DEFENCE group Meggitt has reaffirmed plans to accept a £6.3billion takeover bid from American business Parker-Hannifin.

Meggitt, which has a Meggitt Avionics site at Titchfield Park in Fareham, said the stock market’s takeover panel would set a deadline on another rival, TransDigm, to make its own £7bn bid binding.

The board said shareholders would be asked to vote on its proposed takeover on September 17 but suggested this could be delayed if TransDigm makes its own bid binding.

Parker, which already has operations in the UK employing around 2,000 people, has committed to maintain Meggitt’s headquarters in Coventry, to which it moved from Bournemouth Airport in 2020.

It has also agreed to continue to meet Meggitt’s government contractual obligations with the Ministry of Defence.

It has also said it would at least maintain Meggitt’s investment in UK research and development, with plans to increase this by 20 per cent over the next five years, subject to normal activity in the sector.

It comes after a period of turbulence during the pandemic, with Meggitt cutting 1,800 jobs last year across its global business after Covid-19 hit the travel sector.

The takeover of another UK defence firm, Ultra Electronics, by Dorset-based rival Cobham, is also closer to being sealed.

Cobham confirmed it had agreed a £2.57billion deal for Ultra and said it would agree to binding commitments to the UK government, which has been looking into the deal.