UNIONS reacted with fury yesterday after Airbus said it could pull out of the UK with the loss of thousands of jobs if Britain crashes out of the EU without a deal.

Airbus, which employs 15,000 people at 25 sites across the country, warned that this was “no idle threat”.

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Katherine Bennett, its senior vice president in the UK, said: “We don’t deal in idle threats. We seriously believe a no deal Brexit would be catastrophic.”

She said the government had been made well aware of the company’s views during “extensive and frank” discussions.

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Airbus has more than 4000 suppliers, and its warning applies to other sectors such as automotive.

The Unite union called on the government to stop the “infighting” and provide some certainty for British industry and millions of workers.

“It would be a betrayal of Airbus workers, their families and the tens of thousands of workers in the wider supply chain if the government failed to secure frictionless trade and access to the customs union and single market,” said assistant general secretary Steve Turner.

“The realities of a ‘cliff edge’ Brexit and its impact on jobs in manufacturing communities across the four nations of the UK are becoming closer by day.

“Airbus supports 110,000 jobs in the UK. Its stark warnings of the uncertainty facing the aerospace industry cannot be dismissed by ministers and ‘hard Brexiteers’.

“People voted to leave the European Union, but didn’t back leave to lose their jobs and see their livelihoods smashed on the cliff face of a ‘hard Brexit’.

“Theresa May needs to ask herself whether she is willing to lay waste to vibrant manufacturing communities on the altar of Conservative Party interests and Tory infighting.”

Carwyn Jones, Wales’s first minister, said the news was a culmination of what businesses have been saying in private for some time – that they are losing faith in the notion of a sensible outcome.

He said the situation was now critical and companies were making plans based on the worst-case scenario.

Tory former Welsh secretary Stephen Crabb said the firm’s warning should be a wake-up call for ministers.

“The enormous Airbus factory in North Wales is one of the jewels in the crown of UK manufacturing,” he said.

“A pragmatic, sensible Brexit that protects trade and jobs is vital.”

Shadow Brexit secretary Sir Keir Starmer said May needed to drop her Brexit “red lines”.

He said: “Ministers need to start listening to legitimate concerns of businesses and get a grip of the Brexit negotiations.”

Rachel Reeves, who chairs the Business Select Committee, added: “This is not project fear – it is economic reality.

“Multinational companies will base themselves in countries with easy trading links and the right skills and infrastructure.

“The government needs to provide certainty that the UK fits the bill.”