Fokker denies staff cuts would follow takeover

FOKKER, the Dutch aircraft manufacturer, has said that there would be no compulsory redundancies following the planned takeover of the company by Deutsche Aerospace (Dasa), part of the Daimler-Benz group, writes Mary Fagan.

The company also denied reports that it would have to reduce the workforce by 5,000 should the takeover fail to go ahead. However, Fokker acknowledged that overcapacity in the international aircraft market meant a short-term reduction in production of the Fokker 100 was 'inevitable'.

The ailing aircraft manufacturer has been at the centre of controversy since it approached the state-owned Nationale Investeringsbank for a loan of almost 1bn guilders ( pounds 385m).

The announcement of the loan request earlier this month fuelled speculation that Dasa is losing interest in the takeover. This was denied by the German group.

In October, Dasa said it would take a 51 per cent stake in Fokker for DM800m (pounds 339m). It is believed that the agreement is being re-examined and could be restructured on the grounds that Fokker's financial position may have deteriorated. The original deal involved a capital injection from the Dutch authorities.