SOUTH CAROLINA’S landing of the Vought-Alenia aircraft component plant is the biggest in a series of good signs for growth in the state’s economy. Going out and getting the plant was a good move — but not a cheap one.

The winning bid means Vought Aircraft Industries and Alenia of Italy will bring a joint plant for fuselage assembly to the Charleston area within three years. Congratulations to those at state and local levels who helped make the deal with aggressive recruiting, especially to Gov. Mark Sanford and Commerce Secretary Bob Faith.

The state will give at least $116 million in incentives, plus other assistance, to land the manufacturer, which expects to create 645 jobs. That’s certainly not cheap, but it must be considered for more than just the number of jobs it creates. That job projection is not a guarantee, but it also is not a limit; BMW initially forecast about 1,000 workers when it received a rich package of incentives, but it now employs about 4,700.

Also, these are the right kind of jobs for South Carolina to be chasing: high-tech, skilled and well-paying. This is the kind of employer that will move the state toward what Gov. Sanford and many business and government leaders agree is needed: a higher per capita income, not just more jobs. The state’s limited economic development resources have to be focused on reeling in attractive jobs in industries with a future.

The aviation industry is not currently a strong business cluster for South Carolina, but Mr. Faith hopes it will be. The plant will build large components for Boeing’s new 7E7 Dreamliner plane, and it could be involved when Boeing begins a much bigger project to replace all the aging 737s in the skies, Mr. Faith says. It also could draw some parts suppliers to the Lowcountry, though the aviation industry tends to have a more global supply chain. In essence, landing this plant brings the region to the attention of a high-tech industry that would have overlooked South Carolina before. “Winning this deal just gets us in the game,” Mr. Faith said.

There has been other encouraging news on South Carolina’s economic growth front:

• USC economist Donald Schunk projected modest job growth in the state for 2005.

• The University of South Carolina broke ground on two buildings for its research campus project. The projected area of public-private effort: hydrogen fuel cells and other new energy media.

• Flanders Corp. announced it would build a nuclear processing facility in Aiken, with a projected 800 jobs.

Of course, Aiken also faces the threat of up to 2,000 job cuts at the Savannah River Site. Change is inevitable, even when an economy is based on such stable employers as the federal government. That’s why, in a time of globalization and free trade, this small state has to be aggressive about pursuing a future of more and better-paying employment. Our former economic development strategy — “Come hire America’s cheapest labor!” — has been bested by the global marketplace, and a more vibrant and rewarding economy must be built in its place. To do that, an aggressive partnership among leaders in business, education and government is vital in forging a future for South Carolina.

That includes taking some risks. Given the hopes for the Vought-Alenia deal, the costs seem a risk well worth taking.