The Ministry of Defence has said it is actively supporting export campaigns for the Typhoon combat aircraft as BAE Systems seeks to keep production lines running at Warton.
Responding to a written question from Edward Morello MP, Defence Minister Maria Eagle acknowledged the industrial importance of the programme but stopped short of announcing any new domestic orders.
“The Typhoon programme supports more than 20,000 jobs across all regions of the UK, with an estimated 9,000 jobs in North-West England alone,” she said. “Thanks to the hard-fought industrial workshare agreement, 37 percent of all nations’ Typhoons are made in the UK, with major unit production occurring at BAE Systems sites in Salmesbury and Warton.”
With UK Typhoon fleet upgrades ongoing but no follow-on orders confirmed, Eagle pointed to the role of exports in sustaining the Warton assembly line. “Due to new aircraft orders placed by other nations, and the UK’s continued investment to upgrade and sustain our Typhoons, the vast majority of these jobs are already secured,” she said.
“Typhoon will remain a critical Combat Aircraft for the UK until at least 2040. UK investment to upgrade and sustain the UK’s Typhoon fleet will support jobs at BAE Systems sites, particularly at Warton, and strengthen the UK’s prospective Typhoon export campaigns.”
She confirmed that the MoD is backing BAE Systems in its efforts to sell Typhoon to Turkey and Saudi Arabia. “The success of either of which would be enough to secure approximately 150 to 200 jobs on the Warton assembly line,” she said.
The government’s current combat air strategy rests on the Typhoon upgrade programme, long-term participation in the F-35 industrial supply chain, and future development of the Global Combat Air Programme (GCAP).
“UK investment in the global F-35 programme, which has prospective orders for more than 3,500 aircraft, has created up to 20,000 UK jobs in the manufacturing and supply chains,” Eagle noted. “Our investment in GCAP is building on the Typhoon and F-35 UK industry skills base.”
“There are already over 3,500 skilled people working on the programme across the UK, with a large proportion employed at BAE Systems at Warton, where the development of the aircraft is being led,” she added.
“Our commitment to the UK’s Combat Air aerospace sector through the Typhoon, F-35 and GCAP programmes outlined in the Strategic Defence Review will deliver a world class Combat Air fleet for our armed forces and support over 40,000 long-term, high-quality UK manufacturing jobs.”
The UK’s last order for Typhoon was placed in 2015 for Tranche 3 aircraft. Since then, production has been sustained by export sales to nations including Qatar.
With only 150 aircrafts in the RAF and no new orders, terrible, they don,t want to increase military capability at all, just words bla bla bla.
British politicians are allergic to defence.
Maybe UK commitment to Typhoon is getting pulled thinner by wanting more F35As and Tempest coming. Hope the MOD is not closed to purchasing more Typhoons and or upgrading more if the times demanded it.
Just found and read Maria Eagles full reply. The following sentence caught my eye with regards to the keeping the Warton plant busy;
“Importantly, this will sustain highest skilled manufacturing jobs in the UK for at least the next 10 years irrespective of whether the UK orders more aircraft.”
Does this mean enough skills will be retained to move seamlessly into the Tempest production will be sustained or is it a fudged answer..? Also, the word ‘irrespective’ doesn’t rule out more orders from the UK. I guess we might find out with the investment plan.
Cheers CR
I think the govt is working hard on Germany to get them to actively support Typhoon sales to Saudi and Türkiye rather than obstructing them. Starmer is spending a lot of time hosting Chancellor Merz. I wonder whether the ‘irrespective of whether the UK orders’ comment means that they have in fact already decided to buy the Tranche 2 Typhoons from Spain.
As always, jobs and industry.
Actual kit for the military in the numbers required is the last thing on their minds.
There has to be a better balance.
I read in X today that so far, this government has ordered 53 Jackal E.
That’s it.
So far all words. And the Tories were no better.
One year in, were you expecting anything more? Because if you were then you were really expecting the impossible.
Hi Redshift.
I was, sadly. I compare the grandstanding with actual action. Lots of the former!
And many programs do not have a start date corresponding to when this government came to power last June, so yes, I think they could make progress.
CUAS has been a thing for years. Where is anything at all? There are plenty of AA guns, including home offerings, trialled, then ignored. Some only shown yesterday at Thorney Island. Nothing.
More lethality for Boxer is another. Long predating this government. Where is the movement on that? Nothing.
It is why so many, including me, become so despondent, and, in my case, cynical, where HMGs words on defence are concerned.
Some are hoping that NMH might get an announcement at RIAT, as would be standard HMG practice to use the event to spin some “good news”
Prediction, around 20 ordered, when the need was for 44. Years late, and costing a fortune.
My reading of the Jackal E order and perversely, the absence to date of an order for a medium lift Puma replacement suggests to me that they have actually decided what they want, in terms of Commando and Air Assault units, but are holding back on any announcement.
Details of the solution to the Warrior replacement problem are being carefully leaked. I notice Mark Francois MP was asking questions as to why journalists’ access to Ajax is being restricted. It does look as though Ares is the solution at least for the armoured infantry. As you say, it’s very frustrating.
Maybe as said, at RIAT, for political reasons.
When is anything positive for the military not for political reasons?
Considering that it is ONLY the typhoon that can deploy with the UKs full arsenal of advanced weaponry you’d think the MOD would be open to purchasing more- a tranche 4 order but with the ECR2 radar- the RAF urgently needs more top-end high performance aircraft and for all its talk of the F35- the F35 programme has singularly failed to live up to its promise – LM are to blame for an utter lack of UK weapon systems integration.
I think typhoon should get green light for a small additional batch of 20-35 aircraft AND pursue the Spanish tranche 2s which have had an easy service life so far to bolster the UK’s frontline fast jet fleet back to a more reasonable level, with some contingency reserve and the ability to forward deploy whole squadrons when needed and not just penny packet sized groups of typhoons. Those two solutions would be very easy wins for the RAF and are much needed.
It’s going to be years before the F35’s can carry the advanced weapon load that we want. Healey should order another two squadrons of Typhoon that can. Plus organise training for the pilots, GBAD, hardened hangars, dispersal sites and more ammunition. Lots more.
maybe order some more Typhoon for the RAF? rather than sell to Turkey which is run by a despot who repeatedly threatens Europe (Greece, Cyprus, migration blackmail, etc..) as well as actively support the Muslim Brotherhood who spawns terrorists like Hamas.
Agree!
And the additional manning magically comes from where? We are spending £2.34Bn upgrading our Typhoon fleet. Serious cash. Serious capability. Because that’s what counts. What you can do with them. And be willing to use them. Other nations might have a few more on paper.But we always deploy more and have greater effect when it counts. The strikes in Yemen being a perfect example.
All true mate, especially the willingness and ability/professionalism to use. But it is not always just that. When has HMG ever backed away from grandstanding on the world stage and said no? As a P5 member, we are almost obliged to. Agree it is better than just sitting looking pretty.
Another detail though, weren’t the Strikes on Yemen with 2 planes? Or was it 4? They talk of getting ready for state on state war, that number will not cut it.
I would also be delighted if they spent even a quarter of that securing the two runways that that force use.
Because once they are negated, then what? We saw it in Russia and in Iran.
It is worrying that on a rare occasion when UK military needs and UK. industrial benefits coincide, ie Typhoon, the government still cannot make an easy and obvious decision to order more. Instead of announcing the switch to F35A for the feeblest of reasons, ( odd how everything else is having to wait for the DIP) we should have ordered more Typhoons and advised LM that no more F 35 s would be ordered until integration of UK weapons had been achieved.
The government has agreed in principle to raise core defence spending to 3.5% of GDP. Increasing land based combat aircraft numbers to @ 200, would restore the fleet to 2010 levels, an obvious priority in improving both defensive and offensive air power.
Given the propensity of this government to lie, misrepresent, provide non answers, it isn’t worth listening to anything any minister says. Google AI would do better than the execrable Eagle.
Agreed.