The chair of this committee is Harold Stinger, President and CEO of SGT, Inc., and the Vice-Chair is Anoop Mehta Vice President and Chief Financial Officer for SSAI, Inc. The steering committee has defined the aerospace sector as including those establishments "which contribute to production, research and development, operations, and government administration of Maryland's public and private aerospace system." These industries are classified under the sectors of manufacturing; transportation; professional, scientific and technical services; and public administration, as designated by the North American Industry Classification System (NAICS). Select industries within these divisions have been designated as component industries of the aerospace sector, including manufacturing, transportation, and professional and technical support establishments.

The Aerospace Steering Committee engaged a broad range of partners including private companies, professional associations such as the Aerospace Industries Association (AIA), educational institutions and state government. NASA, a federal partner, is one of the committee's most engaged and highly active members of the steering committee. Partnerships were formed between AIA and the Maryland State Department of Education to determine how to enhance the education system's ability to inspire young people to enter careers in science and technology and sustain them during their education careers. Partnerships such as this represent a unique resource for the state; educators sustain students in pursuing their education through such initiatives as "Project Lead-the-Way," and private industry employs unique solutions to workforce issues.

Prior to the January 26, 2006 Aerospace Summit, the Aerospace Steering Committee conducted three 4-hour focus group sessions with representative aerospace employers in order to build a body of information on the historical, current and future state of the aerospace workforce in Maryland. The focus group sessions began the process of developing the industry monograph.

The industry monograph was presented at the January 26, 2006 aerospace summit. It synthesized information gathered from industry, government, and education sources and paints a picture of the current state of Maryland's aerospace workforce, the human capital needs of aerospace employers, and issues related to attraction, retention, professional development and growth.  A post-summit report is planned for the near future.