Heading to Farnborough International Airshow? Meet the AeroDef Additive Manufacturing Community first.

Farnborough International Airshow will bring the global aerospace, aviation, space, and defence industries to the UK from 20–24 July 2026. But before the sector gathers on the show floor, the additive manufacturing community has an opportunity to connect around one of the most important questions facing aerospace and defence manufacturing today: how does AM move from promising capability to qualified, repeatable, mission-ready production? On 9 July 2026, 3D Printing Industry will host Additive Manufacturing Advantage: Aerospace, Space and Defense 2026, an online event bringing together engineers, technology leaders, researchers, manufacturers, and decision-makers working at the intersection of AM and high-performance aerospace and defence applications. For anyone heading to Farnborough, AMAA 2026 offers a timely opportunity to understand the additive manufacturing themes likely to shape conversations across the airshow: qualification, advanced alloys, process control, production scale-up, supply chain resilience, defence autonomy, and the shift from prototype parts to accepted hardware. Networking sessions throughout the day provide a chance to connect with others in the AM world heading to FIA 2026. This year’s AMAA speaker line-up reflects a sector moving from demonstration toward industrial execution. Presentations and panels will examine modernizing metal AM qualification, tungsten and niobium alloys for high-temperature applications, additive manufacturing machine and material qualification, the role of WAAM in defence autonomy, and the challenge of moving from prototype to mission readiness. Speakers include Paul Gradl of NASA Marshall Space Flight Center, Cooper Keller of Divergent Technologies, Steve V. Lokam from Oqton Global Holdings, Harshil Goel of Dyndrite, Markus Weinmann of TANIOBIS, Gijs van der Velden of MX3D, Jonathan Buckley of JEOL USA, Dr. Ho Yeung from NIST, Jessica Schiltz of RTX, Martin White of ASTM International, Ben DiMarco of America Makes, Michelle Sidwell of Velo3D, Hugo Sistach of Safran, Karl Littau of Sakuu, Ryan Kirby of Alderman & Company, Alison Wyrick of Outlook Lab, Randy Emert of the Civil Military Innovation Institute, James Ashby of Addlab, Julian Wright of Theta Technologies, and Fabio Sant’Ana of Farcco. The agenda is designed for the aerospace and defence professionals who need more than broad claims about additive manufacturing. AMAA 2026 will focus on the practical issues that determine whether AM parts can be trusted in demanding environments: material performance, process repeatability, machine qualification, inspection, certification, digital workflows, production economics, and the requirements of end users operating in aerospace, space, and defence. For Farnborough attendees, the timing is deliberate. AMAA takes place less than two weeks before FIA, providing a focused technical forum before the wider aerospace industry meets in person. It is a chance to hear from organizations working on AM for propulsion, structures, tooling, defence manufacturing, advanced materials, distributed production, and industrial qualification before continuing those conversations at Farnborough. As aerospace and defence supply chains face pressure to move faster, reduce weight, improve performance, and build greater resilience, additive manufacturing is increasingly part of the strategic conversation. But adoption in mission-critical applications depends on more than design freedom. It depends on evidence, standards, repeatability, and confidence across the full manufacturing chain. AMAA 2026 will bring that discussion together in one place. Whether you are attending Farnborough to meet suppliers, evaluate new technologies, understand defence manufacturing priorities, or explore the future of aerospace production, AMAA offers a valuable starting point. Join the AeroDef additive manufacturing community online on 9 July, then continue the conversation at Farnborough. Register for AMAA 2026 for free. To stay up to date with the latest 3D printing news, don’t forget to subscribe to the 3D Printing Industry newsletteror follow us on LinkedIn. Explore the full Future of 3D Printing and Executive Survey series from 3D Printing Industry, featuring perspectives from CEOs, engineers, and industry leaders on the industrialization of additive manufacturing, 3D printing industry trends 2026, qualification, supply chains, and additive manufacturing industry analysis. Featured image shows the AMAA event banner.