Tycoon still flying high boost economy and sustaining jobs

The Eurofighter Typhoon, assembled at Warton, with parts made at Samlesbury, sustained 20,800 jobs that year, 9,000 of which were in Lancashire with BAE Systems plus its supply chain companies, the Oxford Economics report said.

The Typhoon is the mainstay combat aircraft for the RAF and set to continue in service until 2040 following a series of upgrades which will also safeguards high value technology and engineering jobs in the county.

This month, the Government announced a £2.3bn contract to give the aircraft a new radar system which will boost its capability in simultaneously identify and track threats and targets and jam enemy defence radar.

The report, Typhoon: Delivering Military and Economic Advantage also revealed that Typhoon gave a “significant return on investments” as it was worth to the GDP, £1.90 for every £1 invested into the programme.

It also delivered £1.4bn worth of exports in 2020, boosting the country’s balance of payments.

The report comes as the Government has pledged to support the building of a flying demonstrator aircraft for Tempest, Typhoon’s eventual replacement, which is expected to deliver the same sort of jobs and economic boost to Lancashire and the country throughout the coming decades.

The Oxford Economics report said that Typhoon had been a major success, with exports more than double the £12bn invested in the project, the latest being Qatar which agreed to buy 24 in 2017 and hopes high that Egypt might buy the aircraft.

Andrea Thompson, managing director of Europe and International for BAE systems said Typhoon was still “hugely successful” and the “best example of the UK’s world-leading combat air capability”.

She said: “The link between military advantage and economic prosperity cannot be overestimated.

“As this report shows, the contribution of the Typhoon programme to the UK is significant, supporting high-value jobs and driving advanced manufacturing and technology development.

“planned enhancements designed to extend Typhoon’s operational effectiveness well into the middle of the next decade will stimulate further skills development and will see Typhoon playing an important role in the development of next generation capabilities.”