BRITISH Aerospace has upped the stakes in its bid to sell Hawk training jets to Australia by promising that companies there would get more than £500 million in benefits under the contract.
The company said 700 jobs and more than a billion dollars would be involved if the Australian air force chose the Hawk.
BAe said Australia would also gain tooling capability expertise and the ability to exploit the Asian market as an expert servicer and component manufacturer.
Lancashire-built Hawks are already on duty in Malaysia and are soon to take off in Indonesia.
Qantas Airways is the biggest of the 16 Australian companies working with British Aerospace on the bid to replace Australia's ageing Italian-designed Macchi fleet with up to 40 Lead-In Fighter Hawk aircraft.
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