Collins Aerospace is doubling down on its Largo footprint, committing roughly $26.5 million to expand its local facility, add more than 100 high-skilled engineering and manufacturing jobs, and crank up production of commercial and defense radars. The company says a new radar production area, tied to Federal Aviation Administration modernization work, should begin operations later this year. Executives are pitching the move as both a boost for the Tampa Bay aerospace scene and a way to tighten up national security supply chains.
Expansion and timeline
Collins Aerospace, an RTX business, plans to invest $26.5 million in the Largo operation, according to PR Newswire. The PR Newswire release quotes Nate Boelkins, Collins' president of avionics, saying the investment "strengthens our ability to deliver critical capabilities that keep airline passengers safe and military operators mission-ready, faster." The company says the new production area is expected to be fully operational by late 2026 and will bring on additional staff across engineering and factory operations.
What they'll build
The Largo buildout is keyed to the Federal Aviation Administration's Radar System Replacement Program and is slated to turn out systems including the Condor Mk3 cooperative surveillance radar and the ASR-XM non-cooperative radar, as reported by Aviation International News. Aviation International News notes that the added capacity is intended to handle growing demand for both cooperative and non-cooperative surveillance hardware used in air-traffic control and defense missions. Industry watchers say the extra production room could help ease backlog tied to modernization contracts already in the pipeline.
Local impact and jobs
On the home front, the project is being treated as a clear win for Pinellas County. The Tampa Bay Business Journal reports that the expansion will create more than 100 engineering and manufacturing roles and notes that RTX already employs thousands of people across Florida. State commerce officials, quoted in the company release, praised the move for reinforcing the region's aerospace cluster and its base of high-skill jobs. Economic development officials say expansions of this kind often attract suppliers and spur training partnerships, though any specific incentives tied to the Largo project have not been disclosed.
Broader context
The Largo expansion is part of a broader capacity push by RTX and Collins Aerospace this year, as the company scales manufacturing to keep pace with a fresh wave of contracts, including recent projects in Puerto Rico and Texas, according to RTX. Those efforts have included facility upgrades and hiring campaigns aimed at tightening delivery schedules for FAA and defense programs. New roles tied to Collins' Largo operations are already popping up on recruiting sites such as Indeed.
