---
title: "Aerospace Manufacturing Statistics 2026: Revenue, Employment, and Supply Chain"
description: "Current US aerospace manufacturing statistics. How big is the aerospace industry, how many aerospace workers, top states, exports, AS9100 base, and 2026 outlook from AIA, BLS, ITA sources."
slug: aerospace-manufacturing-statistics
type: statistics
publishedAt: 2026-05-28
updatedAt: 2026-06-02
readingTime: "~12 min read"
keywords: "aerospace manufacturing statistics, aerospace industry, aerospace jobs, AS9100, aerospace supply chain, US aerospace exports, how big is aerospace industry"
breadcrumb:
  - { name: "Home", href: "/" }
  - { name: "Aerospace Manufacturing Statistics", href: "/aerospace-manufacturing-statistics" }
linkPhrases:
  - "aerospace manufacturing"
  - "aerospace industry"
  - "aerospace manufacturing statistics"
  - "aerospace suppliers"
related:
  - manufacturing-statistics
  - cnc-machining-statistics
  - defense-manufacturing-statistics
  - defense-space-manufacturing-industry-trends-2026
sources:
  - title: "2024 Facts and Figures: US Aerospace and Defense"
    publisher: "Aerospace Industries Association"
    year: "2024"
    url: "https://www.aia-aerospace.org/report/2024-facts-figures-us-aerospace-defense/"
  - title: "Aerospace Product and Parts Manufacturing (NAICS 3364)"
    publisher: "US Bureau of Labor Statistics"
    year: "2024"
    url: "https://www.bls.gov/iag/tgs/iag3364.htm"
  - title: "Aerospace Industry Profile"
    publisher: "International Trade Administration"
    year: "2024"
    url: "https://www.trade.gov/aerospace-industry"
  - title: "AS9100 Certification Registry"
    publisher: "IAQG OASIS"
    year: "2024"
    url: "https://www.iaqg.org/oasis/"
---

<UpdatedDate date="2026-06-02" readingTime="~12 min read" />

Aerospace is the largest single contributor to the US tradable-goods economy by manufactured exports, and one of the most concentrated supply chains in the country. The decisions made by a few dozen prime contractors and tier-1 suppliers shape work for thousands of smaller shops.

<KeyTakeaways>

- US aerospace and defense generates approximately $955 billion in total economic value annually.
- The sector employs about 2.2 million people across direct, supplier, and induced roles, with 510,000 direct manufacturing jobs.
- Aerospace consistently runs the largest positive US trade balance of any manufacturing sector, with exports above $135 billion annually.
- Roughly 22,000 AS9100-certified companies operate globally, with about 6,000 in the United States.
- Washington, California, Texas, Florida, and Connecticut concentrate the largest share of aerospace manufacturing.

</KeyTakeaways>

## How big is the US aerospace industry?

<StatSnippet value="$955B" source="Aerospace Industries Association, 2024 Facts and Figures" sourceUrl="https://www.aia-aerospace.org/report/2024-facts-figures-us-aerospace-defense/">
Total US aerospace and defense economic output in 2023, combining direct manufacturing, supplier industries, and induced economic activity.
</StatSnippet>

<StatSnippet value="$382B" source="AIA / BEA, 2024" sourceUrl="https://www.aia-aerospace.org/report/2024-facts-figures-us-aerospace-defense/">
Direct US aerospace product and parts manufacturing revenue in 2023.
</StatSnippet>

Commercial aircraft and parts represent roughly 55% of direct revenue, with defense and space accounting for the rest. The industry continued recovering capacity after the 2020 to 2022 disruption, with backlog exceeding 14,000 commercial aircraft between Boeing and Airbus.

## How many people work in US aerospace manufacturing?

<StatSnippet value="510K" source="BLS, 2024" sourceUrl="https://www.bls.gov/iag/tgs/iag3364.htm">
Direct US aerospace manufacturing employment.
</StatSnippet>

<StatSnippet value="2.2M" source="AIA, 2024" sourceUrl="https://www.aia-aerospace.org/">
Total A&D supported US jobs including direct, indirect, and induced.
</StatSnippet>

<StatSnippet value="$107K" source="AIA, 2024" sourceUrl="https://www.aia-aerospace.org/">
Average A&D worker annual compensation, significantly above the manufacturing average.
</StatSnippet>

The premium reflects the skill requirements, the security clearances common to defense work, and the engineering-heavy mix of roles. Aerospace engineers alone number about 67,000.

<StatGrid>
  <StatCard value="$955B" label="Total A&D economic output, 2023" source="AIA, 2024" />
  <StatCard value="$382B" label="Direct aerospace product revenue, 2023" source="AIA / BEA, 2024" />
  <StatCard value="2.2M" label="Total A&D jobs (direct + indirect + induced)" source="AIA, 2024" />
  <StatCard value="510K" label="Direct aerospace manufacturing jobs" source="BLS, 2024" />
  <StatCard value=">14,000" label="Commercial aircraft backlog (Boeing + Airbus)" source="Boeing/Airbus IR, 2024" />
  <StatCard value="$30B+" label="Annual R&D spending" source="AIA, 2024" />
</StatGrid>

## Which states have the most aerospace manufacturing?

<DataTable caption="Top states by aerospace manufacturing employment, 2024">

| State        | Aerospace jobs | Anchors                                              |
| ------------ | -------------: | ---------------------------------------------------- |
| Washington   |        85,000  | Boeing Commercial Airplanes, Spirit AeroSystems      |
| California   |        82,000  | Northrop Grumman, SpaceX, Lockheed Martin, Boeing    |
| Texas        |        47,000  | Lockheed Martin, Bell, SpaceX, L3Harris              |
| Florida      |        42,000  | Lockheed Martin, Boeing, NASA, SpaceX, Embraer       |
| Arizona      |        37,000  | Raytheon, Honeywell, Boeing                          |
| Connecticut  |        37,000  | RTX (Pratt and Whitney), Sikorsky                    |
| Georgia      |        33,000  | Lockheed Martin, Gulfstream Aerospace                |
| Kansas       |        28,000  | Spirit AeroSystems, Textron Aviation                 |
| Ohio         |        25,000  | GE Aerospace, Cleveland-area supply base             |
| Missouri     |        22,000  | Boeing Defense, several supplier clusters            |

</DataTable>

<InlineCTA title="See where your aerospace shop stands in AI search" body="Prime contractor sourcing engineers increasingly use AI assistants to compile supplier shortlists. Run a free check to see how ChatGPT, Perplexity, Gemini, and Google currently describe your AS9100-certified shop." source="aerospace-manufacturing-statistics-mid" />

## How big are US aerospace exports?

<StatSnippet value="$135B" source="ITA, 2024" sourceUrl="https://www.trade.gov/aerospace-industry">
US aerospace exports in 2023, the largest positive trade balance of any US manufacturing sector.
</StatSnippet>

<StatSnippet value="$65B+" source="ITA, 2024" sourceUrl="https://www.trade.gov/aerospace-industry">
US aerospace positive trade balance after netting against imports in most recent years.
</StatSnippet>

Major export destinations include Canada, France, the United Kingdom, Germany, China, and Japan. The depth of US aerospace exports makes the supply chain unusually sensitive to trade policy, export controls, and ITAR compliance.

## How many AS9100-certified companies are there?

<StatSnippet value="~22,000" source="IAQG OASIS, 2024" sourceUrl="https://www.iaqg.org/oasis/">
AS9100-certified organizations globally, with about 6,000 in the United States.
</StatSnippet>

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. NADCAP accreditations layer on top for specialty processes like heat treating, non-destructive testing, and special welding.

<BarChart title="AS9100 certified companies by region, 2024" unit="companies" series="United States:6000|Europe:7500|China:3200|Japan:1100|India:900|Other:3300" />

<PullQuote source="Aerospace Industries Association, 2024 Facts and Figures">
The aerospace and defense industry supports roughly 2.2 million American jobs and contributes more than $425 billion in labor income annually.
</PullQuote>

## What does this mean 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. Second, AI search is starting to influence preliminary sourcing. Third, ITAR registration and US-citizen workforce requirements remain non-negotiable for defense work.

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.

<Callout type="tip" title="Where to go from here">

For broader context, read the [manufacturing statistics report](/manufacturing-statistics) and [defense and space manufacturing industry trends 2026](/defense-space-manufacturing-industry-trends-2026). For the machining side specifically, see the [CNC machining statistics](/cnc-machining-statistics) and [welding industry statistics](/welding-statistics). To see how your aerospace shop currently shows up across Google and the major AI assistants, run a [free AI-visibility check](/checker).

</Callout>

<CiteBox title="Aerospace Manufacturing Statistics 2026" url="https://manufacturingseo.ai/aerospace-manufacturing-statistics" citation={`Manufacturing SEO AI. "Aerospace Manufacturing Statistics 2026: Revenue, Employment, and Supply Chain." Manufacturing SEO AI, June 2026. https://manufacturingseo.ai/aerospace-manufacturing-statistics`} />