A MAJOR boost for thousands of East Lancashire aerospace workers was announced today with news of a £1.2billion Eurofighter Typhoon order.

The contract to supply 60 aircraft to Greece is the first export order for the four nation fighter plane and includes an option to supply 30 more.

As well as providing work at BAE Systems sites at Samlesbury and Warton the deal will benefit dozens of supply firms.

East Lancashire involved in the Eurofighter Typhoon project include Rolls-Royce at Barnoldswick, Brookhouse Group of Darwen, Cleveland Guest of Colne, and Burnley firms Hurel Dubois, AIT and Pendle Aeroform.

BAE Systems said that the deal would be a boost both to its plants at Samlesbury and Warton where the £30 million fighters are built and to suppliers right across the UK.

Spokesman Mike Peters said: "As yet, we have not received official confirmation from Eurofighter, but it is very good news, not only for BAE Systems, but also for all the many suppliers to the aerospace industry in the UK.

"Eurofighter is an outstanding aircraft and we anticipate that there will be many more export sales."

Britain has 37 per cent of the Eurofighter project, which it has developed in partnership with Germany, Italy and Spain.

The four partner nations committed themselves in 1998 to buying 620 of the craft.

The Greek government announced its preference for Eurofighter in February last year, but its announcement that it will buy the planes, to be delivered between 2005 and 2009, will allow the process to move forward to an official contract signature.

Mr Peters said the decision would help safeguard existing jobs in the UK.

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