Canada Aerospace Revenue Jumps 76% to $45.7B
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- Canada's aerospace industry posted $45.7-billion in collective revenue through end of 2025 — up 76% over five years and 7% year-over-year — with exports of $28.2-billion last year (up 54% since 2021), per federal government and Aerospace Industries Association of Canada data.
- Airbus landed a US$19-billion order for 150 A220 jets from AirAsia in May, the largest order ever for a Canadian-made commercial airplane; PM Mark Carney personally met AirAsia CEO Tony Fernandes to press the case, a level of government promotion unusual in Canada.
- Bombardier is carrying 3-4 years of backlog after booking 3.6 new jet orders per plane delivered in its latest quarter, and is spending $100-million on a new Montreal plant to relieve pressure on its US$400-million Toronto Pearson facility opened in 2024.
- Airbus has more than doubled its Canadian workforce since 2016 to over 5,300 employees, its largest presence outside Europe; de Havilland Canada broke ground on a 1,500-acre aerospace campus east of Calgary and is in talks with Saab about assembling Gripen fighter jets if Ottawa selects them.
- Héroux-Devtek sold itself to American PE firm Platinum Equity for $1.35-billion last year to fund acquisitions, and Groupe Meloche acquired France's Groupe Rossi Aéro in May to position closer to Airbus's Toulouse base.
- The sector now ranks in the global top five for non-military flight simulators, engines, and aircraft manufacturing, employing about 94,200 people in Canada, with manufacturing concentrated in Quebec and MRO dominant in Ontario and Western/Northern Canada.
- Industry leaders flagged risks: trade-war exposure, lingering supply chain and labour bottlenecks, and the need for a more formal federal strategy beyond what's already been announced.
Why it matters: The 76% revenue jump makes Canada a top-five global non-military aerospace manufacturer supporting 94,200 domestic jobs, but Bombardier CEO Éric Martel openly cited concern about shocks spreading from Ukraine and Russia to Iran — meaning the boom's durability hinges on tariffs staying away and supply chains holding. With Héroux-Devtek now American-owned and other suppliers chasing scale through foreign deals, Canadian ownership of the gains is less certain than the headline growth.
