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The Irish aviation industry looks set to take off in the wake of Brexit as Dublin Aerospace reveals new Irish jobs after pulling out of €40m UK investment.
The effects of Brexit on Irish business are coming thick and fast, most notably in major financial institutions. For example, JPMorgan Chase recently announced plans to relocate hundreds of staff here – as well as to other EU states – to stay within the single market.
Now the aerospace industry can be added to the pot as Dublin Aerospace intends to create 25 jobs by the end of October, on top of the 25 it has just offered positions to.
According to the Irish Independent, the company’s founder, Conor McCarthy, said that this will bring its total number of staff to 290 in its Dublin office.
Brexit concerns
However, McCarthy admitted that the company was on the cusp of giving the green light for a €40m investment and job creation in the UK before the results of the Brexit referendum were announced.
“Brexit has caused us to take stock,” McCarthy said. “One of our concerns if we were going to set up a facility in the UK would be … with our reliance on contract workers; would we be restricted in terms of their ability to come in and out of the UK to work?
“Our workforce swells in the winter and a lot of those are contract engineers and mechanics, for instance. We have marked seasonality, and we need that ability to be able to control our workforce. If you don’t have flexible labour in our business, you’re dead.”
The now cancelled UK deal would have seen Dublin Aerospace invest an initial sum of between €12m and €15m into the economy, including support from the British government.
Future of aerospace
However, McCarthy did not rule out a future UK investment, saying that its market is still of major importance, particularly following the closure of one of its biggest rivals, ATC Lasham, in 2015.
This marks another boost for the Irish aerospace sector, following the news earlier this week that CAE Parc Aviation – with offices in Dublin and Shannon – was to create 80 jobs in Ireland.
The sector is estimated to be worth up to €4bn to the Irish economy and employs 40,000 people.
