ABSTRACT
The objective of this chapter is to analyze the evolution and characteristics of the Spanish defence industry taking into consideration the European context. The Spanish industry is a middle-size and intermediate-technology sector within European industries. This position is the result of a historical evolution that yields as main output a weak budget and a less than coherent industrial and defense policy. The defence industry has played an important role in the modernization of Spanish industry through the absorption, adaptation and generation of new technologies, which, although they were of military origin, nowadays are applicable to the civilian sector.
