He also questioned whether the treaties were legally binding, whether they could change every five years as the countries' military capabilities changed and queried whether the deals could jeopardise the UK's relationship with the US - Dr Fox said the Americans had been fully consulted and were happy with the agreement.

BBC: Cameron and Sarkozy hail UK-France defence treaties

The scale of the clear-out shows just how panicked Boeing is about anything that might jeopardise its relationship with the American government, its most important customer.

ECONOMIST: Boeing, Boeing, gone | The