Troops radio deal 'secures jobs'

The system provides secure radio links to soldiers in the field

Two defence contracts worth £231m to upgrade a military communication system have been awarded to a plant in Wales safeguarding hundreds of hi-tech jobs.

Staff at General Dynamics UK in Oakdale, south Wales, will work on the upgrade, said the Ministry of Defence (MoD).

Around 800 people are employed at the site with half expected to work on the new contracts.

All three armed services use the communication system involved.

The first contract, worth £119m aims to update and refresh the system's capabilities over its lifetime to reflect advances in technology.

The second contract, valued at £112m, aims to provide longer term technical support for the Bowman system, including repair, servicing and the provision of spares.

The MoD said the £1.8bn Bowman programme introduced in 2001 directly or indirectly sustains more than 1,000 jobs across the UK and has allowed General Dynamics to create more than 800 jobs in Wales.

General Dynamics said more than half its staff in Wales were graduate engineers and it expected 400 staff to work on the projects signed on Thursday.

Around 12,500 British Army vehicles are kitted out with the digital communications system, which pinpoints the user's location as well providing secure radio links.

The system is being rolled out to Royal Navy ships, the Royal Marines, the RAF Regiment and specialist Army signals units.

General Dynamics UK president and managing director Dr Sandy Wilson said the Bowman project was a good example of the "industrial benefit to the UK" of its partnership with the MoD.

He said: "Bowman has allowed General Dynamics UK to grow a valuable engineering capability in communications and vehicle integration."

Defence Minister Quentin Davies MP is expected to visit the plant on Thursday to announce the contracts.