Companies

Boeing Aerospace Company

Boeing St. Louis is Missouri’s largest manufacturer and sixth largest employer, with a staff of nearly 17,000. Employees work at three facilities in the St. Louis region: St. Louis, St. Charles, Mo. and Mascoutah, Ill. Serving as the headquarters of Boeing’s Air Dominance division, Boeing produces a number of military aircraft and weapons systems locally including the F/A-18 Super Hornet, EA-18G Growler, F-15 Eagle, eT-7A Red Hawk, MQ-25 Stingray, Joint Direct Attack Munition, Harpoon missile and Small Diameter Bomb. Additionally, the St. Louis Composite Center of Excellence manufactures composite parts for the Boeing 777X commercial aircraft. Boeing Air Dominance encompasses a portfolio of strike-fighters, advanced flight trainers, unmanned aerial refueling aircraft, and is also responsible for the modernization and modification of several U.S. Department of Defense and international aircraft programs.

Boeing Global Services delivers complete, cost-competitive service solutions for commercial, defense and space customers, regardless of their equipment’s original manufacturer. With engineering, digital analytics, supply chain and training support spanning across both the government and commercial service offerings, Boeing Global Services is uniquely positioned to keep passengers flying and nations safe.

Additionally, Boeing St. Louis is the home of Phantom Works, the division that addresses emerging market opportunities to capture vital new business that will enhance BDS’ core and extend the company’s presence in new and untraditional frontiers. By partnering with Boeing Research and Technology, Phantom Works leverages enterprise-wide innovation and concept development to rapidly prototype and apply these new technologies to affordably meet customers’ needs.

Gulfstream Aerospace Corp.

Inspired by the belief that aviation could fuel business growth, Gulfstream Aerospace Corp. invented the first purpose-built business aircraft, the Gulfstream I, which first flew in 1958. Today, more than 3,200 aircraft are in service around the world. Together with parent company General Dynamics, Gulfstream consistently invests in the future, dedicating resources to researching and developing innovative new aircraft, technologies and services. With a fleet that includes the super-midsize Gulfstream G280, the record-setting Gulfstream G650 and Gulfstream G650ER, and a next-generation family of aircraft including the category-leading Gulfstream G400, the award-winning Gulfstream G500 and Gulfstream G600, the ultralarge-cabin Gulfstream G700 and the ultralong-range Gulfstream G800, Gulfstream offers an aircraft for every mission. All are backed by Gulfstream’s Customer Support network and its worldwide team.

The Gulfstream St. Louis Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul facility at St. Louis Downtown Airport has been owned and operated since 2017. This site offers dedicated hangar and service team to support the entire line of in-production and legacy mid-cabin aircraft.

In June 2023, Gulfstream announced further expansion of its completions and outfitting operations at St. Louis Downtown Airport. With this latest expansion, Gulfstream will increase completions operations at the site while modernizing its existing spaces by adding new, state-of-the-art equipment and tooling, representing a total capital investment of $28.5 million. The facility will include greater capacity for exterior aircraft painting, furniture installations and avionics integrations, among other work, that will enable full aircraft completion and customer deliveries directly from the St. Louis facility. Once complete, this expansion will bring Gulfstream’s total St. Louis footprint to 642,657 square feet/59,705 square meters.

Today, more than 600 employees work at Gulfstream St. Louis.

AVMATS

AVMATS is a trusted provider of parts and services for Challenger, Falcon, Hawker, Gulfstream, Learjet, and Sabreliner aircraft. The company’s capabilities include parts sales, maintenance, interiors, avionics, components, accessories, structures, engines, auxiliary power units, and aircraft sales.

Today, the AVMATS family of companies occupies more than ten acres spread over four physical locations in the greater St. Louis area. Between Spirit of St. Louis Airport and MidAmerica St. Louis Airport, the company operates 91,000 square feet of hangar and attached shops. Three locations in O’Fallon, Missouri, combine to make up more than 100,000 square feet of warehouse facilities, 20,000 square feet of dedicated component and accessory overhaul space, and 42,000 square feet of engine, APU, and machine shop space. The company employs more than 200 people with a wide variety of abilities.

AVMATS highly skilled staff specializes in flight structure repair, airframe maintenance, interior refurbishment, avionics modification, component servicing, as well as turbine engine or APU repair and overhaul. Parts specialists are available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, providing customers with round-the-clock support.

With an emphasis on quality, technical accuracy, and competitive prices, AVMATS has created a loyal customer base spanning decades. After more than 45 years, they remain a St. Louis-based, family-owned and operated business dedicated to providing the best value and top-notch service to their clients. In addition, by adopting a no-frills approach, they have been able to explore new avenues to serve customers and expand their “Total Aircraft Support” concept. This philosophy has created a company sure to continue its success well into the future.

West Star Aviation- ALN

West Star Aviation – ALN is a full-service, fixed-base operator (FBO) conveniently located at St. Louis Regional Airport in East Alton, Ill. It is at this location that West Star specializes in the maintenance, repair and refurbishment of multiple aircraft, including the Cessna Citation, Dassault Falcon, Bombardier Challenger and Global Express models, and aircraft manufactured by Gulfstream and Embraer.

In August 2024, West Star Aviation celebrated the completion of its new hangar at the East Alton facility. The new hangar, officially named Hangar 67, adds 75,700 square feet of space, including 40,000 square feet of dedicated hangar space and 35,700 square feet of support space for the company’s advanced modification capabilities. That brings the company’s total footprint to more than 450,000 square feet at ALN, where West Star also maintains more than 200,000 square feet of ramp space. The company also recently launched the West Star Aviation Academy, a dedicated in-house learning center for West Star’s innovative apprenticeship program.

The company, originally named Walston Aviation, was established in 1947 at its current East Alton location and changed its name to Premier Air Center in 1986. In late 2004, Premier Air Center acquired West Star Aviation and operated under a dual name before renaming to West Star Aviation in 2007. The East Alton facility, which is an FAA-certified Repair Station, had held European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) approval since October 2004 and was approved to work on Brazilian registered aircraft by the Agência Nacional de Aviação Civil (ANAC) in July 2018.

West Star Aviation – ALN currently employs more than 600 individuals and has been awarded the AMT Diamond Award of Excellence for its East Alton facility.