Lockheed Martin, Airbus, Boeing, Raytheon Technologies (formerly United Technologies), Northrop Grumman, General Electric, Safran, Leonardo, Bombardier, and United Aircraft Corporation are currently the top 10 aircraft manufacturers in 2022.
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The past year has been difficult for aircraft makers due to the large decline in air traffic caused by the Coronavirus outbreak. However, these top 10 companies have persevered and maintained their status as some of the greatest in the world.
Our assessment considers a variety of aspects, such as the company’s potential for development in 2022 and its prominence in the aircraft sector.
1. Lockheed Martin & Company
Lockheed Martin, a long-standing aviation behemoth, is expected to be the top aircraft maker in 2023, owing to its vast revenue.
They are expected to generate $65.4 billion USD in sales in 2020. Despite the pandemic, 2018 is still their most profitable year to date.
Lockheed Martin is an aerospace and technology corporation that, in addition to manufacturing aeroplanes, specialises in military-grade security, with US military contracts accounting for approximately 78% of their yearly income.
They only build military and security planes, not commercial aircraft.
Their most notable models are the Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird, which was developed in partnership with NASA, and the F22 Raptor, which is only operated by the United States Air Force.
The SR-71 is one of the highest-flying planes ever produced, capable of flying at significantly higher altitudes than typical military aircraft. They also created the first’stealth’ plane, the F117, also known as the ‘nighthawk.’
As of 2021, the corporation had roughly 114,000 employees and delivered approximately 500 aeroplanes to purchasers per year.
The F-16, one of its most popular versions, has an average lifetime of 8,000-10,000 flight hours.
Despite complaints that the model is too expensive to keep running, Lockheed Martin wants to continue expanding manufacturing of the F-35, one of their most popular models in 2021 that serves 13 nations’ air forces, after earning a $2.5 billion contract in June 2021.
2. Airbus
Airbus SE is the world’s largest aeroplane maker and a European enterprise. They also manufacture military aeroplanes and helicopters, although commercial airliner manufacturing accounts for the great majority of their revenue.
They began as an airliner manufacturer only, but began manufacturing military-grade aircraft in the 1990s.
For a long time, Boeing was the largest manufacturer of aeroplanes, but Airbus SE has recently surpassed them.
The corporation is mostly centred in France, but it has offices and production lines all around the world, including Canada and the United States.
Airbus manufactured and sold the first digital fly-by-wire airliner plane, which is why they are now one of the most well-known corporations for producing airliners.
Flying by wire entails replacing manual controls with an electronic interface for the pilot.
Airbus generated around $78.9 billion in revenue in 2020, yet some of these sales are projected to be significantly lower in 2021 due to a lack of aeroplane requirements during the pandemic.
Airbus introduced the A300 in 1972, which was the first aircraft to include a computerised fly-by-wire interface, as well as a dual engine and double aisle.
The A320, which was developed shortly after using a similar design, is still one of the world’s most popular airliner planes today!
This model has a lifespan of around 120,000 flight hours. Given its lengthy and dependable history of flight, it is also regarded as one of the world’s safest airliner models.
The A350 and the Airbus A380 are two more types with no reported passenger fatalities.
Airbus SE employs roughly 131,000 people worldwide as of 2020. The American airline Delta Airlines received their 12,000th aircraft in 2019, and they presently average roughly 20 planes per month, owing partly to the epidemic.
They want to more than treble this amount by Q4 when travel resumes following the lifting of Coronavirus restrictions.
3. Boeing
Boeing is an American firm that sells commercial airliner aeroplanes as well as weapons systems, satellites, and rockets. It is one of the most famous names in the aircraft manufacturing sector.
Boeing had around $58.16 billion in revenue in 2020 and over 143,000 employees across all locations.
They were founded in 1916 in Seattle by William Boeing and swiftly grew to become one of the largest airline firms in the world.
In 2018, it was the world’s second largest defence contractor. It also exports the most of any corporation in the United States.
Boeing is well-known for their 747, 737, and Dreamliner models, which are among the most popular airliner models in the world.
Unfortunately, due to two catastrophic incidents in 2017, all 737 models were grounded. They have subsequently resolved the issues with this model and are back in the air.
Since then, the firm has not been at the top of the aeroplane industry in the same manner it once was. Despite the crashes, they have other aircraft that have had no passenger fatalities, including as the ever-popular 747 and the 787 Dreamliner.
Unfortunately, due to forensic examinations into the quality of the jets, the corporation began to slow manufacturing of the 787 in 2021. There have been numerous reports of problems with the model, including electrical faults and breaches around the forward pressure bulkhead.
Regardless, the corporation is continuing to invest in other areas in order to optimise income in 2021. After a few months of delay, they have just sold a new fleet of 737 aircraft to Ryanair, a British airline.
With travel ramping up again now that pandemic restrictions have been relaxed, they will most certainly continue to rebuild their reputation in the coming year.
4. Raytheon Technologies, Inc.
Raytheon, another US aerospace and military defence firm, is headquartered in Massachusetts. The company merged with United Technologies in 2020. Their revenue for 2020 was $56.68 billion.
It employs around 180,000 people, the most of any of the aircraft manufacturers covered in this article. According to studies, over 60,000 of these employees are engineers, and they are expected to grow larger than some of the other organisations on this list.
The US military is its most important customer, as it is for many of the aircraft manufacturers on this list. The corporation makes a wide range of products, including military aircraft, cybersecurity solutions following the acquisition of Websense, weapon components, and much more.
One of Raytheon’s most intriguing and distinctive characteristics is not their aeroplanes, but its unparalleled diversity training.
Following the 2020 Black Lives Matter protests, Raytheon Technologies established a tough training programme for all employees that focused on critical race theory and taught people how to check their privilege.
In a daring move, they also supported the defunding of American police and reparations for slavery.
Raytheon Company and United Technologies merged, and Raytheon Technologies no longer manufactures whole aeroplanes.
However, the majority of its function involves developing aircraft systems and engines, particularly in a military setting.
At the moment, this research mostly focused on making aircraft more environmentally friendly, as air travel is one of the most polluting sectors on the planet.
The company is now focusing its efforts on developing GTF engines with improved fuel economy, as well as developing a hybrid engine plane that travels on half electricity and half fuel.
They are also focusing on developing an efficient’sustainable aviation fuel,’ a type of biofuel that will only be used to power aeroplanes. This is especially important in the commercial aviation business, because massive airliners demand enormous amounts of fuel.
5. Northrop Grumman Corporation
Northrop Grumman is a well-known military aircraft manufacturer situated in Virginia, which sells both planes and missiles.
The corporation operates on a transnational scale and sells to over 25 allied forces across the world. The company’s sales in 2020 was $36.7 billion. They often total around $30 billion per year.
Northrop employs roughly 90,000 people, falling short of the heavyweights such as Boeing and Lockheed Martin.
They have received the Collier Trophy from the National Aeronautic Association on eight distinct occasions for achievements in aeronautics and aircraft. Given that the company was started in 1994, this is quite an accomplishment!
One of them was for the Grumman X-47B, the US Navy’s first unmanned and autonomous aerial vehicle.
Northrop’s most fascinating project right now is the development of the B-21 Raider in collaboration with the US Air Force. It is a big bomber vehicle capable of dropping bombs from a long distance.
It is also expected to be capable of carrying nuclear weapons as well as conventional bombs.
They have also recently begun work on a “hypersonic weapons centre of excellence” which will be a new plant in Elkington, Maryland, dedicated to the design, production, and proper installation of hypersonic missiles and other weapons.
They also just signed a deal with NASA to investigate a fairly experimental studio apartment with enough room for three aircraft to enter Earth’s orbit.
6. General Electric Company
GE Aviation is headquartered near Cincinnati, Ohio, and employs only 48,000 people. It is a subsidiary of General Electric, which also manufactures automobiles and home appliances.
GE Aviation earned $22.04 billion USD in revenue in the fiscal year 2020. General Electric Aviation does not build their own aircraft, but they do offer engines, computers, and other components to the major aircraft manufacturers.
This means that many of the other companies on this list, such as Lockheed Martin and Airbus, are among their customers.
The great majority of their earnings comes from the production of engines for commercial aircraft jets. The GEnx, a commercial engine created exclusively for the Boeing Dreamliner range, is one of their most significant creations (the 747 and 787). It is also their best-selling engine to date!
Other popular General Electric Aviation engine models include the GP7200, which was developed in partnership with Raytheon Technologies and provides the most fuel efficient engine currently available on the market for the Airbus A380.
However, they are also strongly present in the military side of aviation. They produce jet engines for military aircraft, which is similar to their work on commercial engines.
Among their most recent and notable accomplishments is the development of the Adaptive Cycle engine, which allows military aircraft to travel further, faster, and longer. At any one time, the airflow within the engine adjusts automatically based on the pilot’s flight style.
General Electric Aviation, like its competitor Raytheon Technologies, is attempting to address the issue of commercial aviation industry sustainability. They are currently working on developing their own environmentally friendly aviation fuel.
7. Safran
Safran is a French firm with $19 billion in revenue so far in 2022. Although this is a smaller company than most of the others on our list, Safran has done quite well for itself in surviving the possibly oversaturated American market.
In 2005, SNECMA, an aircraft manufacturer, and SAGEM, a security organisation, merged to form the corporation. They no longer build their own aircraft frames, instead concentrating on engines, avionics, aeroplane interiors, electrical systems, and other components.
Safran SA is a global leader in navigation systems for both commercial and military aircraft.
The corporation employs approximately 81,000 people, placing it in the middle of the ranking.
Safran has won a contract with Singapore Airlines to equip their Boeing 777-9 fleet with carbon brakes and wheels. The French army now employs 390 of Safran’s distinctive M88 engines.
One of the most intriguing aspects of Safran is that, unlike many of the other firms on our list, they specialise in interiors as well as engine and system components.
For example, Crystal AirCruises’ current Boeing 777-200LR has a cabin designed fully by Safran SA, even down to the in-flight entertainment systems!
8. Leonardo
Leonardo Company is an Italian company with a revenue of 13.4 billion Euros in 2020. They are a multinational corporation with headquarters in Italy.
Leonardo was the world’s ninth largest military contractor in 2018. The company was founded in 1948, making it one of the oldest corporations on our list of the top ten aircraft manufacturers, and it currently employs over 50,000 people.
This business creates commercial and military aircraft, as well as helicopters.
In partnership with Airbus and BAE Systems, the company created the Eurofighter Typhoon, a military fighter jet. There were little over 500 of them in the world as of 2020. They are predominantly employed by European military like as the British Army, but they also have customers in the Middle East, including Kuwait and Saudi armies.
They also specialise in cyber security, collaborating with governments and large organisations to install security equipment, computers, and control panels, among other things.
Leonardo even offers exclusive flight instruction for both their Eurofighter and helicopters, which distinguishes them from their competitors.
They, like many of the aviation firms on our list, offer space services such as satellite technologies, Mars rover parts, and laser transmitters.
9. Bombardier
Despite having a significantly lesser revenue than the bulk of the other firms included in this article, Bombardier is one of the most well-known names in aviation and aerospace.
In 2020, the company’s revenue will be $6.5 billion. They are a Canadian firm that previously produced a wide range of transportation, including trains and commercial jet aircraft.
However, the company currently predominantly concentrates on creating business/private planes, distinguishing them from their contemporaries that mostly focus on military or commercial aircraft design.
Surprisingly, Bombardier began as a snowmobile maker and gradually progressed to designing and manufacturing buses, trains, passenger jets, and military ground equipment.
One of their most visible aircraft initiatives in recent years has been the C-series commercial airliner plane. However, the aircraft had a difficult few years, failing to meet demand and being accused of selling at a loss thanks to Canadian government subsidies.
After obtaining a 50.01% share in the model, Airbus took up the design and today owns the aircraft. It is now known as the Airbus A220.
The company’s efforts are currently focused exclusively on its private jet sector. They have three main jet ‘families,’ the Global, Learjet, and Challenger, which are all big sellers in the private jet business.
Bombardier said earlier this year that it would discontinue production of the Learjet, its smallest jet, due to a lack of market demand. The wealthy are increasingly purchasing larger aircraft, which means they will concentrate on their Global and Challenger models.
10. United Aircraft Corporation (UAC)
The United Aircraft Corporation, a state-owned Russian firm that manufactures military and commercial aircraft, is perhaps the most contentious airline manufacturer on this list.
Their reported revenue in 2018 was $6 billion. There have been no figures disclosed subsequently, but it is assumed that they are still a giant in the world of aviation and aerospace.
The firm employs 100,000 people and manufactures the great bulk of its military aircraft exclusively for the Russian military. They do, however, provide the Chinese army.
The Sukhoi Superjet 100, a joint project between Boeing and Sukhoi, was their first commercial airliner to fly.
Despite the various restrictions imposed on Russia by other Western governments, the United Planes Corporation continues to sell commercial and cargo aircraft to Western nations and enterprises.
DHL, for example, is one of its key clients and uses the Tupolev Tu-204C for the majority of its international cargo shipments.
The business teased a new military aircraft on their Twitter account in July 2021, which is said to be a big worldwide rival. Surprisingly, the firm revealed it with a’meme’ including an image from the TV show The X Files.
According to reports, they are also moving quickly to construct a supersonic commercial airliner that will compete with the original Concorde, with the help of cash from a UAE investment business. They will have to create it quickly, though, because there is stiff competition from companies like Virgin Galactic.
Conclusion;
Our top ten was not necessarily ordered by revenue, as seen by the fact that Airbus had a larger revenue than Lockheed Martin, but rather by a number of characteristics such as the number of planes manufactured and the number of employees the firm has.
Following the Coronavirus epidemic, the vast majority of the corporations and businesses on this list have been losing money. Since March 2020, most governments have outlawed or regulated travel in some way, and while the world is beginning to open up again, the travel sector will not be fully operational until at least 2023.
Lockheed Martin was our top option because of its impressive portfolio and massive revenue, owing primarily to its military activities. Airbus produces the most commercial aircraft per month/year, averaging little over 800 planes per year, whereas Lockheed Martin is likely the largest builder of military-grade aircraft.
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