Overview
Virginia is where Israeli defense meets American defense. It is where Israeli aerospace sits across the highway from the Pentagon. It is where the world's largest hummus factory runs three shifts in Chesterfield County. And it is where a 30-year-old state advisory board — one of only a handful of formal Israel-facing economic development agencies in any US state — has been quietly building the corridor since 1996.
The USIBA Virginia-Israel Economic Impact Report, published in November 2025, is the first comprehensive state-level economic study of this relationship. The numbers — $2.3 billion in output, 119 companies, nearly 8,000 total jobs — place Virginia in the same tier as Texas in terms of Israeli-founded company activity, and ahead of Georgia on direct economic output.
What distinguishes Virginia from every other state in this series is proximity. Fairfax County hosts 38 of the world's top 100 defense companies. The Pentagon, CIA, and NSA are within 30 miles of the Dulles Technology Corridor where IAI North America runs its US headquarters. No other state offers Israeli defense-tech, cybersecurity, and intelligence companies the same density of federal procurement customers.
The Anchor Companies
Elbit Systems of America — Roanoke County
Defense and Night Vision Manufacturing
The Roanoke County night vision facility has been manufacturing for the US military since 1959 — 66 uninterrupted years under successive corporate owners: ITT, Exelis, Harris Corporation, and now Elbit Systems of America (the US subsidiary of Israel's Elbit Systems). In November 2025, Governor Glenn Youngkin announced a $30 million expansion of the facility, adding 288 new jobs and bringing the site's total workforce to more than 1,000 employees. The facility produces low-light night vision devices — image intensification tubes and night vision systems — critical for US national defense.
Governor Youngkin approved a $1.2 million grant from the Commonwealth's Opportunity Fund and a $300,000 Virginia Investment Performance Grant to support the expansion. "Elbit America's continued growth in Roanoke County strengthens America's defense capabilities and supports our brave service members at home and abroad," the Governor said.
Elbit America, headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas, operates multiple facilities across the United States. The Roanoke County facility is its largest manufacturing operation in the Southeast and one of the most significant Israeli-linked defense manufacturing sites in America.
Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) North America — Herndon, Fairfax County
Aerospace and Defense Headquarters
IAI, Israel's largest aerospace and defense company with approximately 15,000 employees worldwide, operates its North American headquarters from Herndon in the Dulles Technology Corridor. The company directs an $800 million annual US business from this location. IAI expanded its Fairfax County headquarters in 2019 with 30,000 square feet of office space and 50+ new jobs, following a direct meeting between Governor Ralph Northam and IAI officials in Tel Aviv.
In 2024, IAI and IAI North America launched IAI Catalyst — an aerospace accelerator and innovation center in Herndon, in partnership with Starburst Aerospace. The five-month accelerator supports early-stage startups in AI and autonomy, quantum science, sustainability and energy, and space technology. IAI Catalyst is IAI's first US accelerator — modeled on its Tel Aviv innovation center.
IAI's products include air defense systems (including components of the Iron Dome missile defense system), satellites, missiles, unmanned systems, business jets, and aerostructures.
Sabra Dipping Company — Chesterfield County
Consumer Food Manufacturing
Sabra — a joint venture between Israel's Strauss Group and PepsiCo — operates the world's largest hummus manufacturing facility in Chesterfield County. The facility opened in 2010, has undergone three expansions, and employs 500+ workers. Chesterfield County leads all Virginia counties with 2,351 jobs tied to Israeli-founded companies, driven primarily by Sabra's operations.
Sabra chose Virginia over New Jersey and North Carolina for its manufacturing plant, citing strategic location along Interstate 95, proximity to East Coast distribution networks, and workforce quality. The company's Pearl Center of Excellence — a first-of-its-kind R&D facility for refrigerated dips and spreads — operates on the same Chesterfield campus.
The Institutional Backbone
Virginia Israel Advisory Board (VIAB) — State Agency, Established 1996
VIAB is a state government agency dedicated to strengthening economic, cultural, and educational ties between Virginia and Israel. Led by Executive Director Dov Hoch, VIAB provides free consultation on grants, incentives, site selection, and workforce development for Israeli companies establishing US operations. In 2024, VIAB distributed $3 million in BIRD Foundation R&D grants for Virginia-Israeli partnerships — 25 grants awarded since the board's inception.
"Life sciences, agriculture, deep tech and especially defense have tremendous potential to attract hundreds of millions of dollars in investment in Virginia that bring thousands more jobs and innovation to our communities," says Hoch.
Fairfax County Economic Development Authority (FCEDA) — Tel Aviv Office Since 2004
The FCEDA has maintained a dedicated business investment office in Tel Aviv since 2004 — one of only six global offices operated by the county's economic development authority (alongside Bangalore/Mumbai, Berlin, London, Los Angeles, and Seoul). The Tel Aviv office specifically targets Israeli defense, aerospace, cybersecurity, and AI companies for Fairfax County investment.
BIRD Foundation — Virginia Partnership
The Binational Industrial Research and Development Foundation funds joint R&D projects between US and Israeli companies. VIAB serves as the BIRD Foundation state representative for Virginia. Since 1977, BIRD has approved close to 1,200 joint projects and helped generate over $10 billion in combined sales.
Governor Glenn Youngkin
Governor Youngkin has been a consistent public advocate for Virginia-Israel economic ties, personally announcing the Elbit expansion in November 2025 and supporting VIAB's mission. "We will continue strengthening our economic partnership with Israel to create even more opportunities for Virginians," the Governor has said.
