EU deal vital to aerospace sector

Aerospace bosses today stressed the need for the UK and EU to reach an agreement on a customs deal amid continuing high demand for new aircraft.

Last month saw 96 aircraft deliveries worth up to £2 billion to UK industry, taking the total deliveries for 2018 so far to 406, with a total value to the UK of up to £7.5bn, trade organisation ADS said.

Widebody orders have per- formed strongly in the year to date, it noted, with 127 orders between January and April – the highest number for this period in ten years.

ADS chief executive Paul Everitt said: “The global aerospace industry continues to grow to meet strong international demand for modern, efficient and technologically advanced aircraft.

“We expect 2018 will see a new record for deliveries, bringing billions of pounds in economic benefit to the UK.

“As production continues to be stepped up in the years to come, we must make sure we maximise our ability to compete for new investment in capacity to produce more of the wings, engines, avionics and other critical components we make so successfully today.

“April’s aircraft deliveries were worth up to £2bn to UK industry. It is vital for the UK and EU to reach an agreement on a customs deal that preserves friction-free crossborder trade and imposes no new burdens that could threaten future growth.”