Farnborough: A showcase for the UK's industrial ambitions
On the first day of Farnborough and a new Prime Minister focused on re-industrialisation & regional growth, we look at the strategic importance of maintaining UK aerospace momentum.
By Dominic Weeks, Strategic Partnerships Director for Aerospace.
Today marks the opening of the Farnborough International Airshow, coinciding with Prime Minister Andy Burnham's first day in office. Alongside a breathtaking flying display from small electric eVTOLs and CTOL aircraft to widebody airliners, the exhibition halls will be packed with new aircraft designs, innovative components, and everything from advanced structures to fasteners and seals.
Farnborough has always been more than an airshow. It is where companies large and small showcase their capabilities, where partnerships are forged, and where industry presents a snapshot of its ambitions and priorities to government and the wider world. The coincidence of its opening with the first day of a new Government provides a timely opportunity to consider the role aerospace can play in delivering long-term economic growth.
Reindustrialisation across the nation
While the full detail of the new Government's programme is still to emerge, Prime Minister Burnham has consistently highlighted reindustrialisation and regional renewal as central themes. He has spoken of creating "world-beating British manufacturers and service providers at the frontier of new technology and exporting to the world."
There are few better places to see those ambitions in practice than Farnborough. From Rolls-Royce's UltraFan to Airbus' Wing of Tomorrow programme, from Vertical Aerospace's UK-designed and built eVTOL aircraft to iCOMAT's breakthrough composite manufacturing technologies, the exhibition showcases the breadth of UK aerospace innovation. NCC has supported many of these programmes, helping industry translate cutting-edge research into industrial capability and commercial products.
The economic contribution of aerospace is already well established. According to ADS, the sector supports more than 113,000 jobs, generates £30.6 billion in exports and delivers productivity of around £126,000 per employee—more than double the UK average reported by the Office for National Statistics. Collective turnover reached £41.5 billion in 2025, representing growth of more than 40% over the past decade.
But aerospace is not simply a success story of the past – it remains one of the UK's strongest opportunities for future industrial growth. The Aerospace Technology Institute's (ATI) recent Engineering Growth strategy sets out a roadmap for technologies aligned with both the Government's Advanced Manufacturing Sector Plan and the wider Industrial Strategy.
Anticipated next-generation single-aisle platforms are a major driver with industry targeting TRL6 on key technologies ahead of 2030. It identifies a $10 billion opportunity in aerostructures and a further $17 billion opportunity in next-generation propulsion systems, building on capabilities the UK already possesses and creating substantial supply chain and inward investment opportunity.
Farnborough provides the platform to see those opportunities brought to life, from aircraft flying today to the technologies that will define the next generation of aviation.
As the new Government begins translating ambition into policy, aerospace offers one of the clearest demonstrations of how industrial strategy can deliver economic growth, exports and high-value manufacturing jobs.
Growth in every postcode
Alongside industrial renewal sits an equally important theme: regional growth. Throughout his political career, Prime Minister Burnham has consistently argued that sustainable economic growth depends on empowering regions to build on their own industrial strengths.
For aerospace, that is already a reality.
According to ADS, around 88% of UK aerospace jobs are located outside London and the South East, making the sector one of the country's strongest contributors to regional prosperity.
NCC will be showcasing that story at Farnborough from two locations: alongside the ATI discussing the UK's aerospace strategy, and with the West of England Mayoral Combined Authority, highlighting one of the world's leading aerospace clusters.
NCC is already helping strengthen the region's industrial capability. Alongside collaborations with major aerospace manufacturers and their suppliers, we work closely with the Bristol Composites Institute at the University of Bristol to help translate promising research into commercial applications. We also lead delivery of the Department for Business and Trade’s flagship Made Smarter programme across the South West, helping manufacturers and engineering SMEs adopt advanced digital technologies that improve productivity.
Successful devolution has the potential to strengthen established aerospace clusters while helping other regions build on their own industrial strengths, to the benefit of the UK as a whole.
Turning ambition into capability
That's why Farnborough matters. The UK's aerospace sector has never lacked ambition or ingenuity. The challenge is turning technological leadership into industrial leadership. That means investing not only in breakthrough innovation, but also in the engineering, manufacturing capability and regional ecosystems needed to commercialise it. Organisations such as NCC help bridge that gap, enabling businesses to translate promising technologies into manufacturable products, resilient supply chains and long-term economic growth.
If the UK's industrial ambitions are to succeed, aerospace is one of the sectors best placed to lead the way.