canary islands aerospace hub

Canary Islands aims to become aerospace hub

Canary Islands aims to become an aerospace hub

The Canary Islands has thrown itself fearlessly into seizing an opportunity that has long hovered over its economic diversification prospects. The archipelago wants to become a benchmark in the development of the aerospace sector – a bet it has made strongly in recent years and one that is already beginning to pay off. Initial estimates indicate that the sector is generating – directly and indirectly – €430 million in revenue and 4,600 jobs. But there is potential for much more.

Aiming to emulate the film industry’s success

The goal is to emulate the growth experienced by the Canary Islands’ audiovisual industry, which went from a marginal activity to a leading emerging sector – and perhaps even surpass it. To achieve this, the archipelago has joined forces to develop a unified strategy to promote the ideal conditions the region offers for such projects. Just over a year ago, the Canary Islands presented its Aerospace Strategy. The objective: to position the region as a hub for the sector in the mid-Atlantic, generating wealth and quality employment.

The strategy is bringing public-private initiatives under one umbrella and activating a joint effort that not only serves to attract outside companies to the islands, but also to diversify the Canarian productive fabric. In other words, the aim is to follow the same trajectory as the islands’ film industry development, which has become a resounding success story.

“The development the aerospace sector is seeing in the Canary Islands is very reminiscent of what the audiovisual sector did in its early days. In fact, we have the impression that this is moving much faster,” explains David Pérez-Dionis, Director General of Organic Coordination and Strategic Projects. The aerospace sector was declared strategic in 2024, and since then work has been carried out in a coordinated manner to develop it.

Economic impact and job creation

Although there are no official figures that allow a comprehensive measurement of the economic impact, the department is working with preliminary figures: 200 companies based in the Canary Islands are already operating in the field, with a turnover of €430 million and 4,600 jobs. However, Pérez-Dionis stresses that these figures include not only aerospace companies, but also technology firms that can provide services to the sector. He is confident that the sector’s growth will be exponential.

Looking at the data from the last two reports from Proexca – the public company that promotes the internationalisation of the Canarian business fabric and works to attract strategic investment to the islands – the prospects are very encouraging. In 2024, the potential investment forecast for this sector was €0.5 million, with the creation of ten jobs. A year later, in 2025, potential investment had risen to €53 million and potential employment had increased to 780 vacancies.

These are highly skilled jobs, important not just for their volume but because they represent a commitment to specialised talent and the retention of technical profiles in the islands, consolidating a high-value-added ecosystem. “The training it produces is another of the benefits this sector can bring to the archipelago,” insists the Director General, adding that it can offer “opportunities for Canarians to devote themselves to a specialised, high-value sector without having to develop their professional careers outside the islands.”

Regarding leads – the marketing term for potential client contacts – Proexca details that the effectiveness of capturing them “has scaled extraordinarily.” From the four registered in 2024, last year the number rose to 25, which “demonstrates a growing and mature interest from the global industry.”

What makes the Canary Islands ideal?

So what conditions make the Canary Islands an ideal place to promote this activity? Experts confirm that the archipelago has everything necessary to become a paradise for this industry: a good climate that allows testing virtually 365 days a year, a varied landscape, proximity to the sea and the African continent, and the existence of a research ecosystem already working in this field. At the same time, it has a series of tax and economic advantages that can help attract investment.

The democratisation of space

The aerospace sector has already taken off, but unlike film production – which, on the face of it, seems to require much less investment and is a simpler activity to deploy – aerospace appears a more complicated industry to boost. However, its promoters insist this is not the case. “When you name it, it sounds like we’re talking about setting up NASA, but the process has been very fast because it doesn’t have that scale,” explains Pérez-Dionis.

This has been made possible by what is called the democratisation of space – access to an activity previously reserved for a handful of specific scientific centres. Technological development has meant that the industry no longer requires as much weight or land as before, making the Canary Islands an ideal candidate. The sector covers the development of technology platforms ranging from underwater gliders, through SUAS (Small Unmanned Aerial Systems) – small drones of up to 25 kilos – and so-called HAPS (High Altitude Pseudo-Satellites), devices that can be placed at altitudes of more than 20,000 metres and serve as observation and telecommunications stations.

These platforms will become increasingly common and are already being introduced into multiple activities, not only for observation and study, but also in agriculture, film shoots, facility surveillance and even passenger transport. The Canary Islands not only has unbeatable conditions to become a testing ground for new prototypes, but can also host facilities to produce them.

“We can play a good role in the assembly of all kinds of things related to the sector, provide services to observation centres, monitor everything linked to the sector, such as cybersecurity – there is much in which the Canary Islands can excel,” says the Director General. The region’s strategy defines several projects, including the management of satellite constellations, sites for sustainable launches – even from the sea – and turning the Canary Islands into an aerospace hub for the blue economy and maritime surveillance, as well as being an active part in developing air cargo solutions between islands.

The archipelago is not starting from scratch. The region is home to research centres that have specialised in aeronautics and the aerospace sector for decades, and it is considered a reference point for observing the universe. Now it is time to capitalise on this new space economy.

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