Aviation, Aerospace, Defense and National Security

The presence of numerous defense-related institutions with world-class research and development capacity is a major asset of the Aerospace and Defense sector and a key regional strength. Market analysis identified significant subsectoral growth opportunities, including unmanned systems, aircraft assembly, composite materials, avionics, flight training, and maintenance, repair, and overhaul among others. Aerospace and Defense, a key driver of the region’s economy, is a large and growing sector in Northwest Florida and accounts for 32,000 - 37,000 private sector and non-military government employees. Combined with the enlisted personnel from the region’s seven military installations, the industry boasts a workforce of approximately 70,000 in Northwest Florida. Click here to download the Aerospace &Defense Industry Brochure.

The Northwest Florida region is home to one naval and six aviation-related military installations including: NAS Pensacola, NAS Whiting Field, Naval Support Activity Panama City, Eglin Air Force Base, Hurlburt Field, Duke Field and Tyndall Air Force Base. These installations serve a variety of mission objectives. Naval Air Station Whiting Field is the training site for every Navy pilot on fixed and rotary wing aircraft. Recently, NAS Whiting Field expanded its programs to include training to unmanned aerial vehicle mechanics and technicians. Eglin Air Force Base is geographically the world’s largest military installation. In addition to flying missions, Eglin is home to many research and development activities including the Air Force’s Integrated Weapons and Armaments Research, Acquisition, Test and Evaluation Center, the Air Armament Center, the Air Force Research Laboratory Munitions Directorate and three test wings. Eglin also hosts Hurlburt Field, home of the Air Force’s special operations units as well as Duke Field, new home for the Army’s Green Berets. The relocation of the Green Berets is just one of the additional missions that were assigned to the region as part of the 2005 Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC). Naval Support Activity Panama City is home to the Naval Surface Warfare Center which houses over 700 scientists and engineers, many with advanced degrees. The Center is also the U.S. Department of Defense’s lead laboratory conducting research, development, testing, evaluation and support systems using air, ground, water surface and underwater unmanned vehicles. In addition to flying missions, many of the Navy’s unmanned underwater vehicles are developed, manufactured and tested at Tyndall Air Force Base. The missions, defense contracts, sub-contracting opportunities and workforce associated with the military presence are key attractions for aerospace and defense firms, which in turn help to enhance military missions by providing services, technologies and innovation. The military presence also plays an important role in military separations which often result in highly-skilled employees; many who possess security clearances, a valuable asset for companies involved in defense and national security activities.

An aging military fleet is providing opportunities in Northwest Florida for heavy modification and conversion as well as for testing and development. Much of that activity is occurring at specialized industrial airparks such as the Bob Sikes Airport in Okaloosa County. Whiting Air Park is under construction adjacent to NAS Whiting Field which will have through-the-fence taxiway access to Whiting Field’s runway. Commercial aviation MRO opportunities abound, especially at the new Panama City-Bay County Airport, the first new international airport to be built in the U.S. since Denver International. The airport, currently under construction and scheduled for flights in 2010, offers 1,400 acres of industrial space on the airport property and 3,000 acres of industrial property adjacent with through-the-fence runway access.

In Tallahassee, the Very Light Jet Center of Excellence is the world’s first education center dedicated to training students in a multitude of very light jet service operations, including mechanics. The facility also provides training to a variety of international students looking to complete a one-year Commercial Aviation Pilot training course. In addition, the facility has an Aviation Test Center for testing a variety of aviation and security equipment.

The Aerospace and Defense Industry in Northwest Florida provides a number of opportunities for training today’s students for tomorrow’s workforce. CHOICE™, a unique program for high school students, offers high school credit, college credit and nationally recognized industry certification – all at the same time. One CHOICE™ curriculum, an aerospace program led by Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University instructors, offers FAA-approved training. The CHOICE™ program has been so successful that it is being replicated throughout the state.

Northwest Florida hosts a string of pearls of research facilities across the region, including private, military and university-based facilities. At the post-secondary level, a variety of Engineering and Information Technology courses are offered at our community colleges and universities. Undergraduate students, graduate students and faculty are collaborating on research and engineering programs at the University of Florida Research and Education Engineering Facility (REEF) just outside the Eglin Air Force Base main gate. Research at REEF includes expertise in a variety of micro air vehicle technologies and agile autonomous munitions. REEF is in the process of expanding to become the Emerald Coast Technology and Research Center, a 100-acre campus that will support collaborative research opportunities between universities, the private sector and the military.

Additional vital research is being conducted at military institutions such as Eglin AFB’s Weapons and Armaments Research, Development, Acquisition, Test and Evaluation Center; the Naval Surface Warfare Center Panama City’s Littoral Warfare Research Center and Navy Experiment Diving Unit; and Tyndall AFB’s Air Force Civil Engineer Support Agency. A notable private research firm, the Institute for Human and Machine Cognition (IHMC), with offices in Pensacola and at REEF, is a pioneer for technologies aimed at leveraging and extending human capabilities as well as developing the hardware and software involved in state-of-the-art robotics and artificial intelligence. The technologies have been expanded for utilization in the development of unmanned aerial, ground, surface water and underwater vehicles. Innovation Park in Tallahassee is a premier university-related research and development park that hosts The Center of Excellence for Advanced Materials which develops technology to make materials that are stronger, lighter, multifunctional and affordable – a key element in the development of aerospace materials. The National High Magnetic Field Laboratory is also located in Innovation Park and is home to the world’s largest, highest-powered magnet laboratory. The lab is focused on developing technology that drives and supports high-quality scientific research at the highest magnetic fields. These exceptional research and education institutions are attracting world-class talent while also providing training programs for a variety of skill-sets, including certification through doctorate degrees.

Aviation, Aerospace, Defense and National Security industry comprise a large and growing sector with the potential to serve as a catalyst for high-wage growth, development and transformation. Additional growth opportunities in this field include unmanned systems, aircraft assembly, composite materials, avionics, flight training, and maintenance, repair and overhaul, among others.

Click here for a list of Northwest Florida’s Aviation, Aerospace, Defense and National Security prominent occupations and their respective minimum educational requirements, listed by metropolitan statistical area (MSA).