Page 23 - AAA SEPTEMBER - OCTOBER 2022 Online Magazine

COURTING

SUCCESS

OKLAHOMA WOOS AEROSPACE AND our very concerted and organized effort to
DEFENCE COMPANIES, BOTH LOCAL develop and grow our aerospace and defence
ecosystem.”
AND INTERNATIONAL, WITH
INCENTIVES, AFFORDABLE LABOUR, Multipronged Approach
AND CLEAN ENERGY
The concerted effort to promote the sector is
spearheaded by Governor Kevin Stitt and has
 ARUN SIVASANKARAN the backing of state agencies, universities,
and schools in the state, says Camp. “We
Aerospace and defence, the second largest industry in Oklahoma, have 29 tech centers across the state; nearly
had an economic impact of US$44 billion in 2017. Being second twenty of them have aerospace programmes.
doesn’t sit well with Geoffrey Camp, State Director of Aerospace That helps us develop the workforce. We edu-
& Defence. cate children in primary schools about STEM.

“My personal goal is to make aerospace and defence the largest All three of the major universities in the state
industry in the state,” says Camp, who has been at the helm for have research institutions set up to feed the
over two and a half years. “Energy is the number industry and aerospace and defense sector.”
is worth about US$62 billion. When we measure again at the Ensuring a steady stream of talent is just
end of the year, I expect the gap between the two sectors to be one of the ways in which the state is wooing
in single digits. Ideally, I would like to get to the point where we companies. “We offer incentives and credits
have at least half a billion dollars of capital investment in the that will help businesses get established; we
state year over year in aerospace and defence, and about 3,000 also help them mitigate some of their costs
new jobs. I think it is very achievable.” for personnel,” says Camp. “We also have

“We are a very small state with limited resources, a state of an engineering tax credit it is US$ 5000 per
only 4 million people,” says camp. “On paper, we have no busi- engineer for five years, and up to US$12,500
ness competing with states like California, Texas or Florida for the business for that engineer as well.
that have a large number of resources. We continually win Two of the largest maintenance, repair, and
against those states because of who we are. The competitive overhaul facility (MRO) facilities in the world
edge that Oklahoma has over others states and regions is - the Tinker Air Force Base that has about

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