£1bn Virgin deal is boost for BAE jobs

[avt100]

<a href="http://luchtvaart.pagina.nl" target="_blank">AVNEWS source</a>

Hundreds of Lancashire aerospace jobs could be safeguarded after Sir Richard Branson's airline Virgin Atlantic confirmed a £1bn order for planes.

Virgin is taking 10 Airbus A340-600s, which have wings made by UK company BAE Systems and are powered by Rolls-Royce engines.

BAE Systems, which employs thousands of workers at its two Lancashire plants, has a 20% stake in Airbus.

The deal means around 450 jobs could be protected at BAE Systems' Samlesbury site, near Preston, which makes the wing components for the Airbus consortium.

A spokeswoman for BAE's Airbus UK, believes the order could help secure Airbus consortium jobs across the country.

She said: "Virgin has completed an order it placed several years ago for 10 A340-600, a very long range aircraft." Virgin is the launch customer for the new 319-seat long-haul aircraft and the first of the planes will enter service with the company in June.

Three more will be delivered by October and a further six by 2006. Virgin will fly the new four-engined planes on American West Coast routes and to the Far East.

The new planes, which have a range of more than 7,000 miles, will replace Virgin's current A340-300 fleet.

A spokesman for Amicus, the main union at Virgin, BAE and Rolls-Royce, said: "This great news is a vindication of the partnership agreement signed between us and Virgin.

"It underlines our warning to BAE and Rolls-Royce not to undermine their skills base through panic job cuts post September 11."

[thegypsy]

I thought Branson was trying to get out of taking these A340-600.

Perhaps the large Pay Cut in S.I.A. throughout the company means they can now pay for them!!???

This paycut was basically imposed on staff after the magnificent gesture by the SIA CEO Dr Cheong taking a 15% Paycut , having awarded himself a huge increase the year before and having been responsible for single handledly losing $2 BILLION through his reckless investments in Virgin and Air New Zealand. Lets not forget he would have lost a further $300 MILLION if he had had his way and got 50% of Ansett which he was pipped to the post by ANZ having the first option!!!

In any other part of the world he would now be spending more time with his family, but he cannot lose face so he persists in saying his strategy in investing in minority equity stakes in other Airlines is the right one. Has he ever heard of SWISSAIR????!!!!

[EX FTE]

Always find these press releases amusing:

Check the wording - it says the order could secure job. Not will. Could. And it is an order that was placed years ago and was on the brink of cancellation last year. This is simply Virgin saying, oh go on then we will take what we ordered after all!

Not a new order. Not an increased order. Not really a news story is it? Surely it is not some attempt at free publicity?????

[thegypsy]

As is well known this was an order placed a long time ago with Virgin as the launch customer. They tried to get out of taking these aircraft but I guess they just passed the point of no return and would have had to pay huge sums of money which either Branson has but will not pay and as SIA no longer have $2BILLION in the bank any more thanks to reckless investments by SIA in Virgin and Air New Zealand then the aircraft will arrive after all . Not a news item at all.

[Erling Flett]

:) It may not be "new",but it became (somehow!!) a "news item"..now that IS undeniable.Sorry if it sticks in your throats guys but to many people that would be seen as positive reporting-and what's wrong with that?. .Surely this sort of thing has got to be seen as encouraging in this industry of ours which has taken such a battering in recent times.. .Why do you feel the need to knock it,EXFTE and Gypo?....just that good old British trait I suppose....