London  - European aircraft manufacturer Airbus sold part of its manufacturing site in Britain Monday to engineering giant GKN for 136 million pounds (243 million dollars) as the government revealed it had agreed to give financial backing for the deal.

GNK, one of Britain's leading engineering firms, is to acquire the manufacturing operation at the site in Filton, near Bristol, in western England, where wing components for the Airbus are made.

Business Secretary John Hutton said the government had agreed, in principle, to support GKN with a repayable launch investment of 60 million pounds.

In addition, 50 million pounds will be made available over the next five years for research and technology to support a number of Airbus projects, the government said.

Trade unions welcomed the sale of the unit, where about 1,500 of Filton's 5,000 employees work.

The factory was put up for sale by Airbus's parent, EADS, as part of its Power8 restructuring programme, and is seen as a commitment by Airbus to involve the British site in future work on the A350 long- range aircraft. (dpa)