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Ohio Lands Nearly 2,000 Aircraft Jobs as Electra Formally Welcomed to Springfield

Electra's $850 million Springfield plant will create 1,975 jobs, nearly 2,000, building its nine-passenger plane. See the open Ohio roles, pay and timeline.

Drashti Garach

Drashti Garach

@DrashtiGarach

12 min read
Ohio aircraft hangar, a white propeller plane on jigs, technicians small

Electra's $850 million investment in Clark County will create 1,975 new jobs, and on October 28 Governor Mike DeWine went to Springfield to sign a proclamation to officially welcome Electra to the Miami Valley. This is the formal follow-up to a site choice first made public at the Farnborough International Airshow on July 21. The plant will build the EL9 Ultra Short, a nine-passenger, fixed-wing aircraft that uses hybrid-electric propulsion and blown-lift technology to take off and land in as little as 150 feet. For Metaintro readers in the Dayton and Springfield area, or anyone with aerospace, construction or supply chain experience, this guide covers what the plant is, its build schedule, the payroll Electra expects and the tax credit Ohio approved, which Electra roles already list Springfield and what they pay.

What Did Ohio Announce in Springfield on October 28?

The event took place at the National Advanced Air Mobility Center of Excellence at Springfield-Beckley Municipal Airport, where officials and business leaders gathered Wednesday afternoon to mark the first EL9 production site.

The nearly 2,000 new jobs in the state's headline line are the rounded form of the 1,975 jobs Electra gave in July, not a larger plan.

DeWine put it plainly at the event. "Two thousand jobs, good manufacturing jobs will be right here," he said, calling the plant a win for Springfield, Clark County and the Miami Valley.

Electra chose the site after a year-long competitive national site-selection process that evaluated more than 140 potential locations. The company's criteria included workforce availability, infrastructure readiness, long-term expansion capacity, state and local partnership, incentives, and proximity to the aerospace, defense, and advanced manufacturing talent needed to support EL9 Ultra Short production. Springfield counts the project as one of the largest jobs announcements in its history.

What Will the Springfield Plant Build?

Electra pitches the EL9 Ultra Short for Direct Aviation, a new category of accessible, point-to-point air mobility using novel access points such as parking lots, barges, and sports fields. Electra markets the plane as offering 2.5x the payload and 10x longer range with 70% lower operating costs than helicopters and eVTOLs, which is the company's own comparison. Beyond passenger trips, the company sees the plane unlocking new markets for commercial advanced air mobility, military logistics, and humanitarian applications.

The new facility will be located at AirPark Ohio, adjacent to Springfield-Beckley Municipal Airport. The site is also near U.S. Route 68 and Interstate 70.

Two sizes appear for the site. The state gives it as 96 acres, while Electra's release gives about 88.5 acres, and its Ohio jobs page marks the design as subject to change.

Electra will also continue to operate parts of its business from its Manassas, Virginia facilities. The factory itself went to Ohio, not Virginia. When asked whether Manassas was among the finalists, Electra declined to say, and specific details on how Virginia incentives compared, or why the production work did not stay closer to the Manassas headquarters, were not released.

When Will the Factory Open, and When Could Hiring Start?

The schedule runs in phases. Design work on the facility is underway, with construction set to start in 2027. The first phase will support production of up to 400 aircraft a year, and a second phase is planned to expand capacity to up to 800 aircraft a year.

An opening date was not disclosed in July. Springfield Mayor Rob Rue said in July that the company expects to complete the project in two to four years, with a fuller timeline to come soon from CEO Marc Allen.

Electra has submitted the EL9 for FAA Part 23 type certification and expects the first flight of a conforming aircraft in late 2027 or early 2028. The FAA has also closed the G-1 Issue Paper, formally establishing the certification basis for Electra’s EL9 Ultra Short aircraft, a step toward the next phase of type certification.

No start date for production hiring in Springfield appears on Electra's Ohio jobs page. Its target date for the full job count comes with the payroll projection below.

Hybrid-electric flight will define aviation’s next era, and Springfield will be the home for building it, Electra CEO Marc Allen said on October 28, according to the governor's news release.

What Payroll Does Electra Expect, and What Tax Credit Did Ohio Approve?

The Ohio Tax Credit Authority approved a 2.227 percent tax credit for the project on August 24, and the tax credits are for 30 years.

Electra anticipates the full job count and generating nearly $181.5 million in new annual payroll by the end of 2035. That is a company projection tied to the credit, so it is a target, not a payroll that exists today. The Electra project was one of more than a dozen new state-wide projects to get assistance from the state that day, and those projects together are expected to generate nearly $310 million in new payroll.

In July, Electra said it would pursue a Job Creation Tax Credit from the Ohio Department of Development at a future Tax Credit Authority meeting. The wider package is tied to job creation, workforce development, infrastructure readiness, and long-term manufacturing growth.

JobsOhio separately plans to provide assistance with the project, which will be made public after a final agreement is executed.

Which Electra Jobs Already List Springfield, Ohio?

Electra's current job board lists 31 jobs, most in Manassas, Virginia, and four Manufacturing & Tech roles name Springfield, OH as a location.

The construction role is tied directly to the new site. That manager will build it - from the first shovel in the ground through full site build-out, covering utilities and mechanical systems, the paint booth, parking, and common/people areas as well as the production lines. The role also supports standing up Electra's Ohio MRO presence, and familiarity with MRO facility requirements or aviation maintenance operations counts as a bonus point.

Electra's current job board shows no assembly, mechanic or technician openings in Springfield. Its other roles, from engineering to finance, are listed for Manassas, Virginia or Wichita, Kansas.

What Do These Springfield Roles Pay and Ask For?

Here is what each Springfield role pays and asks for.

Two rules stand out. Both supply chain roles require a US Person (Citizen or Permanent Resident). All four roles, the construction, engineering, specialist and manager jobs, may be subject to ITAR requirements.

Each range covers the anticipated hiring range across all eligible locations, and actual compensation is determined based on your relevant experience, skills, and geographic location. Listed benefits include a 401(k) with immediate vesting and a paid winter break.

How Do Production Workers Get on Electra's List?

For production roles, the company has set up an Ohio jobs page with a sign-up form. People who join will hear from Electra as production roles, hiring events, and apprenticeships open up in Springfield.

The form asks for a bit about you, your background and interests, and its consent box covers contact about employment opportunities, hiring events, and updates on the Springfield facility.

Electra's pitch starts with car travel. Millions of people drive trips between 50 and 500 miles, and 35 million trips like this are taken in the US every day, trips that are time-consuming, often spent on clogged roadways. Electra's values include Smart & Kind, Mission Minded and Customer Focused, among others.

This is exactly the kind of jobs that we have unfortunately lost over the decades and now we're bringing back again to Springfield, Springfield Mayor Rob Rue said in July, according to the WYSO report carried by WYSU.

Who Is Electra, and Who Is Backing It?

Electra.aero was founded in 2020 and headquartered at Manassas Regional Airport in Virginia. Its strategic investors include Lockheed Martin Ventures, Honeywell, and Safran, along with Prysm Capital and the Virginia Innovation Partnership Corporation.

Electra's contracted customers include the U.S. Air Force, the U.S. Army, the U.S. Navy, and NASA along with over 2,200 letters of intent from 60+ commercial customers. Meeting demand for trips between 50 and 250 flying miles will require between 12,000 and 16,000 aircraft between 2030 and 2040, according to Electra's own May market outlook, a company estimate rather than an order book.

The engine deal is already in place. Electra's agreement with Safran Helicopter Engines covers developing and producing Safran’s TG600 turbogenerator, and the contract includes an initial order for 250 units.

Why Did Electra Choose the Dayton-Springfield Region?

The airport is one draw. Springfield-Beckley is home to the National Advanced Air Mobility Center of Excellence (NAAMCE) and SkyVision, the FAA-approved ground-based detect-and-avoid system used for flight testing beyond visual line of sight.

The region also offers proximity to Wright-Patterson Air Force Base and the Air Force Research Laboratory, plus growing advanced air mobility production near Dayton International Airport, where Joby Aviation has air taxi plane manufacturing facilities.

In July, DeWine linked the plant to a wider build-out, saying it adds to the Joby air taxi plant in Dayton, the Anduril Industries autonomous weapons factory south of Columbus and research at Wright-Patterson. The July site pick also came less than two weeks after Ohio was named America's Top State for Business by CNBC.

What This Means for Ohio Job Seekers, and What Should You Do Next?

The jobs are commitments backed by a state tax credit, but they arrive over years, not weeks. The Springfield roles on Electra's current job board are senior construction, manufacturing engineering and supply chain jobs, while production roles, hiring events, and apprenticeships are still to come. Four steps help now.

Lacey Kaelani, Metaintro's CEO, puts it this way: A new plant is hired in waves, and the first calls usually go to the people who raised their hand before the job was posted.

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People Also Asked

Q: How many jobs will Electra create in Springfield, Ohio?

A: The count given at the top of this guide covers a production and assembly facility at AirPark Ohio, and Electra's target date for reaching it is in the payroll section above.

Q: When will construction start on the Electra plant?

A: Construction follows the design stage that is already underway, with the start year given in the timeline section above.

Q: How do I apply for Electra jobs in Ohio?

A: Current openings are on Electra's job board, and production workers can join the sign-up list on the Electra Ohio jobs page for news on roles, hiring events and apprenticeships.

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