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UK union urges additional Eurofighter buy

By Gareth Jennings |

An RAF Eurofighter Typhoon being displayed at the RIAT airshow in 2024. The Unite union has called on the UK government to buy more such aircraft to maintain the country's defence aviation manufacturing sector. (Janes/Gareth Jennings)

The trade union that represents manufacturing workers across the United Kingdom has urged the country's government to place a follow-on order of Eurofighter Typhoon combat aircraft to help secure jobs within the defence aviation sector.

The House of Commons Defence Committee (HCDC) noted in its The Global Combat Air Programme report published on 14 January that the Unite union had written it in late 2024, calling on the government to buy more aircraft to safeguard jobs at BAE Systems' Warton production facility in northern England.

“Union representatives at [Warton] wrote to us in November 2024 to warn that ‘there are currently no Typhoons being final assembled at [the] Warton site and no orders for any future aircraft, essentially production has stopped for British built Typhoon aircraft.' They called for the UK government to place a further order for 24 aircraft, arguing that this would fulfil a military requirement, maintain industrial capacity, and also encourage export orders from other nations,” the HCDC said.

Partner countries

In making its call to the HCDC, Unite is trying to bring the UK into line with the other three Eurofighter partner countries of Germany, Italy, and Spain, who have each ordered additional Eurofighters over recent years, months, and weeks.

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