US plane maker Boeing has announced it intends to build a new £100 million facility for a new fleet of spy planes at RAF Lossiemouth in Moray.

The site will be the home of the new fleet of nine P-8A Poseidon military aircraft ordered by the UK government last year.

Boeing said the deal will create more than 100 new jobs.

The firm also pledged to make the UK its European base for the training, maintenance, repair and overhaul of fixed-wing and rotary platforms for the firm.

The expansion plans will effectively double the number of people it employs in the UK to around 4,000.

The P-8A Poseidon planes, announced as part of the Strategic Defence and Security Review last November, will replace the UK’s fleet of Nimrod surveillance aircraft which were based at RAF Kinloss until they were scrapped in 2010.

Prime Minister David Cameron said: “I want the UK to continue to be at the forefront of the global aerospace industry, both civil and defence.

“That’s why I’m delighted that we can announce today a long-term strategic initiative with Boeing that will create thousands of jobs, secure investment in R&D and create opportunities for the supply chain, as well as delivering on our defence commitments.

“Boeing is one of the world’s most respected aerospace companies. This long-term commitment shows the UK is open for business, and attractive for investment.”

Boeing chairman Dennis Muilenburg said: “Boeing is committed to the UK government’s prosperity agenda and we share the goals of enhanced economic growth that the Prime Minister has set out to us.”