Congressional Research Service report R40967 on US Aerospace Manufacturing summarized the economic importance of this industry in the opening paragraph:

Aircraft and automobile manufacturing are considered by many to be the technological backbones of the U.S. manufacturing base. As the Obama Administration and Congress debate how to strengthen American manufacturing, aerospace is likely to receive considerable attention.  Like other manufacturing industries, the worldwide recession has affected aerospace manufacturing, with both the defense and commercial sides of the industry facing difficult business conditions for the near and medium term.

The report continued:

Aerospace manufacturing is an important part of the U.S. manufacturing base. It comprised 2.8% of the nation’s manufacturing workforce in 2008 and employed over 500,000 Americans in high-skilled and high-wage jobs .   .  . Aerospace manufacturing contributes significantly to the U.S. economy, with total sales by aerospace manufacturers (including defense and space) comprising 1.4% of the U.S. gross domestic product in 2008.

Although  many manufacturing concerns have already moved their operations off-shore, other companies remain in the United States, creating value with products like the following.

Sikorsky, a United Technologies company, built this demonstration model of the X-2 helicopter, which achieved a maximum cruise speed of 253 knots in level flight on 15 September 2010 (an unofficial world record).  This prototype is now retired, as the company is transitioning to its first production model of this innovative technology, the S-97 Raider.  Sikorsky is based in Stratford, Connecticut, with parent company UTC headquartered in Hartford.  Of course there’s a long story behind the development of this vehicle:  aviation geeks can read it here.

Sikorsky X-2

Yes, it’s a roadable airplane!  The Transition is being developed by a group of Massachusetts entrepreneurs, MIT graduates who have spent the past six years designing and testing this prototype of an airplane which can also be driven like an automobile.   Headquartered in Woburn, the Terrafugia company is building the light-sport aircraft in a factory located in the Boston suburbs.  By the way, one of the company founders is a woman.

Terrafugia Transition

The J230-SP is another single-engine aircraft in the light-sport category.  Designed and originally manufactured in Australia, Jabiru Special Light-Sport Aircraft have been turnkey-manufactured in Shelbyville, Tennessee, since 2005.

Jabiru J230-SP

Last but not least, institutional racism in aerospace can also be considered a home-grown product.  This World War II era aircraft, I think a P-51C Mustang, was flown by the Tuskegee Airmen, a group of African-American pilots, at a time when most Americans believed that blacks were not smart enough to fly airplanes.  These racist sentiments were proven wrong:  the 332nd Fighter Group saw action in Sicily and Italy before being deployed as bomber escorts in Europe, where they were particularly successful in their missions.

P-51C Mustang