Colorado is an aerospace leader, ranking first in the nation in 2015 for private aerospace employment as a percentage of total employment, and second in total private-sector employment. For nearly 70 years, the combination of military presence, space-related science, open space, and a dynamic business environment has supported its vital position as a top aerospace state.
Colorado’s aerospace industry includes a broad range of companies, products, and systems for commercial, military, and civil space applications. Colorado’s aerospace companies research, develop, design, and manufacture guided missiles, spacecraft, satellites, and other communications equipment, as well as navigation and detection instruments. Companies in the aerospace industry also produce planetary spacecraft and launch systems and provide mission support.
Colorado’s aerospace industry receives support from its abundance of high-tech companies, four military commands, eight major space contractors, National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) research activities, and several universities involved in extensive space research. The state is also at the forefront of innovation and commercial space opportunities.
Colorado has nearly 170 businesses classified as aerospace companies, and more than 400 companies and suppliers providing space-related products and services. Direct aerospace employment industry totals 25,120 private sector workers and approximately 27,740 military personnel. These 52,860 aerospace workers support an additional 109,350 workers in all industries throughout Colorado, bringing direct and indirect employment supported by the aerospace industry to 162,210 workers.
The state’s aerospace employees earn significantly more than the average private sector worker. The 2014 average annual salary for an aerospace worker in Colorado was $129,590, more than double the average annual salary for all workers in Colorado.
Many of the nation’s major aerospace contractors have a significant presence in Colorado. These companies include Ball Aerospace & Technologies Corp., The Boeing Company, Harris Corporation, Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman, Raytheon Company, Sierra Nevada Corporation, and United Launch Alliance. Colorado is also home to a diverse mix of U.S. Department of Defense military installations, including Buckley Air Force Base, Peterson Air Force Base, Cheyenne Mountain Air Force Station, Schriever Air Force Base, and the United States Air Force Academy. Colorado’s military installations provide an annual economic impact of $27 billion to the state’s economy.
The state’s contractors and aerospace organizations are leading the nation’s major commercial, civil, and military space missions and projects, including the Mars Atmospheric and Volatile EvolutioN, a prime example of Colorado’s leadership in space exploration with the entire mission and spacecraft being built and launched by Colorado organizations. Further, Sierra Nevada Corporation is changing the commercial space landscape with its Dream Chaser® space transportation system. In addition, Colorado’s aerospace companies played a key role in the development of NASA’s New Horizon spacecraft. After traveling 9 ½ years and more than 3 billion miles, the spacecraft reached Pluto in 2015 and was the first spacecraft to successfully flyby the dwarf planet.
With the state’s highly educated workforce and scientific talent, world-class research facilities, supportive business and tax climate, and high-tech innovations, Colorado is an aerospace powerhouse and will continue to be a center for global aerospace innovation.
