A PADIHAM company that has developed ground-breaking software for the aerospace industry has raised £400,000 of investment from the RisingStarsGrowth Fund.

J2 Aircraft Solutions, which is based at the Shuttleworth Mead Business Park, will use the cash to accelerate its growth into international markets.

"This investment will bring strength and depth to the business that would otherwise have been unobtainable for many years to come," said chief executive John Jeffrey who founded the business in 1997.

"Key appointments in sales and software development will give us the opportunity to drive forward product development and to implement an extensive marketing campaign."

Edward French, an investment manager with Lancashire-based Enterprise Ventures, managers of the RisingStars Growth Fund explained: "The aerospace industry spends millions modifying aircraft to make them responsive but stable. J2's software will allow all this to be achieved before the first prototype ever flies. RisingStars is constantly looking for new technologies that can transform an industry in the manner that J2 plan."

John and his chief technology officer have developed flight modelling and analysis software that can analyse the behaviour of aircraft in flight to eliminate design flaws and poor performance characteristics at an earlier stage in the design process than current technologies.

Since January, J2 Aircraft Solutions has been supported by Campus Ventures at Shuttleworth Mead. Lynda Wilcox, its director of enterprise support, said obtaining the £400,000 equity investment had been a major achievement.

"We are delighted that in just over six months from joining our business incubation support programme, the company has been able to attract this investment," she said.