Aerospace giant Boeing announced this week that St. Louis, Missouri, will be home to the headquarters of the Boeing Defense, Space & Security (BDS) business. The company cited its commitment to “being present and engaged with teammates” who are designing, producing, and delivering vital defense and space products and capabilities for customers in the U.S. and around the world.
The firm employs more than 18,000 workers at its facilities in the region, which include Boeing Global Services, Boeing Commercial Airplanes, and enterprise functions.
“It’s important for leaders to be side-by-side with our teammates, listening to their feedback and acting to remove obstacles as we continue to stabilize and strengthen our business,” said Steve Parker, Boeing Defense, Space & Security CEO. “The headquarters move, coupled with our senior leaders being based at and spending their time at major engineering, production and manufacturing centers across the U.S., reflects our continued focus on disciplined performance across our business.”
Meet Boeing in St. Louis
BDS has been headquartered in Arlington, VA., since 2017, and was previously in St. Louis from 1997 to 2017. The move will separate BDS from Boeing’s corporate HQ, which is set to remain in Arlington, after previously being located on Riverside Drive in downtown Chicago, IL, from 2001 to 2022.
However, the manufacturing and operational roots remain heavily in the Seattle area, where the company was founded in 1916 and first operated out of Plant 1, aka “The Red Barn” on the Duwamish River from 1917 to 1965.
Several BDS aircraft are produced at its St. Louis-area facilities, including Berkeley and St. Charles, MO, as well as nearby Mascoutah, IL. The aircraft include the F-15EX Eagle II, the advanced variant of the McDonnell Douglas F-15 Eagle and F-15E Strike Eagle; the T-7A Red Hawk advanced pilot trainer system; and the MQ-25 Stingray, the U.S. Navy’s first carrier-based unmanned aerial refueler. The latter aircraft is produced at a specialized facility at MidAmerica St. Louis Airport.
The U.S. Navy’s carrier-based multirole F/A-18 Super Hornet is also produced in St. Louis. Although the firm is now working on the final batch of fighters and has no pending orders, it is expected that the production lines could transition to the F-47 sixth-generation stealth fighter for the U.S. Air Force.
Additionally, components for the 777-9 (777X) aircraft, including folding wingtips, rudders, and elevators, are produced in St. Louis, as is the Joint Direct Attack Munition (JDAM).
The Show-Me State’s Republican Gov. Mike Kehoe praised the move back to St. Louis.
“Missouri is the best place in the nation for aerospace and defense manufacturing, and having the Boeing Defense headquarters back where it belongs is a win for our workers and a win for the heartland,” said Kehoe. “We are proud to see this leadership return to the production floor where the real work of defending our nation happens every day.”
St. Louis – A Major Aerospace and Defense Hub
The return of the BDS HQ will further anchor the Gateway to the West as a major U.S. aerospace and defense hub. Several large firms maintain a presence in St. Louis, including Gulfstream Aerospace Corp., which operates a large service and manufacturing facility; Lockheed Martin; Northrop Grumman; BAE Systems; Leonardo DRS; Leidos Inc.; and West Star Aviation.
Drone start-up WingXpand expanded its footprint in 2023, forming a partnership with Ranken Technical College.
Other firms in the regional supply chain include Sonaca North America and Collins Aerospace.
According to local officials, the St. Louis area is home to 49 aerospace manufacturing businesses.
During the Second World War, St. Louis first emerged as a significant aircraft manufacturing hub, producing the Curtiss-Wright P-40 Warhawk fighter, and Fairchild PT-19 and PT-23 trainers for the U.S. Army Air Force.
