Collins Aerospace Puts $26.5 Million Into Largo Plant for FAA Radar Push

Collins Aerospace, the avionics and defense electronics arm of RTX Corporation, said on May 11 it will invest $26.5 million to expand its manufacturing footprint in Largo, supporting accelerated production of commercial aviation radars and multi-domain security systems. The Tampa Bay-area facility will add more than 100 engineering and production jobs, with new radar lines aimed at the Federal Aviation Administration's Radar System Replacement Program expected to reach full operational capacity by late 2026.

The investment lands at a moment when the FAA is racing to replace decades-old radar infrastructure that supports air traffic control across the United States. Many of the radars currently in service date to the 1970s and 1980s and rely on obsolete components that are increasingly difficult to maintain. A recent series of high-profile equipment failures at major airports has put pressure on the FAA and on Congress to accelerate modernization, and contractors like Collins are positioning themselves to meet the demand.

For Largo, a Pinellas County city of roughly 85,000 residents, the announcement deepens a long-standing aerospace and defense presence. The Collins facility has been a fixture of the local economy for decades, and the city has worked over the years to support advanced manufacturing through workforce training programs and infrastructure improvements. Pinellas County officials hailed the announcement as evidence of the region's continued competitiveness in aerospace, an industry that has been growing steadily across Tampa Bay and the broader Sun Coast.

Inside the Investment

The $26.5 million figure covers facility expansion, capital equipment, and tooling for the radar production lines. Collins officials say the investment will add manufacturing floor space, install new precision assembly equipment, and expand testing infrastructure for the radar units. The company is also expected to upgrade its engineering office space to accommodate the additional staff hires associated with the program.

The 100 new jobs will include positions in radar systems engineering, manufacturing engineering, supply chain management, quality control, and production line operations. Collins is recruiting both experienced aerospace professionals and recent graduates from regional engineering programs. The company has existing relationships with the University of South Florida, the University of Florida, Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, and several Florida community colleges that supply technician-level talent.

The company has not disclosed specific salary ranges for the new positions, but aerospace manufacturing jobs at this level typically pay well above the Pinellas County median wage. Local economic development officials say the addition of high-wage jobs is especially valuable for the regional economy because of the multiplier effect, with each manufacturing position typically supporting additional service sector employment in the surrounding community.

The FAA Radar Replacement Program

The FAA Radar System Replacement Program is one piece of a broader effort to modernize the National Airspace System. The program will replace aging Air Route Surveillance Radars used to track aircraft at high altitude across the country and Airport Surveillance Radars used to manage traffic in terminal airspace around major airports. Collins Aerospace and several competitors are bidding on different elements of the program, with multi-year contracts running into the hundreds of millions of dollars.

The replacement effort is driven by both technological and reliability considerations. The radars currently in service rely on traveling-wave tube transmitters and analog signal processing equipment that is increasingly difficult and expensive to maintain. The new generation of solid-state radars offers improved reliability, lower maintenance requirements, and better data quality for the FAA's air traffic management systems. They also integrate more easily with modern automation tools, including new conflict detection algorithms and trajectory-based operations.

The pace of the program has been a recurring topic in Washington. Congressional appropriations committees have pushed the FAA to accelerate radar replacement after a series of equipment failures, including a 2023 outage at the FAA's Notice to Air Missions system that grounded flights nationwide. Lawmakers have appropriated additional funding in recent budget cycles to support both radar replacement and the broader NextGen modernization initiative, and contractors with U.S.-based manufacturing capacity stand to benefit from the increased spending.

Multi-Domain Security Systems

Beyond the FAA work, the Largo expansion will support production of what Collins calls multi-domain security solutions, a category that includes radar and electronic warfare systems for the U.S. military and allied customers. The company supplies elements that go into aircraft, ground systems, and naval platforms, including radar warning receivers, electronic countermeasures, and signals intelligence equipment. Demand for these systems has been rising as defense customers respond to evolving global threats.

The defense business at Collins benefits from the U.S. Department of Defense's increased focus on contested electromagnetic environments and on integrated air and missile defense. RTX Corporation, Collins' parent, has reported strong order intake across its defense portfolio in recent quarters, with backlog levels providing visibility into multi-year production demand. The Largo facility's mix of commercial aviation and defense work positions it to benefit from both market segments.

The dual-use nature of the facility is also strategically significant. Manufacturing capacity that can shift between commercial and defense production gives the company flexibility to respond to demand cycles in either market. The radar production technology developed for the FAA program has overlaps with military radar systems, and engineering teams often move between programs as schedules dictate.

RTX and the Aerospace Footprint

RTX Corporation, formerly known as Raytheon Technologies, is one of the largest aerospace and defense companies in the world. The company was formed in 2020 through the merger of United Technologies Corporation and Raytheon Company, bringing together a portfolio that includes Pratt & Whitney engines, Collins Aerospace avionics and systems, and Raytheon defense electronics and missile systems. The combined company has facilities across the United States and internationally, with significant operations in Florida.

In Florida, RTX operations include Pratt & Whitney's engine programs in West Palm Beach, where the company has invested heavily in additive manufacturing and engine testing. Collins Aerospace operates several Florida facilities in addition to Largo, including locations in Melbourne and Sarasota. The Florida footprint reflects both the state's aerospace heritage and ongoing investment by the company in regional capacity.

The Largo facility's history includes work for both military and commercial customers, with product lines that have evolved across the decades. The site has produced equipment for civilian air traffic control, military electronic warfare, and various sensor systems. The current investment in radar production builds on existing capability and positions the site for continued growth as the FAA replacement program ramps up.

Tampa Bay's Aerospace Sector

The Tampa Bay region has built a meaningful aerospace and defense cluster over the past several decades. Anchored by MacDill Air Force Base in Tampa, headquarters for U.S. Central Command and U.S. Special Operations Command, the region hosts a number of defense contractors, technology firms, and supply chain operations that serve federal customers. The cluster also includes commercial aerospace operations, including modification and overhaul facilities at the Tampa and St. Petersburg-Clearwater airports.

Collins Aerospace, Honeywell, Lockheed Martin, and Northrop Grumman all maintain Tampa Bay operations, and the regional supply chain includes hundreds of smaller firms that supply components, services, and software to the larger primes. The University of South Florida's College of Engineering, the Florida Polytechnic University, and the St. Petersburg College aerospace programs feed talent into the regional industry, and several local high schools have established aerospace-focused magnet programs in collaboration with industry employers.

The Pinellas County Economic Development department has tracked the aerospace sector closely and reports steady employment growth over the past several years. The county's strategic plan identifies aerospace and defense as a target industry, alongside health care, financial services, and life sciences. State-level support has come through Enterprise Florida and the Florida Department of Commerce, both of which have provided technical assistance and, in some cases, financial incentives to expanding aerospace firms.

Why It Matters for Florida Workers

The Collins investment lands in a labor market that has tightened across most skilled categories. Aerospace manufacturing requires specialized training, and Florida has invested in expanding the pipeline through community college programs, apprenticeships, and partnerships with industry. CareerSource Pinellas, the local workforce development board, coordinates with employers and educational institutions to align training with hiring needs, and the agency has been working with Collins on the talent strategy for the expansion.

Wage levels in aerospace manufacturing are typically well above the regional median, with engineering positions paying six figures and skilled technician roles paying in the upper five figures. For Pinellas County, where housing costs have risen significantly over the past decade, the addition of high-wage jobs is welcome news for workforce affordability conversations. Local officials say they hope the wage levels will help retain young engineering talent that might otherwise leave the region for opportunities in larger metropolitan areas.

The job mix at the Largo expansion includes both college-degree positions and technician roles that can be entered with associate degrees or specialized certifications. That breadth matters for regional workforce planning, as it provides pathways into well-paying careers for workers who have not pursued a four-year degree. Florida's apprenticeship programs in advanced manufacturing have grown in recent years and could feed into Collins' hiring pipeline.

What's Next

Collins Aerospace expects the expanded radar production lines to reach full operational capacity by late 2026, in time to meet the FAA's accelerating schedule for radar replacement. The company says the first units off the upgraded lines will be installed at FAA sites across the country, replacing aging equipment in stages over the multi-year program. The pace of installation depends on the FAA's deployment schedule and on coordination with affected airports and air traffic control facilities.

Beyond the immediate program, Collins and its parent RTX are watching for additional opportunities in FAA modernization and in international air navigation programs. Several other countries are also modernizing their air traffic control infrastructure, and U.S. radar manufacturers are competing for those contracts. The Largo facility's increased capacity gives the company production flexibility to bid on additional work as it emerges.

The broader NextGen modernization initiative at the FAA includes upgrades to communication systems, satellite-based navigation, automation tools, and weather information systems, in addition to the radar replacement program. Several of these programs are now in implementation phases, and the FAA's investment in modernization is expected to continue across the next decade. Florida-based firms have won contracts across multiple NextGen elements, with regional clusters in Tampa Bay, Melbourne, and the Daytona Beach area all contributing technology to the federal modernization effort.

For Tampa Bay workers, students, and local officials, the announcement is a tangible sign that the region's aerospace economy continues to grow, with high-wage jobs and federal contracts feeding a sector that has anchored the local industrial base for generations. The Pinellas County Schools system has expanded its engineering and technology programs in recent years in part to support pipelines into employers like Collins, and local community colleges including St. Petersburg College have developed certificate programs aligned with employer needs. The combined effort is intended to ensure that the next generation of aerospace talent grows up in Tampa Bay and stays in the region as it enters the workforce.