Meggitt became the latest company to respond to the downturn in the civil aerospace market by announcing plans for a cost-cutting programme expected to yield annual savings of £50m by the end of 2010.

Terry Twigger, chief executive of the aerospace and defence equipment supplier, said the programme had been put in place as a “planning benchmark” in case there is a “very marked” deterioration in the civil markets. Meggitt supplies wheels and braking systems to business jets, and also supplies aircraft makers Airbus and Boeing with devices such as flight displays.