Estimates put wasted productivity and resources in the aviation industry, such as a missed flight or missed day of work for corporate executives, at $40 billion annually. The much planned for Next Generation (NextGen) Air Traffic Control System would put a huge dent in that figure, cutting back on air traffic congestion — once the nation can get the system up and running. Just as importantly, the efficiencies are necessary in order for civil, commercial and general aviation to grow.

Benefits of the NextGen system include the ability for aircraft to fly more optimal routes because more information will be streaming to aircraft, as well as the ability to take advantage of real time winds and temperature deviations.

“The benefits of a streamlined air transportation system are huge,” says Dan Elwell, vice president, civil aviation, Aerospace Industries Association (AIA). “We have been actively trying to get policy makers to look at aviation infrastructure as every bit deserving of federal stimulus funds as are roads and bridges.”

Air transportation infrastructure is just one of the initiatives AIA is involved with in order to further the growth of the aerospace industry. Elwell says air transportation infrastructure isn't necessarily thought of as a component of what ails the nation's transportation infrastructure because people can't see it like they can a cracked roadway or a rusty bridge. “No one sits on a plane and says, ‘you know, if we had a satellite-based network air traffic control system, we wouldn't have to leave the gate until we could take off.'”

Advocating for the implementation of a Next Generation system includes a variety of components; however, fundamentally, it would increase capacity and reduce delays, and allow companies to increase air service where demand dictates.

Another growth constraint for the industry to overcome is meeting environmental changes while still allowing growth. One message, where the AIA is working with international partners, is to promote the fact that not only is the aerospace industry 70 percent more efficient, on a passenger mile basis, than it was in 1970; the industry is also committed to move forward operating under carbon neutral growth starting in 2020. Achieving this goal will come from improvements made in air traffic management; commercial and general aviation operations; in alternative fuel developments; and in airframe and engine design.

Exciting Applications

Innovations in the development of aircraft products are also important in upgrading the aerospace industry's infrastructure, in regard to technologies, says Jim Kellen, executive director, Southwest Alabama Workforce Development Council, which is a regional workforce organization, serving Mobile and eight surrounding counties. “We will see more integration and application of innovation to the whole aerospace industry and that is what will drive the future of the industry,” Kellen says.

For example, unmanned aircraft systems, which have been primarily a technology used in defense applications, are increasingly being applied in the civil and public sector. Applications include activities such as monitoring borders; crop surveillance; and the first aircraft into unstable scenarios.

Kellen points out that introducing innovations and refining solutions through the upgrading of systems, and by producing carbon fiber and new materials that are stronger, lighter and which have longer maintenance cycles, is cheaper than keeping the status quo. “What we are seeing is an increase in acceleration,” Kellen says. In the Mobile region, a defense contractor is now conducting work in two-and-a-half hours that used to take two days. “The quality has soared by using innovation at the right time and place to give a better return on value,” Kellen says. “The challenge is learning to see where the tipping point is and use new solutions that are better solutions.”

The aerospace cluster in the Mobile region is focused on an immediate goal, winning the U.S. Air Force Refueling Tanker project. Mobile is the location for a partnership between Northrop Grumman Corp. and EADS North America. The partnership is in the running to be considered as the contractor to supply the tankers. The Boeing Co. is also in the running. Toward the end of the year, Northrop Grumman announced it was considering withdrawing from the competition for the tanker project.

However, Mobile and Alabama's officials are moving forward based on infrastructure and business advantages, including the fact that the tanker project was originally awarded to the Northrop Grumman-EADS North America partnership, which Boeing protested.

Southeastern Bound

Alabama is one of the states involved in the newly launched Aerospace Alliance, which also includes the states of Louisiana, Mississippi and Florida, marketing the Gulf Coast region as an aerospace destination to the world marketplace.

The Southeast U.S. region is actively staking its claim in the global aerospace marketplace. In October, Boeing announced it would site its second 787 assembly line in North Charleston, S.C.; the largest project announcement in the state's history. “Establishing a second 787 assembly line in [North] Charleston will expand our production capability to meet the market demand for the airplane,” says Jim Albaugh, president and CEO, Boeing Commercial Airlines. “This decision allows us to continue building on the synergies we have established in South Carolina with Boeing Charleston and Global Aeronautica.” Boeing will locate on a 250-acre site adjacent to the Charleston airport for the final assembly, says David Ginn, president and CEO, Charleston Regional Development Alliance. Because Boeing is sourcing suppliers for the 787 from around the world, how the supply chain will work in North Charleston is still being developed, Ginn notes.

Sites In Place To Accommodate Growth

In Columbus, Miss., the aerospace cluster recently received a boost to its facilities and land inventory. The cluster, highlighted by American Eurocopter, Stark Aerospace, Aurora Flight Systems, and Columbus Air Force Base (one of three bases in the country training pilots), will be home to a new 2,500-acre aerospace and industrial park, located west of the Golden Triangle Regional Airport, which is expanding its runway to 8,000 feet. Some of the spaces will be located adjacent to the runway; a portion of the site is master planned to be rail served. In fact, there is a possibility that a company could access one of four of the nation's seven Class I railroads from the new site.

“The master plan includes 2 million square feet of buildings side-by-side so it [the site] could support a large aircraft manufacturing operation,” says Joe Higgins, CEO, Columbus-Lowndes Development LINK. “We think most of the tenants will be somewhere in the 100,000 to 200,000 square feet range.”  The status of the development includes $17.5 million secured to install water and sewer infrastructure to serve the site, including a 1 million gallon tank, two 1,500-gallon a minute wells, a filter plant, and about 12 miles of 16-inch water distribution lines.

Moving west to Louisiana, the Chennault International Airport in Lake Charles, and its 10,500 runway, feature 6,000 acres of available property. The former military base is an ideal location for aviation companies, as well as other industries. Aerospace firms located at the airpark include Northrop Grumman and Aeroframe Services, both of which conduct maintenance and repair on aircraft.

Lake Charles is also home to the Lake Charles Regional Airport, which features 350 acres available for development. Era Helicopters, LLC is located at the site, supporting the oil and gas industry. The Lake Charles region is marketed by the Southwest Louisiana Economic Development Alliance, an organization consisting of five parishes. One aerospace-related development is the 3,100-acre Beauregard Regional Airport property. Another asset includes Fort Polk near Leesville, which features a Joint Readiness Training Center, and which is underway with plans to double in size from its 100,000 acres. “With the increased military presence there will be more potential for aviation activity in the region,” says George Swift, president and CEO, Southwest Louisiana Economic Development Alliance.

In addition to its land infrastructure, the southwest Louisiana region offers aerospace firms access to an uncluttered air traffic system. What's more, the physical location of Lake Charles on the Gulf Coast offers access to Central America as well as the United States, Swift notes.

Moving east in the Southeast region to Kinston, N.C., the authority for the 2,500-acre North Carolina Global TransPark is building a 500,000-square-foot facility for Spirit AeroSystems. The company, a Tier I supplier to companies such as Airbus and Boeing, and which will build wing spar and fuselages for the Airbus A350, is expected to move into the facility this spring.

Spirit AeroSystems will benefit from direct access to an 11,500-foot runway at the Kinston Regional Jetport, a former military facility, says Darlene Waddell, executive director, North Carolina Global TransPark Authority. The authority will also add an apron and taxiway, which will be completed in 2011. A direct rail spur serving Spirit AeroSystems will be completed in 2012, running to the Port of Morehead City.

Developments such as the Global TransPark complement the primary goal for the Aerospace Industries Association, which is to help provide the best atmosphere for the sales and growth of the industry's products.

“In order for civil, commercial and general aviation to grow, you have to have ample room,” Elwell says, which includes air space, ramp space at airports, and sites to house aerospace OEMs and their suppliers.

For complete details on the organizations featured in this article, visit:

Aerospace Industries Association, www.aia-aerospace.org

Charleston (S.C.) Regional Development Alliance, www.charlestoneconomicdevelopment.com

Columbus-Lowndes (Miss.) Development Link, www.cldlink.org

North Carolina Global TransPark Authority, www.ncgtp.com

Southwest Alabama Workforce Development Council, www.sawdc.com

Southwest Louisiana Economic Development Alliance,

www.allianceswla.org