Britain's aerospace industry is the third largest in the Western world, after the United States and France. With around 200 companies employing 134,500 people, it had a turnover in 1993 of ₤10,300 million.
British Aerospace is one of the world's top defence companies and more than four-fifth of its military production was exported in 1993. It includes the Harrier, a unique vertical/short take0off and landing (V/STOL) military combat aircraft. BAe has a 33 per cent share in the development of the Eurofighter 2000. The Tornado combat aircraft is built by a company set up jointly by BAe, Alenia of Italy and Deutsche Aerospace. A ₤5,000 million order for 48 Tornado bombers for Saudi Arabia was confirmed in 1993, making it one of Britain's biggest ever export deals.
Rolls-Royce is one of the world's three major manufacturers of aero-engines, with a turnover in 1993 of ₤2,100 million for its aerospace division. Its RB211-535 engines have been selected by over 80 per cent of airlines for their Boeing 757 airliners.
Over 400 companies in Britain are engaged in space activities. The industry is strong in the manufacture of satellites and ground infrastructure for satellite systems and in the analysis and exploitation of data from satellites. Matra-Marconi Space is one of the world's leading producers of communications satellites.