Aircraft

Florida's weather has lured everybody from Walt Disney to exiles from northern winters. Tourists flock to Orlando and coastal resorts. But with 1,700 businesses employing 80,000, the Sunshine State has one of the biggest aerospace communities in the USA. Defence firms set up camp around its air bases during the Second World War and stayed. The Apollo program­me created the Space Coast in the 1960s. Later, the area around Miami became a hub for the maintenance and after­market sector. Aviation colleges and flying schools, high-tech companies and general aviation manufac­turers have also been attracted to Florida by the climate and talent pool. In the following feature, we look at what makes the Sunshine State shine for aerospace companies that call Florida home.