Aircraft giant BAE Systems has today announced the loss of 1,915 jobs throughout the UK as part of a major reorganisation.

The company says the cuts will be in military, maritime and intelligence services, including 750 redundancies at the Warton and Samlesbury plants in Lancashire where parts for the Eurofighter Typhoon are manufactured.

Many companies in Gloucestershire still have strong links with the aerospace industry although it is not known what the possible knock on effects of the cuts might be.

In a statement BAE Systems said: "Discussions with current and prospective customers continue to support our expectations for additional Typhoon and Hawk orders, including the recently announced Statement of Intent by Qatar to purchase 24 Typhoon aircraft.

"Negotiations are progressing to agree a contract with the government of Qatar, which, if secured, would sustain Typhoon production jobs, and manufacturing well into the next decade.

"However, the timing of future orders is always uncertain and to ensure production continuity and competitive costs between the completion of current contracts and anticipated new orders, we now plan to reduce Typhoon final assembly and Hawk production rates."

BAE's chief executive Charles Woodburn said: "BAE Systems is a world leader in technology, advanced manufacturing and engineering and our diverse portfolio provides a strong platform for future growth.

"The organisational changes we are announcing today accelerate our evolution to a more streamlined, de-layered organisation, with a sharper competitive edge and a renewed focus on technology.

"Separately, we are also announcing actions at some of our UK sites to align our workforce capacity more closely with near-term demand and enhance our competitive position to secure new business.

"Those actions are necessary and the right thing to do for our company, but unfortunately include proposed redundancies at a number of operations. I recognise this will be difficult news for some of our employees and we are committed to do everything we can to support those affected."

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