Aerospace is booming — but the talent pool isn’t keeping up. As the industry faces a historic demand for aircraft and services, companies are struggling to recruit and retain engineers, technicians, and pilots. Why? And how can we turn this challenge into an opportunity?
The global aerospace industry is on a strong trajectory. Order books are full, demand for air travel is recovering steadily, and forecasts from major players like Airbus and Boeing suggest sustained growth over the next two decades. In France alone, the sector made over 25,000 hires in 2024, according to GIFAS — with thousands more expected in 2025.
Yet despite these encouraging numbers, a structural issue persists: there aren’t enough candidates. Companies are recruiting, but many roles remain vacant for months.
Why is this happening?
At the heart of the issue lies a generational imbalance:
This double bind creates a knowledge transfer gap that weakens quality, slows program execution, and increases reliance on overburdened mid-career engineers.
The aerospace sector remains technically fascinating and economically vital. So why are many young engineers hesitant to join?
Several factors come into play:
Younger engineers seek agility, purpose, and autonomy. Yet many aerospace organizations remain structured around rigid processes, long development cycles, and legacy tools.
New hires often face complex CAD models and systems, undocumented rules, and opaque decision chains. Without systematic knowledge capture, onboarding becomes frustrating — and risky.
Unlike software engineers, aerospace design teams often lack intelligent assistants. No autocomplete for design logic. No real-time feedback. No AI copilots.
This is where Dessia’s mission comes in.
At Dessia, we believe that AI shouldn’t replace engineers — it should support and accompany them throughout their missions.
Our AI-powered applications are designed to augment engineering capabilities at every stage of the design process — from initial layout exploration to rule validation and documentation. Whether you’re a junior just joining the team or a seasoned expert managing system complexity, Dessia’s AI solution help engineers stay focused on high-value tasks.
Let’s face it: spending hours manually checking drawings isn’t exactly what excites young engineers. Tasks like these are repetitive, prone to error, and rarely contribute to skill development or motivation. By automating such tedious processes, AI frees up time and mental space for what truly matters: engineering creativity, innovation, and decision-making.
Through intelligent assistance and automation, our AI-driven platform enables:
Our approach is rooted in the idea that AI can be a trusted companion in the daily life of an engineer — not just a tool, but a collaborator.
This is how we help close the gap between generations, bridge the shortage of experts, and make aerospace engineering careers more accessible, fulfilling, and future-ready.
Let’s be honest: retiring experts can’t sit next to every new recruit. And traditional documentation isn’t enough to preserve real-world know-how. The future lies in codifying engineering reasoning through intelligent systems.
With Dessia, companies can:
It’s not about replacing humans — it’s about amplifying their impact.
If the industry wants to stay attractive, it must evolve its image, tools, and culture. Here’s how.
Give young engineers autonomous playgrounds where they can explore designs safely. Provide real-time feedback, embedded rules, and transparent decision trees — not black boxes.
Today, women still represent only 30% of the aerospace workforce ( Airbus – Diversity & Inclusion Report (2023) Changing that requires visibility, role models, and inclusive outreach.
From decarbonized aviation to hybrid propulsion systems, aerospace is tackling critical challenges. But companies must communicate that purpose clearly to attract mission-driven talents.
AI tools like Dessia’s can act as live mentors — accelerating onboarding, reducing friction, and making the learning curve less intimidating.
Aerospace isn’t short on ambition, but turning bold ideas into real-world systems takes time, expertise, and people. And right now, the industry simply doesn’t have enough engineering capacity to meet the pace of demand.
To move forward without overwhelming already-stretched teams, we need to think differently. That means embracing smarter ways of working — where AI supports engineers, not replaces them.
At Dessia, we imagine a future where:
This is the kind of workforce the industry needs; more connected, more agile, and better supported. And it’s exactly what we’re helping to build.
Aerospace companies are hiring. The projects are meaningful, the opportunities are real. But without the right tools and culture in place, we risk losing the next generation of talent before they’ve even taken off.
Now’s the time to rethink how engineering happens — to make it more collaborative, more scalable, and more human.
Published on
07.07.2025
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Industry insights
Aerospace is booming — but the talent pool isn’t keeping up. As the industry faces a historic demand for aircraft and services, companies are struggling to recruit and retain engineers, technicians, and pilots. Why? And how can we turn this challenge into an opportunity?
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