The Eurofighter Consortium, which comprises BAE Systems, Airbus Defence & Space and Alenia Aermacchi, says that Kuwait is to buy 28 Typhoon fighter planes.

It “welcomes Kuwait agreeing to become its eighth customer, alongside Germany, the UK, Italy, Spain, Austria, Saudi Arabia and Oman”.

The deal is said to be worth 8 billion euros (£5.8 billion). A spokesman for BAE Systems said that the company’s Warton site in Lancashire will support the contract by supplying the front fuselage, the vertical tail and some of the detailed manufacturing work for all 28 planes.

The company had previously said that it would close the site in 2018 if no more export orders were received.

Securing further Typhoon orders is also said to be “critical” to BAE achieving its full-year profit targets, with chief executive Ian King saying recently that “finding more buyers is essential to our growth plans.

We have always said that the second half of this year was important to Typhoon. We want to have continuous production.

At a ceremony to celebrate the new order, he added: “We welcome this agreement between Italy and Kuwait for the supply of 28 Typhoons. Kuwait will be the third country in the Middle East — and the eighth country overall — to operate the aircraft. This confirms Typhoon’s position as the most advanced new-generation ‘swing role’ combat aircraft available today.”

Alberto Gutierrez, chief executive of the Eurofighter Consortium, said: “This new agreement confirms the superiority of the Eurofighter over its competitors and will provide a great opportunity for further orders. We are delighted to welcome Kuwait as the newest member of our Eurofighter Typhoon family.”

The order comes at an important time for the aircraft, according to Justin Bronk, air-power specialist at the Royal United Services Institute ‘think tank’. He said: “After the United Arab Emirates said ‘no’ to ordering 60 of the highest-specification Typhoons on price grounds, the Kuwait order is potentially very significant.

"There is speculation that if another Gulf-region customer is found, the UAE is likely to return to the negotiating table. Now that flaws with the aircraft have been solved, winning this order creates momentum that is likely to help it win other sales”.