Cambridge Airport: Hercules Servicing

28 May 2012, 11:17 | Updated: 28 May 2012, 11:23

Most of the work involving a new £350 million contract to maintain RAF aircraft will be done at Cambridge Airport.

According to The Ministry of Defence, the agreement between The MOD and Marshall Aerospace to service Hercules transport aircraft will sustain around 500 jobs across the country.

The majority of the work will be at the Marshall facility at Cambridge Airport [pictured - above right], but other parts of it will be done at Havant, Stansted, Gloucester, Filton, Hook, Croydon and Brize Norton.

The MOD also says the agreement will save taxpayers around £170 million by replacing a number of short term contracts with one to service the Hercules until the end of 2015.

Defence Equipment Minister Peter Luff said: "The Hercules aircraft is a key part of our long-range RAF air transport force and supports thousands of troops on operations across the globe.

This new agreement will not only save the taxpayer money but will also ensure the fleet has continued support to maintain aircraft availability, especially for Afghanistan.

The announcement of this contract is just part of the comprehensive regeneration of our Armed Forces' equipment that has been made possible thanks to the Government's balancing of the defence budget for the first time in a generation.''