Andalucia Aerospace cluster presents together with the Andalusian Regional Minister of Industry the 2022 report of the Andalusian aerospace sector held under the framework of the PARIS AIR SHOW
The total turnover of the sector increases 17% compared to the previous year reaching € 2,356 million
Employment increases 8%, reaching 13,136 direct jobs
There are 143 aerospace companies in Andalusia
The Andalusian aerospace sector closes the year 2022 with a turnover and employment higher than those of 2021. The total turnover of the sector in 2022 goes up to € 2,356 million, with an increase of 17% over the previous year (€ 2,002 million). In the same way, employment also grows, reaching 13,136 direct jobs, which is 8% more than in 2021.
“2022 results have been great in terms of recovery, and we expect even higher growth for 2023. Andalucia Aerospace has companies highly prepared to assume the workloads coming.” Quoted the president of Andalucía Aerospace, Antonio Gómez-Guillamón, during the presentation today in front of many relevant industry people attending the 54th Paris Air Show.
On the other hand, the Andalusian Regional Minister of Industry claimed: “There are great opportunities for the Andalusian aerospace industry while facing the two great challenges of decarbonisation and digitalisation. In fact, we want Andalusia to play a leading role in this transformation, and we are building the necessary public-private partnerships to achieve it”.
“Andalusia leads the development of renewables energies and will become the largest green hydrogen producer in Europe. Therefore, we understand that we must strengthen synergies between the aerospace and the energy industry to also play a significant role in the decarbonization process”, said Paradela.
Regional minister Paradela also highlighted: “We have the Andalusian Aerospace Strategy, a roadmap for upcoming years, designed together with the sector. We are hoping for the implementation of the European funds of the new framework program to boost this strategy. Besides the regional incentives to finance transformative industries, the Regional Ministry is working on a specific call for aid for productive investment in the aeronautics and space industry”.
In addition, the newly announced creation of the Spanish Space Agency and the informal meeting of Ministries focused on the space challenge, within the framework of the Spanish Presidency of the EU, both taking place in Seville, “will reinforce our position as a space region”. “The industry and the knowledge ecosystem put us at the forefront in the development and application of emerging technologies linked to decarbonization, robotics, UAV (unmanned aerial vehicles), advanced air mobility, digitalization and smart factories, among others”, claimed the Regional Minister.
After the drop-in activity in 2020, due to the temporary cessation of air traffic caused by Covid 19, 2022 has been a period of growth with a progressive recovery in air traffic, although it has been lower on transoceanic routes. This has meant an increase in the workload for Andalusian aerospace companies as more orders for commercial aircraft are received.
In the defense sector, the war in Ukraine has highlighted the importance and need for governments to protect themselves in order to guarantee the rights of those countries, their citizens and national security. For this reason, the budgets for Defense are being raised, which is an important boost for the Andalusian aerospace sector, with so much tradition in this military segment.
Programs such as the A400M or the C295, in which our region has a very important participation due to the final assembly of these aircraft, have gained more relevance. In Andalusia, work is already underway on the C295 ordered by the government of India. Also, the first flight of this aircraft with SAF fuel has already been carried out.
The Andalusian aerospace industry has demonstrated resilience in spite of the difficulties generated by the international context; maintaining the number of companies, 143 in total. However, they appealed to the Administrations to support more than ever the sector, strategic for Andalusia, which contributes 1.24% to the Andalusian global GDP, 9.19% to the industrial GDP and leads the export rankings.
Forecasts
With the designation of Seville as the headquarters of the future Spanish Space Agency, it is expected that the space sector will take off in the region. The Andalusian sector, very strong in the aeronautical segment, is committed to strengthening the space segment by taking advantage of synergies with existing technological capabilities. The most important initiative promoted by the cluster is the implementation of the Andalusat project, a satellite system that will be developed using technological capabilities of Andalusian companies.
Another priority segment in the region is the development of Advanced Air Mobility, based on electric vertical takeoff and landing aircraft. In these segments, innovative public procurement can be the necessary instrument to develop enabling digital technologies.
In addition, the implementation of CEUS in Huelva, will become the largest test center for unmanned flights in Europe. It will work in coordination with the INTA experimentation center in El Arenosillo. It is expected to come into operation at the beginning of 2024 becoming an important asset for the sector.
The military segment is also a priority for the region. In this sense, the Andalusian cluster supports the initiative of the Andalusian Regional Government to create a Defense Node that includes the regional industry of this sector.
It is expected that Andalusia will receive workload from the Eurodrone program, which can be an important reinforcement for the military segment of our region.
Another major program, the Future Combat Air System (FCAS), has entered its Phase 1B, initiating engineering activities in terms of systems and demonstrators. Our companies are beginning to position themselves to be eligible for future projects in a program that will take decades to carry out.
In the province of Cádiz, the AIRBUS plants have been unified in the CBC (Cádiz), where they plan to expand and reinforce the activity. The maintenance of sustainable employment is very good news.
Andalucía Aerospace cluster, goes beyond 90 associated companies, experiencing a strong growth of associates and activities. The main priority of the cluster is to keep pushing for innovation and internationalization of its member companies.
Download the Andalusian Aerospace Sector 2022 annual report here
