Phoenix will rise (From Barry And District News)

Phoenix will rise

BARRY'S military base at St Athan has had its death sentence lifted. A massive new development hoped to create more than 2000 new jobs has been given the go-ahead.

Operation Red Dragon was given the green light by the Minister for Armed Forces, Adam Ingram, and the Welsh Development Agency's (WDA) chief executive Graham Hawker at the RAF base yesterday (Wednesday).

Chief executive of the Defence Aviation Repair Agency (DARA) Steve Hill, said: "RAF St Athan was built between 1938 and 1940. It was designed to withstand German bombings, and apart from the building we're in today, there's been virtually no change. Operation Red Dragon pulls together the scattered buildings and a modern phoenix will rise out of the ashes."

The new super-hanger will be the first flexible hanger in the world, with the capacity to hold 50 high speed jets at once.

The project will consolidate DARA on one site and free up ground for a planned aerospace park, attracting national and international business.

Vale of Glamorgan MP John Smith said: "This massive investment in St Athan, which is the biggest military base in Europe, should secure existing jobs and allow new aerospace enterprises to flourish."

Ken Woolley, 48, from Bridgend, is a DARA technician working on Tornadoes. He said: "We've been waiting to hear for six months, and there have been a lot of changes. But we've been committed to DARA and knowing our jobs are secure is a relief."

The WDA's chief executive said: "We have not conducted any active marketing but can reveal we have already had six serious enquiries from interested businesses. The sky really is the limit."

Steve Hill added: "Detailed design work has already been carried out and we are now inviting companies to enter tenders. We hope to have a contract by November and the building completed by May 2004."