Northrop Grumman could double Space Coast workers to 2,000

MELBOURNE, Fla. — Northrop Grumman has already broken ground on what will be a 200,000-square-foot building adjacent to its Melbourne campus.

By the time the Manned Aircraft Design Center of Excellence is completed and fully staffed, Northrop Grumman will have nearly doubled its Space Coast workforce to more than 2,000 workers.

"To see this become a center of excellence, we know that we've got these jobs (for) a very, very long time," state Rep. Ritch Workman said.

Florida and Northrop Grumman have provided pivotal technology to the aerospace industry.

The Space Coast lost an estimated 15,000 to 20,000 direct and indirect jobs as a result of the end of the shuttle program.

It finally appears that those losses have subsided.

"We're going through a transitions time and Grumman has played a key role in the aerospace industry and what we have is a very talented workforce here, and it's fantastic that these (types) of technologies are moving in to fill that gap," Sen. Thad Altman said.

It's a gap many anticipate will be filled by commercial space flight.

"This is really an example of how we're bounding back and our state and our country will lead the world in human space flight," Altman said.

WFTV