DEFENCE giant BAE Systems has confirmed that 26 jobs are being axed at their Essex site.

The news comes as the company yesterday confirmed that almost 3,000 employees are being made redundant across the country, mainly in its military aircraft division.

It said 26 of these jobs will be lost at the company’s Advanced Technology Centre in Great Baddow, on West Hanningfield Road just outside Chelmsford.

The biggest job cuts will be at sites in Warton and Samlesbury in Lancashire and at Brough in East Yorkshire, although jobs will also be lost at the firm’s head office in Hampshire.

The firm ended days of speculation by giving details of a huge redundancy programme, saying it needed to maintain competitiveness.

Chelmsford Borough Council’s cabinet member for economic development, Neil Gulliver, said the job losses would be devastating news for the families involved, but it was important to keep looking ahead.

“It is 26 lives that have been impacted on today so that only doubles my efforts to try and bring more business into Essex. It’s not all bad news, we have a John Lewis coming to Chelmsford that will create 800 jobs, but it’s a serious blow for those families affected by today’s news.”