TECHNOLOGY - Sept. 15, 1992

Jet Sale May Save Jobs: Hughes Aircraft Co. said the proposed sale of 72 F-15XP fighter jets to Saudi Arabia could save about 200 jobs at its Fullerton plant.

The $5.6-billion deal with Saudi Arabia could preserve a total of 500 jobs for at least three years in the Orange County and El Segundo plants, where Hughes workers make radar systems for the F-15, a company spokesman said Monday.

The sale of the jets is not guaranteed. Israeli officials are protesting that the sale would accelerate an arms race in the Middle East and endanger their nation’s security.

The possibility of saving jobs offers a rare glimmer of hope at the Fullerton plant, where employment has steadily shrunk to about 7,000, from a peak of about 15,000 in 1987, because of defense cutbacks.

McDonnell Douglas Corp. is the prime contractor for the jet, which is assembled in St. Louis.