LONDON, 5 Mar. 2009. The Royal Air Force's advanced Typhoon fighter jet will be maintained and supported by industry, under a partnering arrangement that will create up to 150 highly skilled new jobs and sustain a further 350 jobs at its peak, announces Minister for Defence Equipment & Support Quentin Davies.
The five-year, 450 million pound contract has been placed with BAE Systems for initial delivery and further development of the Typhoon Availability Service (TAS).
It will be centered at RAF Coningsby, the main operating base for the Typhoon fleet, over the next few years, but also includes the BAE Systems sites at Warton and Samlesbury.
Minister for Defence Equipment & Support, Quentin Davies says:
"This is excellent news for both the [Ministry of Defence] and U.K. industry with the creation of some 150 new jobs, mostly at RAF Coningsby, over the five-year term of this initial contract. The Typhoon program directly employs some 16,000 aerospace and engineering staff in some of the U.K.'s leading companies, and many more throughout the supply chain -- this is important militarily and industrially to the UK.
"This contract will ensure the Typhoon fleet is able to meet its operational commitments and will continue to deliver as a world-class capability as the cornerstone of the UK's air defence capabilities. We are committed to
building strong partnering arrangements with U.K. industry, in this case to get more efficient support for our front-line Typhoon fighter force."
The Typhoon Integrated Project Team Leader, Air Commodore Chris Bushell, says:
"Today's announcement is intended to maximise aircraft availability by using the most cost-effective solution. Typhoon has now been operational in the air defence role for well over a year and a multi-role capability was integrated and declared combat ready by the RAF in July 2008. The signature of the TAS contract builds on this success."
