Where you build a defence tech career matters as much as what you build. Six European cities are pulling the industry into distinct, specialised clusters.
Europe needs 250,000 more defence engineers and a quarter of the workforce is near retirement. The market has never tilted this far toward candidates.
Defence tech engineering means building systems that work when GPS is jammed, comms are down and someone smart is trying to make them fail.
European defence tech companies are hiring fast. A practical guide to clearance, locations, the learning curve and how to land your first role in 2026.
Europe's defence industry faces a workforce gap of up to 500,000 workers by 2030. With 25% of engineers near retirement and 4:1 demand ratios, the talent crisis is the sector's biggest bottleneck.
