Redundancies at BAE’s site in Brough remain a threat after talks with the Kuwaiti Government over supplying Hawk planes ended.
Kuwait had been exploring the possibility of ordering Hawk planes – manufactured by BAE in East Yorkshire – as part of discussions over launching an Air Training College to train pilots and technicians.
However, it has now been announced Kuwait has ended its interest in purchasing Hawk aircraft from BAE.
READ MORE: {}
The deal would have come as a boost to staff working at Brough, as the hunt for a new Hawk contract continues.
David Davis, MP for Haltemprice and Howden, said: “Today’s news is obviously very disappointing. I have already secured a meeting with the Minister for Defence Procurement early next week, so that we can discuss the Government’s next steps on this matter.
“It is vital that securing further orders for Hawk aircraft remains at the very top of the Government's agenda.
“I will continue to work with BAE, the unions and the Government to do everything possible to secure the long-term future of the Brough site and ensure highly-skilled jobs in East Yorkshire are protected.”
When BAE first announced manufacturing redundancies at its site in Brough in autumn 2017, almost 400 jobs were reported to be at risk.
Most Read
Since then, that number has dropped to 246 through processes including voluntary redundancy.
BAE said the latest figure would continue to drop, with 61 employees set to make the switch from manufacturing to engineering roles within the company.
Further voluntary redundancies are also expected.
Central to BAE’s engineering future is the Tempest project. Set to replace the Eurofighter Typhoon in 2035, the next-generation fighter jet will be capable of being flown either with pilots or as a drone.
Up to 100 engineering roles are set to be created by BAE at Brough by 2020, as the firm ramps up its role in the Tempest project.
However, BAE’s hopes that Hawk manufacturing could be extended at Brough through a new contract with Kuwait look to have ended.
That said, BAE has announced manufacturing will continue in East Yorkshire until early 2020, with work to be done on Hawk wings for both Qatar and the US Navy.
Don’t miss
Talks also remain ongoing between BAE and Kuwait over training opportunities in the future, despite the Hawk order setback.
Speaking previously about the hunt for new Hawk orders, Brough site director Dave Corfield said: “We need our people to race to the cliff edge and place faith in the company and the Government that we will secure some orders so that when you get to the cliff edge you've got something to step onto in the form of new programme.
“We are working with the Government to do everything we can to help us secure a new Hawk order.”