● Poland was one of 10 central European and Mediterranean countries that joined the European Union in 1994;
● Poland and the Czech Republic are the two “accession states” with sizeable aerospace sectors. Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania and Slovakia have more modest aviation industries;
● The state still owns about 40% of the aerospace sector: state-owned enterprises include helicopter maker PZL Swidnik and general aviation manufacturer PZL Mielec;
● Foreign-owned companies include Avio Polska, Goodrich Krosno, Safran Polska and WSK (UTC).
● There are about 14,000 people directly employed in Poland’s aerospace sector;
● The country has three technical universities which offer aerospace courses.
Source: Flight International
