4000 defence jobs threatened

DARA was to get the contract to service the tornado aircraft

Breakfast has discovered that up to four thousand defence industry jobs are under threat because a high-profile Ministry of Defence project may be scrapped, only months after being launched.

In today's exclusive story, a senior figure in the Defence Industry has told the BBC that workers at aircraft servicing plants in Wales, England and Scotland may lose their jobs.

Assurances were given by the Armed Forces Minister - Adam Ingram in February that the "Red Dragon Project" - a multi-million pound scheme to refurbish and maintain RAF aircraft - had got government approval.

But now the BBC has been told by senior sources within the MOD that officials there intend to renege on the "Red Dragon" project.

After a high-level review, they have decided to service and repair planes at existing RAF bases with immediate effect - not to send them to the planned the Defence Aviation Repair Agency (DARA) aviation park in St Athan.

Not only does that contradict earlier assurances given by Ministers but it threatens the very existence of DARA and its 4,000 workers in the UK.

High profile project

DARA was set up in 1999 as a stand-alone company from the MOD and was one the government's high-profile PPP projects.

But it's future could only be guaranteed through "Red Dragon", which included the building of a £77m high-tech maintenance centre and super-hangar.

The plan was that, off the back of the MOD contracts, civil aviation companies and other aviation businesses would use the services at St Athan.

None of that will happen, and most of the 4,000 jobs at DARA will be lost, if the MOD gets its way and Red Dragon is scrapped.

The final decision still lies with the government - It has to approve or throw out the MOD review but from what we can reveal, it's quite clear what RAF chiefs and senior officials in the MOD want. .