WORCESTERSHIRE companies have had a hand in building one of the world's leading fighter aircraft.

Superform Aluminium of Cosgrove Close, Worcester and fuel, air and hydraulic system components supplier Eaton, which is based in Redditch, are among 26 companies from the West Midlands, which last year shared £9m worth of supply chain orders for the Eurofighter Typhoon programme. The project involved a four-nation consortium and the jet is flown by air forces across the globe including the RAF.

Chris Boardman, managing director of BAE Systems Military Air and Information business, said the figures underlined the importance of the Typhoon programme to the UK economy as well as supplying cutting-edge technology to the nation’s armed forces.

He added: "When we see one of the RAF’s elite pilots take to the air in a Typhoon, it is the collective achievement of thousands of people across the country whose day-to-day jobs make it happen. From Leith in Scotland to Christchurch on the South Coast and Cambridge in the east right out to Tewkesbury in the South West, the programme is supporting highly-skilled people which make our supply chain tick. We recognise the value these people bring to our business and work closely with them to help them invest in their people and technology. This way we can not only ensure Typhoon is a world-leading product, but that UK plc retains the talent and capability which has kept it at the cutting edge for so many generations.”

The Typhoon consortium includes BAE Systems in the UK, Airbus in Germany, Spanish firm Cassidian and Alenia Aermacchi in Italy.