High risks and complexities in the aerospace and defence sector are compounded by the long lead times required to research, develop, and manufacture its sophisticated craft, equipment and systems.
National governments still dictate or influence much of this activity as customers and/or funders. State regulation of development priorities, international sales and even profit margins (where risks are shared) also tends to limit efficiencies from economies of scale – but not the intense political pressures to curb overruns.
Military research and development continue to spin off valuable civil applications. Private enterprise is also opening up new commercial frontiers in space for launching both civil and state satellites, and potentially, travel and tourism. New and growing markets for drones and urban air mobility vehicles are boosting investment in innovation and the aerospace sector further.
Reducing the environmental impact of civil aircraft is a high priority, with demand for up to 38,000 large passenger aircraft forecast over the next 20 years. War in Ukraine and geopolitical tensions are also spurring the output of military hardware and defence systems.
However, as decarbonisation advances more rapidly in other industries, the defence and aerospace domain’s share of global carbon emissions is set to soar. The onus on developers and contractors to innovate – through alternative materials and fuels, hybrid-electric propulsion and other breakthrough technologies, some of them government-backed – will intensify.
Our Aerospace and Defence services
HKA is a global leader in risk mitigation and dispute resolution with extensive experience across this industry.
From aerospace safety to supply chain failures and shareholder disagreements – we help our clients decode the complexities of technical and commercial disputes.
HKA can help you maximise recovery in cases of corporate fraud, misappropriations and bankruptcy, deploying international teams where required. We also help counsel and clients navigate the best course through regulatory violations, earning the trust of all parties with our thorough and transparent investigations.
Our aerospace consultants assess the value of economic damages, businesses, shares and assets, including intellectual property. We can support and advise you at every stage of the dispute resolution cycle – from early strategic advice to settlement negotiations, and depending on our role, provide expert witness testimony. We also help the insured and insurers establish the financial impact of events.
HKA has a global talent pool of multi-disciplinary experts, consultants and advisors in aerospace and defence, and related technical fields. Areas of expertise include airworthiness, safety and security; airfield operations and air traffic control; aviation engineering and human performance; aviation operations, regulation and compliance; and remote piloted air systems (RPAS). Our people conduct investigations, prepare technical reports and provide testimony in dispute forums worldwide.
Our specialists understand the complex business and regulatory climate in which government contractors operate. We help prepare and analyse claims across the aerospace and defence industries, applying our comprehensive knowledge of national regulations, cost accounting standards, and extensive experience of contracting and manufacturing best practice.
Our teams also draw on the complementary expertise of HKA colleagues, providing services such as Engineering & Construction Quantum, Disruption & Delay Analysis, and Claims Management.
Our Aerospace and Defence experts
As an independent firm with a global reach, we can deploy an expert or a multidisciplinary team to match the brief for disputes in aerospace and defence – and your language, jurisdiction or forum.
We have testified across the Americas, Europe, Africa, the Middle East, and Asia-Pacific before courts, arbitration tribunals and regulatory boards, and various international forums.
Consistently ranked among the world’s foremost firms by Who’s Who Legal (WWL), we are also the largest accredited corporate provider of expert services with the Academy of Experts, and ranked second in the Global Arbitration Review GAR 100 Expert Witness Power Index 2024.