LANCASHIRE'S aerospace industry was celebrating a massive boost today thanks to a pledge from Emirates airlines to spend £10 billion on new planes.

Both BAE Systems and Rolls-Royce stand to make millions from the order, which is believed to be the largest yet placed by a single carrier.

The news follows last week's announcement that BAE was part of the winning team that had secured the £200 billion contract to build the next generation of strike fighters.

Dubai's national airline wants to more than double the size of its fleet as it looks to meet an expected surge in tourists visiting the Gulf state.

Rolls-Royce has already been given the £35 million contract to supply its Trent engines for the three A330 jets.

But as Emirates' main supplier, it is in pole position to win deals to power the remaining 55 aircraft, which will be built over the next eight years.

The news from Dubai will be a massive tonic to Rolls-Royce's workers in Barnoldswick who are still waiting to hear if they will be hit by the 3,800 jobs being cut as a result of the impact of the September 11 atrocities.

And the orders are also good news for the BAE workers at Samlesbury where wings for the Airbus consortium are manufactured.

Emirates' managing director Maurice Flanagan said 15 million tourists were expected to visit Dubai by 2010, compared to just 3.7 million two years ago.

Dubai's royal family is ploughing money into the country's infrastructure to ensure it develops its role as a business and tourist hub in coming years.

Mr Flanagan added the order reflected the airline's faith that the airline industry would recover from the shock of September 11.

While Emirates' European routes had been affected, he said passengers were now coming back, with demand for tickets running high.

"The whole industry is cyclical and was hitting the bottom before September 11," he added.

"We don't go along with the doomsday scenario people are painting. It will come back, passengers are intrepid people."

A spokesman for Rolls-Royce, however, said the group would be fighting hard for the business.

"We expect the usual level of intense rivalry but as far as we are concerned the orders are there to be won," he said.