Representatives from the U.S. State of Louisiana are on hand here at the Farnborough International Airshow (Hall 3, Stand F50) to highlight its growing involvement in the aerospace industry. From the birth of Delta Air Services, today’s Delta Airlines (named after the Mississippi River Delta) in 1929, the state has attracted companies such as Boeing, Lockheed Martin, and Northrup Grumman and due to its incentives and workforce development programs continues to draw new investment.
Last year, Bell Helicopter completed its newest manufacturing location, an 82,000 sq ft aircraft assembly facility at Lafayette Regional Airport. The $38 million plant will start commercial production this year on two projects; the new 525 Relentless helicopter cabin subassembly, and modifications to the Northrup Grumman MQ-8C Fire Scout unmanned aerial vehicle (based on the Bell 407) for the U.S. Navy.
AAR, one of the world’s largest aviation services providers, serves airlines such as United, Delta and Southwest. It occupies six hangars at Chennault International Airport in the Western part of the state, for a total of more than half a million sq ft of workspace, large enough to perform checks on the largest airplanes in service. The Lake Charles MRO facility supports a customer mix of domestic and military aviation specializing in wide-body aircraft such as the Airbus 330 and 340 and the Boeing 767 and 777.
Also located in the state is NASA’s 832-acre Michoud Assembly Facility near New Orleans, which for more than half a century has been the space agency’s leading builder of large-scale space structures and systems. With an economic impact of over 4,600 jobs and nearly $670 million, the center is currently engaged in the construction of the most powerful rocket in history, the Space Launch System, which could someday make interplanetary travel possible, carrying the next generation of astronauts further than they’ve ever gone before.
A key factor in the state’s ability to attract aerospace companies is its LED (Louisiana Economic Development) FastStart workforce development program. Established in 2008, the program recruits, screens and even trains talent to meet specific needs of companies willing to invest in the state.