UK defence firm BAE Systems PLC (LON:BA) is reportedly set to reveal plans to slash more than 1,000 jobs this week.
The job cuts will mainly affect BAE’s Warton plant in Preston, Lancashire, where it assembles the Eurofighter Typhoon jet, Sky News reported.
The decision to reduce the headcount is understood to be largely as a result of slowdown in production of the Typhoon amid uncertainty over the timing of an expected major order from Saudi Arabia.
BAE has won fewer orders won for the Typhoon this year than rival Rafale built by France’s Dassault Aviation.
In August the company said any new orders were unlikely to impact production rates positively for at least 24 months and that it would continue to review production. A month later, however, the group said it had secured an order for 24 of the combat aircraft from Qatar.
The announcement of the job cuts is expected to be made tomorrow when the company releases a trading update. However, a source indicated to Sky that BAE may bring forward the announcement to later today due to the result of their early disclosure.
BAE, which employs 34,600 people in the UK, said in a statement: "BAE Systems continually reviews its operations to make sure we are performing as effectively and efficiently as possible, delivering our commitments to existing customers and ensuring we are best placed to secure future business.
It added: "If and when there are any changes proposed we are committed to communicating with our employees and their representatives first."