Its a further sight UK will be worst off in coming decades. UK shall spend the money more on education ,upgrade workforce skill and strengthen commercial industries in anticipation of more competition in coming times.
You don't have to worry about our educational system/workforce skills and commercial industries. We have always invested far more in these sectors, reason we are still among the world foremost leaders in these sectors and it will keep being the case for the coming decades. That doesn't change the fact that we should also invest in our security/defence industry to enable them to keep their competitive edge vis a vis our adversaries and enable them to carry out more research and keep ahead of the game. As i said, you forget that our defence/aerospace industry is a big part of our economy itself and has a positive multiplier effect on many other sectors together with the foreign sales and collaboration we earn when partnering/helping other countries in the development of their own defence products. So every investment in our defence industry/companies is still a net positive for us. I think with Brexit our government has realised this and will focus even more on going ahead with investing in our own defence productions to meet the next century challenges we will face. You have to know that we still have the 2nd/3rd largest aerospace industry in the world even today. So we need to maintain investment in our industries since it has lots of advantages for our economy.
Aerospace and Defense
This is a best prospect industry sector for this country. Includes a market overview and trade data.
The UK aerospace industry is the second largest in the world, behind that of the U.S. In 2019, total UK civil aerospace turnover totaled over $45.5 billion, and the sector had approximately a 17% global market share. The UK aerospace industry is the crown jewel for UK exports and, even though the UK does not produce large civil aircraft, 90% of domestic aerospace production is exported. The UK has a reputation as a global center of excellence for the design and production of engines, helicopters, wings, structures, and aircraft systems (including landing gear). Rolls-Royce-manufactured engines power more than 35 types of commercial aircraft, and the company has over 13,000 engines in service around the world. The UK also designs and manufactures wings for all Airbus aircraft platforms. In addition to manufacturing, the UK has a thriving maintenance, repair and overhaul sector (MRO), that provides services to the huge numbers of military and civil aircraft that fly through and from the UK every year. It is estimated that there are over 1,300 companies involved in the MRO and logistics sector in the UK with a combined turnover of over $195 billion and employing over 57,000 people. The aerospace industry is a major market for U.S. exports in the United Kingdom.
The UK commercial space industry is rapidly growing, it produced a turnover of over $18.7 billion in 2019 and has an ambition to capture 10% of the global space market by 2030. With $714 million invested in Research and Development, the Space industry is 6 times more R&D intensive than the UK average. Accelerating growth year on year, the UK is a world leader in nano and small satellites. The commercial space sector is likely to see steady investments in new and existing space technologies and services, with funding coming primarily from industry and venture capital with government support. The market can be broken down into four main components. Over two-thirds of total market income is derived from Space Applications, followed by the smaller components of Space Operations, Space Manufacturing, and auxiliary services.
After being removed from access to the EU’s Galileo system, a European Union alternative to GPS, the UK moved to create its own GNSS system. After cost estimates became too high, the British government scaled back plans for its proposed $6.3 billion sovereign satellite navigation system. Officials are now exploring the potential for a system that would deliver the same civil and military tracking services as Galileo and GPS while operating at a lower altitude and on a different frequency.
Revenues in the commercial space market primarily come from manufacturing of satellites used for earth observation and communications. Accelerating growth year on year, the UK is a world leader in nano, small satellites and the UK space sector has an ambition to capture 10% of the global space market by 2030. In addition, in June 2020, the U.S. and the UK concluded a Technology Safeguards Agreement (TSA) associated with U.S. participation in space launches from the UK which will enable the UK to import launch technology to develop their commercial launch capability.
Drones are becoming an increasingly familiar aspect of life and work in the UK playing a growing role in areas ranging from emergency services to construction to oil and gas. The rising use of drones in business and public services is predicted to be highly impactful and deliver significant benefits to the British economy and society. Estimates have forecasted that by 2030 the impact of drones could increase the UK GDP by $53 billion and create over 600,000 new jobs. Drones have seen a significant uptake in the oil & gas industry. Drone use is also well established in the utility industry, in particular for the inspection of long, liner assets such as powerlines.
Like the internet and GPS before them, drones are evolving beyond their military origin to become powerful business tools. Drones have already made the leap to the consumer market, and now they are being put to work in commercial and civil government applications. This is creating a market opportunity for companies that provide platforms, sensors and software.
The relationships between the UK and other countries, especially the U.S., coupled with the future renegotiation of trade agreements, will play a major role in the challenges and opportunities facing the UK’s A&D industry. UK defense spending is expected to remain steady, with a slight impact on certain defense programs due to economic uncertainty. Since the Brexit vote in June 2016, the pound sterling has depreciated in value, which is expected to boost the UK’s exports as they become more cost competitive.
More than 3,000 aerospace companies operate in the UK, and the aerospace sector has the largest number of SME companies in Europe, providing over 282,000 jobs directly and indirectly. Domestic companies include BAE Systems, Cobham, GKN, Meggitt, QinetiQ, Rolls-Royce, and Ultra Electronics. Non-domestic companies with a major presence include Boeing, Airbus Group, Leonardo (including its AgustaWestland and Selex ES subsidiaries), General Electric (including its GE Aviation Systems subsidiary), Lockheed Martin, MBDA, Safran, and Thales Group.
Airbus UK in Broughton assembles the wings for all Airbus civil aircraft, including the new A350 XWB. In October 2018, Boeing opened a production facility in Sheffield, Boeing’s first manufacturing site in Europe. The $50 million facility is located near the Advanced Manufacturing Research Centre with Boeing (AMRC). GKN Aerospace will also produce the new Advanced Technology Winglet for the Boeing 737 MAX. Rolls-Royce-manufactured engines power more than 35 types of commercial aircraft.
The UK government has demonstrated significant interest in developing and increasing the domestic supply chain. UK industry and government established the Aerospace Growth Partnership (AGP), which develops initiatives to encourage UK companies to cooperate closely and to address gaps and problems that affect the sector, tackle barriers to growth, and boost both UK exports and high value jobs.
United Kingdom - Aerospace and Defense (trade.gov)
Just because we don't go about bragging left and right, doesn't means that we don't have a large leading role/presence and advantage on many critical industries in the world today.
