The players in Hamburg Aviation form a powerful alliance of business, science and politics. Together, they launch initiatives and projects, for example in the research field and in securing a long-term supply of specialist personnel. Together the players in Hamburg Aviation pursue a common goal: to network research and development, thereby bringing to market high-quality products and services for the aviation of the future – products that are good for passengers and set the standards in terms of resource protection.
In a joint action, Hamburg's aviation stakeholders updated the region's strategy, “A New Kind of Aviation” in 2014. Our strategy is designed to make flying in the future more economical, more ecological, more comfortable, more flexible more reliable, and more connected. To achieve this, the players in Hamburg Aviation concentrate on four product areas:
- the development and construction of aircraft and aircraft systems
- the development and construction of cabins and cabin systems
- the optimisation of aviation services
- the improving the efficiency of the air transportation system
- as well as aviation-related IT and communication systems.
The strategy is convincing: in September 2008 the aviation cluster succeeded in the non-industry specific Leading-Edge Cluster competition organised by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF), winning the title of Leading-Edge Cluster as one of only 15 clusters nationwide. Numerous research and development projects, representing more than 80 million euros worth of investment, were being jointly financed, half-half, by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research and the companies within the cluster. In 2014, the European Commission's ECEI initiative awarded Hamburg Aviation with the Gold Label for Cluster Management Excellence, crowning Hamburg Aviation as one of the 40 best-managed clusters in Europe.
Today’s cluster, Hamburg Aviation, was born in 2001 as the Hamburg Aviation Initiative. Many things have been achieved since then:
- In 2002, for the first time, Hamburg hosted the Aircraft Interiors Expo, the world’s largest trade fair for aircraft interior design.
- In 2007, the famous Crystal Cabin Award for outstanding design was presented as part of the Aircraft Interiors Expo.
- In 2008, Hamburg Aviation won the Leading-Edge Cluster competition organised by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research, benefiting from wide-ranging research support.
- In 2009, the Center of Applied Aeronautical Research (ZAL) and the Hamburg Centre of Aviation Training (HCAT) were founded, two institutions that secure Hamburg’s number one position in research and teaching.
- In 2014, Hamburg Aviation receives the GOLD Label for Cluster Management Excellence by the European Commission, thereby ranking as one of the Top 40 clusters in Europe.
- In 2015, Hamburg Aviation won the competition for cluster internationalization and received a funding of 4 million Euros in order to develop an internationalization strategy and set up three international R&D&I projects.
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