The Ministry of Defence is due to announce before the end of the year whether Cosford has won a contract which would attract millions of pounds of investment to the region. The rival bidder is RAF St Athan, South Wales.

The document, containing supportive comments from cross-party MPs, councillors and Express & Star readers was presented to No 10 by London Editor John Hipwood.

Setting out the Case for Cosford to Prime Minister Tony Blair, Express & Star editor Adrian Faber describes the West Midlands’ pride in and affection for the base.

But he adds: “We understand that the winner of the Government’s training contract will be chosen on hard facts, not on sentimental argument.

“We believe RAF Cosford is simply better suited than St Athan.

“Four million people live within one hour’s drive of Cosford, compared with one million for St Athan.

“Cosford has one of the largest pools of skilled labour in the country, and 176,000 students attend the region’s universities – 14,000 of them reading engineering or technology.

“And the bid has the support of everyone from veterans groups to politicians of all parties and universities in Wolverhampton and Birmingham.”

Mr Faber urges the Prime Minister to read the document, weigh up the evidence and “make the correct decision”.

By London Editor John Hipwood