Industry Sector: Defense and Aerospace

Fairfax County is home to some of the biggest names in the defense and aerospace industry. These companies focus on prime contracting, large scale systems integration and on C4ISR (command, control, computers, intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance). Key skills lie in systems engineering, cybersecurity and homeland security.

One reason is our proximity to the Pentagon and other government agencies, which gives companies instant access to leading customers, federal regulators and a network of  business partners. Fairfax County also provides the necessary workforce, with hundreds of thousands employed in science and engineering occupations in the Washington, D.C., area, including a large pool of candidates with security clearance and an abundance of former military personnel.

Fairfax County is the leader in supplying technology, ideas and the hardware to keep our country safe. Year after year more federal procurement dollars are awarded to companies in Fairfax County than any other locality in the nation, including billions of dollars in defense-related contracts.

Government agencies headquartered in the county include multiple DOD components, the CIA, the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency, the National Reconnaissance Office.

By the way, we’re home to the largest number of veteran-owned businesses in the Commonwealth of Virginia and Washington, D.C., area. Download our fact sheets about the defense and aerospace sector in Fairfax County, and federal procurement here, to learn more.