Posted: Wed, Mar 5, 2003, 12:09 AM ET (0509 GMT)
The number of people in the United States employed by the aerospace industry has dropped to the lowest levels in a half-century, an industry association reported Tuesday. The Aerospace Industries Association said that US aerospace employment fell to 689,000 by the end of 2002, the smallest number since 1953. The AIA said that 106,000 jobs had been lost since the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks, and the employment had dropped nearly in half since the waning days of the Cold War in 1989. The AIA blamed problems in both the aviation and commercial space industry sectors for the employment decline, along with industry consolidation and the economic aftershocks of the 9/11 terrorist attacks. The report did not break down how many of the 689,000 currently employed in aerospace work in space-related fields.

Related Links:

•  AIA press release
•  Space News article (subscription required)