Innovation in UK aerospace: funding for projects

To ensure that the UK remains at the pinnacle of civil aerospace innovation, organisations are invited to express an interest in a competition worth £150 million a year with their ideas for pioneering aerospace design and manufacturing projects. The best projects will then be invited to apply for grant funding.

The competition is part of the UK Aerospace Research and Technology programme, a joint £3.9 billion investment between government and industry, which will help strengthen the UK’s leading position in civil aerospace.

Innovate UK, the Aerospace Technology Institute and Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy will coordinate and manage the programme.

Aerospace of the future

This competition provides funding for industrial research or capital investment projects. They must:

• strengthen UK whole-aircraft design and system integration
• future-proof systems technologies in the UK – specifically, smart, connected and more electric aircrafts
• secure the UK’s world-leading position in large, complex aviation structures, particularly wings
• advanced the next generation of propulsion technologies, particularly large turbofans

Projects must align with priorities within the UK Aerospace Technology Strategy.

Competition information

• the competition will open on 4 March 2019, and the deadline for expressions of interest is at midday on 20 March 2019
• UK-based business, research and technology groups and academic organisations can be the project lead, depending on the project type
• businesses could attract up to 50% of project costs for industry-led research projects. Single applicants in capital investment projects and partners in industry-led research collaborations could attract up to 100%
• organisations must sign up to the ATI framework agreement