing and Airbus dominates the near-term outlook. Defense remains shaped by the NDAA, FMS (foreign military sales) trends, and US response to operational demand from European, Pacific, and Middle East theaters.

For the supplier base, the practical implication is that diversified shops, those certified to both commercial and defense work, weather cyclical swings better than single-segment specialists.

What this means for aerospace shops in 2026

Three forces define the competitive picture for aerospace manufacturers in 2026. First, prime contractors are still working through backlog and need supplier capacity. Shops that prove on-time delivery against AS9100 audit history get added to qualified lists faster. Second, AI search is starting to influence preliminary sourcing. Procurement teams ask ChatGPT and Perplexity for AS9100-certified shops in a specific process or region, then validate the named shops through standard qualification. Third, ITAR registration and US-citizen workforce requirements remain non-negotiable for defense work, which narrows the eligible supplier pool and gives compliant shops pricing leverage.

Most aerospace shops still under-invest in public-facing capability content. A clean capability page that lists processes, materials, certifications, AS9100 audit cycle, NADCAP accreditations, and case studies routinely outperforms competitor pages with vague brochure copy.