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A summary of Fort Worth economic incentives for Mach Industries. (Courtesy | City of Fort Worth) <\/p>\nA high-flying defense technology company could land at Alliance following an economic development agreement approved by the Fort Worth City Council Tuesday night.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Mach Industries, a company developing advanced unmanned aircraft systems, is considering locations for a manufacturing facility to produce its vehicles. Alliance Gateway 34, a 310,036-square-foot industrial building at Westport Parkway and Independence Parkway in Hillwood\u2019s AllianceTexas development in Fort Worth, is under consideration.\u00a0<\/p>\n
A June 23 presentation at a council work session from Jessica Rogers, head of the Fort Worth Economic Development Department, indicated the company would make a minimum capital investment of $74 million. Of that, $6 million will go to real property construction costs, and the remaining in office and equipment. Mach Industries will have a goal of spending 30% of that office and equipment budget with small businesses.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Mach Industries designs and builds aerospace and defense hardware, including unmanned aircraft, long-range munitions and alternative propulsion systems.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
The city council approved a package of up to $4.5 million in tax breaks and grants over a 10-year period.\u00a0<\/p>\n
A summary of Fort Worth economic incentives for Mach Industries. (Courtesy | City of Fort Worth) <\/p>\n
To receive the full incentive, the company would be required to hire a minimum of 1,000 workers with a minimum average annual salary of $67,470. Mach Industries would need to maintain at least 600 jobs to receive any of the incentives on a prorated basis.\u00a0<\/p>\n
If more than 50% of the jobs at the plant pay less than $60,000 at any point during the agreement, the company would not receive any incentives, Rogers said.\u00a0<\/p>\n
As an aerospace and defense manufacturer, the company is one of the economic development department\u2019s target industries, Rogers told council members at the session.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Last year, Gov. Greg Abbott designated Fort Worth as the aviation and defense capital of Texas. The area is home to more than 600 aerospace and defense-related companies, including major employers like Bell and Lockheed Martin.<\/p>\n
Fort Worth is competing with several sites across the state and nation for the Mach Industries facility, according to city officials.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cThe company has indicated that our ability to offer incentives and demonstrate local support has made Fort Worth the preferred location,\u201d Rogers told council members in June.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
Mach Industries expects to make its final decision on the location in the third quarter.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Based in Huntington Beach, California, the company has had an ascension as rapid as its vertical lift aircraft. It was founded in 2023 by then-19-year-old Ethan Thornton, who grew up in Boerne, after he dropped out of MIT. Earlier this year, the company raised $300 million in series C funding, giving it a $1.8 billion valuation.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Mach Industries\u2019 products include Viper, a jet-powered vertical lift vehicle; Stratos, an airborne surveillance system; and Dart, a counter drone interceptor. The company has received several U.S. Department of Defense contracts, including one on June 16 from the U.S. Navy as part of a project to develop an innovative long-range strike drone.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Thornton told TechCrunch<\/a> that Mach Industries would have four new production facilities by the end of 2026.\u00a0<\/p>\n Bob Francis is business editor for the Fort Worth Report. Contact him at bob.francis@fortworthreport.org<\/a>.<\/p>\n