HUNDREDS of Lancashire aerospace workers are heading to the House of Commons in a bid to save jobs.

The move comes as BAE Systems confirmed that 880 jobs are to go from its Samlesbury and Warton sites.

Last month the firm said 755 were being axed together with an unknown number of staff in support and operations departments. Now the figure has been confirmed at 880.

Although many of the jobs will go through voluntary methods unions fear compulsory redundancies .

The firm said the cuts, which are coming after its merger with Marconi, are necessary for it to be competitive in the worldwide aerospace industry. Today announced it was buying the aerospace electronics business of US rival Lockheed Martin for £1.1 billion. Meanwhile union leaders have organised a mass lobby next Tuesday involving 1,000 members from across the country to protest against the losses and try and win Government support for their campaign.

"We are absolutely opposed to any compulsory redundancies," said Neil Sheehan, Samlesbury based chairman of the Trades Union delegate commitee, one of 350 locally who will be joining lobby..

"The cuts have come on the back of the Government recently giving £530million aid for the Airbus A3XX. We are concerned that only UK sites are affected and overseas sites, which form 40 per cent of the company, left untouched."

"People who have given years of service to the company are now being cast aside for corporate greed."

They also believe more redundancies are in the pipeline, particularly in manufacturing and fear work will increasingly be heading overseas.