British Aerospace - UK
British Aerospace logo
British Aerospace (BAe) was formed as a statutory corporation on 29th April 1977 as a result of the Aircraft and Shipbuilders Industries Act of the same year. The company brought together the British Aircraft Corporation, Hawker Siddeley Aviation, Hawker Siddeley Dynamics and Scottish Aviation.
In February 1981, the British Government sold 51.57% its shares in British Aerospace in order to return the company to private ownership. The remaining shares were finally sold in April 1985 but the government retained a single, £1 'Golden share' that would allow it to veto any possibility of foreign ownership.
In 1986, British Aerospace became a lead partner in Eurofighter GmbH along with Alenia Aeronautica, CASA and DASA for the development and production of the Eurofighter Typhoon. A year later it acquired Royal Ordnance, the government-owned British armaments manufacturer, which continues today as BAE Systems Global Combat Systems Munitions.
In a surprising move, British Aerospace then acquired The Rover Group after the troubled car maker was privatised by the government and split away from its British Leyland roots. Withinthree years however, British Aerospace faced troubled times with difficult ventures into telecommunications (Hutchinson Telecommunications – Orange Plc) and naval systems (SEMA). One of the major casualties was the former Vickers / BAC Factory at Brooklands in Weybridge, ending aircraft manfacturing here after over 80 years.
Major restructuring of the Board and rationalisation of many remaining historic manufacturing sites followed including the sale of non-core business interests such as Rover (to BMW in 1994) and its portfolio of property management and development companies.
The company continued to invest, not only in new technologies but also in its existing range of services and products such as the BAe Harrier and Hawk military jets and its range of 146 and Jetstream civil aircraft.
BAe Dunsfold Hangars & Harrier
By 1996, things were back on track and saw the introduction of a number of mutually beneficial joint ventures such as a development and marketing agreement for the SAAB JAS 39 Gripen aircraft and the initial programme with Lockheed Martin for the Joint Strike Fighter (JSF), now better known as the F-35 Lightning II.
For the remainder of the decade, British Aerospace continued to develop strong partnerships in the aviation, space and defence industries.
In 1999, British Aerospace merged with Marconi Electronic Systems to form BAE Systems.
Genealogy
| British Aircraft Corporation | |
| Hawker Siddeley Aviation | |
| Hawker Siddeley Dynamics | |
| Scottish Aviation | |
| 1977 | British Aerospace |
| 1999 | BAE Systems |
Aircraft
| 1981 | BAe 146 | 1986 | EAP |
| 1986 | BAe ATP / Jetstream 61 | 1994 | Eurofighter Typhoon |
| 1979 | Panavia Tornado |
