Game on: Washington must fight to keep aerospace

Whether Washington wants to accept it or not, this state is in a major competition from the rest of the nation to keep aerospace companies like Boeing.

States, especially in the Southeast, are throwing big money, tax breaks and incentives at Washington companies to entice them to leave or expand.

Washington can’t afford to take it’s aerospace industry for granted. That’s the rallying cry from companies who want to stay here but are facing sweeter and sweeter offers from other states.

Aviation Technical Services is the state’s second largest aerospace company with about 1,200 employees. Company CEO Matt Yerbic said he is shocked by what other states are throwing at him to move or open facilities elsewhere.

“We will build you a building for nothing,” is one of the pitches Yerbic has received. “We will train your employees for nothing. We will guarantee you lease rates into the future for something less than maybe a sixth of what we might be seeing here in the state of Washington.”

He believes Washington needs to be as competitive as it can to keep up with the offers from other states.

“Our company is committed to being here,” Yerbic said. “I know companies like Boeing are committed to being here, but we need to make sure we don’t take for granted what we have here. That’s a key for me. We have to keep working hard to make sure we prove to those companies that are staying here, that want to be here, that it’s a good place to be.”

Yerbic said Washington will need to fight to keep what it has. “I think the biggest thing we’re up against is an aggressive group of states that are very jealous of what Washington State has and willing to give just about anything to make it happen,” he said.

Several states are making their play to build the Boeing 777-X, which is the next new plane from the company that will likely be unveiled in Dubai next month.

Utah is one of the states looking to increase its aerospace industry. It already has a Boeing assembly plant in Salt Lake City. Marshall Wright is director of Utah’s business development office. He believes there will be enough work to keep everybody happy.

“There are going to be opportunities for all of us,” Wright said. “I think the idea of competing is not quite the issue. I think it’s making sure that the 777-X is an absolute fantastic aircraft for Boeing, and it will make us all very competitive.”

Governor Jay Inslee said he’s already preparing his plan keep Washington’s competitive in this fight. His playbook includes extending tax incentives and fast-tracking the permitting process.

And to remind you how important aerospace is to Washington’s economy. Here are a few new statistics: There are more than 1,300 aerospace companies in this state. They operate in 36 of the 39 counties, and they were responsible for 11 percent of all the wages paid in Washington last year.