Top 5 Aircraft Manufacturers in the World

1. Lockheed Martin Corporation (NYSE: LMT)

Revenue: $65.4 billion (2020)

Lockheed Martin Corporation (NYSE: LMT) is an American company that designs, tests, manufactures and sells aerospace and advanced defense technology. It is the largest aerospace manufacturer by revenue as of 2020 beating both Boeing and Airbus to the number 1 spot.

Lockheed Martin approximately has 110,000 employees. The company’s headquarters are located in North Bethesda, Maryland. The aerospace company’s primary customer is the US Government, specially the Department of Defense, Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) and National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). Lockheed Martin has some impressive aircraft inventions to its portfolio. The company developed the highest flying and one of the fastest manned aircraft in the history of aviation, named as the SR71 Blackbird. It had a top speed and altitude of Mach 3.3 and 85,000 feet respectively. It was designed to be out of range of enemy radars and fighter jets. Operational costs and the advent of satellite reconnaissance later led to the retirement of the aircraft.

The defense contractor is also the first aircraft manufacturer to develop the first true stealth aircraft, F117, also called the nighthawk, starting a new chapter in the next generation military tactical aircraft. Lockheed Martin is also the manufacturer of F22 Raptor, the most advanced stealth air-superiority fighter only in service with the United States Air Force with its design details highly classified. The jewel in the company’s crown is the F35 joint strike program, widely touted as the most expensive weapon system in military history, with the fleet’s operational and maintenance costs being more than $1 trillion. The F35’s varying versions are used by 3 US military branches, namely, the United States Air Force, United States Marine Corps and United States Navy. The aircraft also has 14 international buyers.

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