Rolls-Royce workers at Barnoldswick were celebrating today after the company announced that it had won the first order for its new Trent 1000 engine.

The order has come from Air New Zealand which has also made the Trent 800 - being developed for the Boeing 7E7 Dreamliner - the engine of choice to power the eight Boeing 777-200ER aircraft it has ordered.

The two Rolls-Royce factories in Barnoldswick, which employ more than 800 people, make the fan blades for the Trent series of engines. While the Air New Zealand order will not create any new jobs, a company spokesman said it would help safeguard the future of the plants' employees.

Air New Zealand's decision to use the Trent 1000 engine to power its two 7E7s provides Rolls-Royce with the first engine order for the new twin-jet.

Charles Cuddington, of Rolls-Royce, said: "We're delighted by Air New Zealand's decision to become a first-time Trent operator.

They set the pace with their 7E7 engine selection and also placed a significant vote of confidence in the Trent programme with their engine choice for the 777s."

Rolls-Royce is currently in the preliminary design stage of the Trent 1000 which is due for completion by the end of this year. The first development engine is scheduled to run in 2006, with engine certification by the airworthiness authorities coming in 2007.